Former Japan captain Pieter Lappies Labuschagné has been appointed as a defence coach for one of the game’s most renowned schoolboy rugby powerhouses in Bloemfontein. Labuschagné, 37, who left Kubota Spears in June after 10 seasons with the Funabashi-based club, will be part of a new-look coaching team for his former college’s u15 team. Ex-Portugal forward Nelio de Sa and Shimlas assistant coach Chase Morison will join the former Sunwolves loose forward after being recruited

Japan head coach Eddie Jones believes that their super-fast brand of rugby can make the Brave Blossoms the team that everyone wants to watch at the 2027 Rugby World Cup. Jones’ vastly-improved side has turned a corner this year, winning their first Pacific Nations Cup (PNC) title since 2019 following hard-fought 20-15 win against Fiji in September. The 2019 Rugby World Cup quarter-finalists had made a dream start to the inaugural Nations Championship by beating Italy 27-10 in

Former Toulouse star Naoto Saito has replaced All Blacks centurion Sam Cane as Suntory Sungoliath’s captain for the 2026-2027 season. The two-time Top 14 winner, 29, has returned to Fuchu-based Suntory this summer after two seasons in France with star-studded Toulouse. Saito playing against Toyota in 2024 - © JRLO Saito captained Eddie Jones’ Japan to Pacific Nations Cup glory this month in the absence of Super Rugby winner Warner Dearns who was rested. The ex-Sunwolves scrum

League One side Honda Heat’s off-season has been more eventful than most sides having relocated 300 miles in a move designed to turn the club into championship contenders. Formerly known as the Mie Honda Heat, the division one side – who are owned and operated by Japanese multinational conglomerate automotive manufacturer Honda - has relocated from Mie, Suzuka, a city which stages the annual F1 Grand Prix at the Honda-owned racetrack, to Utsunomiya in Tochigi Prefecture. Mate

New Japan national team assistant coach Glen Jackson will take a brief spell away from his role next year after agreeing a deal to coach California Legion in Major League Rugby (MLR). Former Fijian Drua head coach Jackson, who RugbyJP.com revealed had joined Eddie Jones’ coaching team in July, will leave his Brave Blossoms role from March to June 2027 before rejoining the national team through to the end of the Rugby World Cup in Australia. The former international referee’s

Japan head coach Eddie Jones today provided an evaluation of his vastly improved side 24 hours after their Pacific Nations Cup (PNC) final win over Fiji, while outlining plans to scour the globe for try-scoring wingers to add to his squad. Two-time former Wallabies head coach Jones, 66, led the Brave Blossoms to their first PNC title since 2019 with a gritty 20-15 triumph over undermanned Fiji in front of 17,421 fans at Tokyo’s Chichibunomiya Rugby Stadium. Jones addressed th

From having back-to-back clubs disband to being teammates with World Cup winners Cheslin Kolbe and Sam Cane and now a free agent at 32, ex-Suntory Sungoliath scrum-half Takahiro Kimura’s career has reached a crossroads. A former Japan u20s international, Kimura, is unwavering in his desire to continue to playing as he shows only tenacity during the most tumultuous of times. “I can’t see myself retiring,” the Fukuoka native told RugbyJP.com. Reinforcing his positive words, he

Saitama Wild Knights and Japan star Dylan Riley has become the latest Brave Blossoms international to join award-winning Japanese sports nutrition and supplement brand HALEO. South Africa-born centre Riley, 29, is a key player for club and country, winning 43 caps for his adopted nation who he qualifies for on residency grounds. The former Australia u20s international, who scored the match-winning try in the inaugural Japan Rugby League One final in front of 33,000 fans in 20

Former Ospreys and Wales u20s centre Tiaan Thomas-Wheeler could be a potential bolter for Eddie Jones' Japan squad for the 2027 Rugby World Cup in Australia. The Neath-born midfielder, 26, made his debut for the Ospreys at 18 in the Anglo Welsh Cup and went on to make 57 appearances for the Swansea-based region. © JRLO Thomas-Wheeler, who stands at 6ft 4in and weighs 16 stone, scored a match-winning try for Wales against New Zealand at the 2019 World Rugby u20s Championship a

RugbyJP.com has compiled a 12-man list of high-profile Japan Rugby League One players who could potentially switch Test nations in the 2026/2027 season. Toyota's Mark Tele'a and Suntory's Kotaro Matsushima contest a high ball - © JRLO Notes: This is a list of players who have the possibility of changing nations (as it stands) providing they complete a mandatory three-year stand down period from their last Test match. All requests for a change in nationality are subject to app

