Japan Rugby League One 2025-26 Season Preview

The Stories within ‘The Story’

Richie Mo’unga for the title hattrick? Is this Dave Rennie’s time? A new boss at the Wild Knights? Will Mark Telea
be the new Joseph Manu? Can Valynce Te Whare keep running around like his hair is on fire, lighting up YouTube
as well as the Blue Revs semi-final prospects?
The fifth edition of Japan Rugby League One certainly won’t lack in subplots when it kicks off on December 13
with champions Toshiba Brave Lupus Tokyo facing old rivals Saitama Panasonic Wild Knights on the opening
weekend.

The two most successful clubs since a nationwide round robin league was first introduced in 2003 – with 13 titles
between them – the pair have been the standard bearers since League One was inaugurated in 2021, scooping
three of the four titles, while collectively winning 117 of their 146 matches.
Brave Lupus, led by Mo’unga, start the season as favourites, but in a league where the largest winning margin
thus far in a Division One final is just five points, achieving three titles in-a-row won’t be easy.
Both sides have had significant off-season change in personnel, with Brave Lupus coach Todd Blackadder losing
the services of his outstanding test second rower Warner Dearns to Super Rugby on a season-long loan to the
(Wellington) Hurricanes.
Long-serving hooker Mamoru Harada is also trying his hand in Super Rugby, having joined Moana Pasifika.
While the Wild Knights have a stable playing roster, five-time title-winning coach Robbie Deans will no longer be
directing things from the coaching box, handing over to his former assistant Atsushi Kanazawa at the six-time
champions, with former clubmen and test internationals Shota Horie and Berrick Barnes also on the coaching
staff.

The inaugural League One winners failed to reach the competition’s championship game for the first time last
term, during a campaign in which they came up short on six occasions, with four losses alongside two draws.
That was more reverses than the Wild Knights had suffered in the first three years of League One combined.
Kobelco Kobe Steelers beat the Wild Knights in last season's playoff for third and their re-signing of outstanding
All Black backrower Ardie Savea, alongside his test teammate Anton Lienert-Brown, is a statement of intent.
Savea played 15 matches for the Kansai-based club while on sabbatical three years ago and his presence –
alongside Pieter Steph du Toit at Toyota Verblitz, and the recently crowned Malcolm Marx at Kubota Spears
Funabashi Tokyo Bay – means that the last three World Rugby Players of the year will all feature in League One.
Kobe are not the only ones who have been proactive on the recruitment front.
The bulldozing Telea is a new arrival at Verblitz, his former All Black teammate Shaun Stevenson is now fulltime
at the Spears, while the Fijian test pairing of winger Semi Radradra and hooker Tevita Ikanivere have joined
Shizuoka Blue Revs and Mie Honda Heat respectively.
Springbok centre Lukanyo Am is back, linking with Mitsubishi Sagamihara Dynaboars after playing six games for

Kobe four years ago, while there have been some interesting moves on the coaching front too, the most eye-
catching of which has seen Munster’s former United Rugby Championship winner, Graham Rowntree, touch down

at Urayasu D-Rocks.
Although Urayasu’s pre-season results have been promising, the vastly experienced Englishman’s task is a big one,
after the club narrowly avoided relegation last term.
Further down Tokyo Bay, ex-(Auckland) Blues coach Leon MacDonald has arrived in Yokohama, assuming
command after the Eagles fell to eighth in the 2024-25 season, following back-to-back semi-final appearances.
An increasingly competitive Division Two is also attracting top draw talent.
Springbok flyhalf Manie Libbok and All Black centre Peter Umaga-Jensen are Osaka bound, where they will team
with All Black backrower Akira Ioane at the Hanazono Kintetsu Liners, replacing veteran Wallabies Quade Cooper
and Will Genia respectively.

Libboks’ arrival brings to 12 the number of representatives from the world champion Springboks who will feature
in Japan.
Toyota Industries Shuttles Aichi, who edged Kintetsu to win the section last term, have turned to Australia to
replace their key player, flyhalf Freddie Burnes.
The Englishman steered the Shuttles to the cusp of promotion last season before a narrow loss to D-Rocks in the
playoffs, and he leaves big shoes for Wallaby Noah Lolesio and dual Australian and Samoan international Christian
Leali’ifano to fill.

The pair are among more than 50 foreign capped test players who will feature in League One, with many coming
directly from Europe after having completed test commitments with their countries.
Argentina, Australia, Fiji, New Zealand, Samoa, Scotland, South Africa and Tonga all featured players in the autumn
who had appeared in League One earlier in the year, while test capped players from Italy, England and Ireland are
also on the starting line this time.
After the successful introduction of a six team playoff series for Division One last season, the format has been
retained, while there are two promotion/relegation playoffs between each division.
Twelve teams compete in the top tier while Division Two features eight teams, and Division Three, six.