Japan starlet Ryunosuke Ito’s first professional club will be Eddie Jones and Beauden Barrett’s ex-side Tokyo Suntory Sungoliath, RugbyJP.com can exclusively reveal. Meiji University fly-half Ito, 21, was a revelation for his country in the Nations Championship as he made his Test debut in the Brave Blossoms’ impressive season-opening win against Italy. The precocious Kanagawa native, who led his University side to All-Japan University Rugby Football Championship glory in Jan

Meiji University fly-half Ryunosuke Ito has shone for Japan in his three Nations Championship appearances as Brave Blossoms coach Eddie Jones has successfully unearthed his latest wonderkid. Ito caught the eye with an assured Japan debut as the hosts impressively beat Italy 27-10 at a sold out Chichibunomiya Rugby Stadium in Tokyo in the opening round of the new tournament. © JRFU Fourth-year student Ito, 21, pulled the strings in a plucky Brave Blossoms display against Irela

Japan head coach Eddie Jones has revealed that French star Emmanuel Meafou turned down an approach to represent the Wallabies during the Australian’s short-lived second stint in charge of his country. Jones, 66, tried to entice the then-uncapped New Zealand-born lock Emmanuel Meafou, who grew up in Australia, to represent the Wallabies when he was reappointed to the Wallabies hotseat in 2023 for their ill-fated World Cup campaign. Meafou was already a starter at Top 14 giants

Italy scrum-half Stephen Varney said it would be a great honour to play his club rugby in Japan one day after playing at a sold out Chichibunomiya Rugby Stadium in his country’s Nations Championship loss in Tokyo. Carmarthen-born Varney, 25, a fluent Welsh speaker who qualifies for the Six Nations side through his Italian mother, played 60 minutes in Gli Azzurri’s 27-10 defeat as they were overpowered and and outplayed by their impressive hosts. The former Gloucester number n

Former Fijian Drua head coach Glen Jackson is set to join Japan’s coaching team, RugbyJP.com can exclusively reveal. Fielding, New Zealand-born Jackson, 50, left the Super Rugby side by mutual consent in April just weeks after stepping away from his role as an assistant to the Fijian national team under Mick Byrne. © Fijian Drua The former Saracens and Chiefs fly-half, who had a spell as a Test referee post-retirement, attended Japan’s impressive Nations Championship victory

Former Toshiba Brave Lupus prop and recent Japan call-up Vea Taumoefolau is aiming to secure a Super Rugby contract after landing a deal with NPC side Tasman. New Zealand-born Taumoefolau, 24, a two-time League One winner, sent shockwaves through the Japanese scene when he left Toshiba in March due to personal reasons. The Kyoto Sangyo University graduate, who also qualifies for Tonga on heritage grounds, recently returned to action for amateur club Stoke Rugby in Nelson, New

Japan captain Warner Dearns has revealed that he turned down an approach to switch allegiances to represent his native New Zealand after a title-winning Super Rugby campaign with the Hurricanes. Dearns, 24, who will win his 33rd cap for the Brave Blossoms in Saturday’s Nations Championship clash against Italy, confirmed that he was approached about the possibility of standing down from Test rugby for three years in order to become eligible for New Zealand. © JRFU The Toshiba

Japan has named Meiji University fly-half Ryunosuke Ito to make his Brave Blossoms debut against Italy in the opening round of the inaugural Nations Championship on Saturday. Ito, 21, shone against the Māori All Blacks last week despite the hosts suffering a second half collapse and being edged out 38-31 as Eddie Jones served the penultimate game of his suspension. The highly-rated youngster, whose older brother Kotaro, 24, plays at fly-half for Black Rams Tokyo, will play th

Lyon-bound prop Opeti Helu said his dream is still to play for Japan at the Rugby World Cup in Australia next year after his switch from Kubota Spears to the Top 14 side was announced on Monday afternoon. Tonga-born former number eight Helu, 27, won his two caps for the Brave Blossoms in 2024, and revealed that he discussed his opportunity to play in France’s top tier with Japan head coach Eddie Jones before inking a one-year deal with Karim Ghezal’s team. “Eddie called me an

Japan captain Warner Dearns and Moana Pasifika hooker Mamoru Harada will both return to Japan Rugby League One duty next season, their parent club Toshiba Brave Lupus officially announced on Thursday. Hurricanes lock Dearns, 23, has been a standout performer for Super Rugby’s title contenders while fellow Brave Blossoms international Harada, 27 - who was named as his country’s co-captain last year before withdrawing from the Pacific Nations Cup due to injury - has struggled f