Dual-code star Mark Nawaqanitawase has arrived in Japan to join his new club Saitama Wild Knights as he completes his eagerly-awaited return to the 15-man game. Nawaqanitawase, 26, scored two tries in his NRL send-off as he helped the Sydney Roosters edge Newcastle Knights 19-18 in a dramatic Grand Final last month. © Sydney Roosters Since then, the former Waratahs wing wizard has announced that he will make a decision regarding his Test rugby future next year with the possib

New Fiji head coach Jake White is an admirer of cross-code superstar Mark Nawaqanitawase and told RugbyJP.com that he’d be ‘completely and utterly happy’ if the wing wizard were to switch his allegiance to represent the island nation. Former Toyota Verblitz head coach White, 62, won his return to Test rugby as Fiji avenged their Pacific Nations Cup final loss to Japan by spoiling Eddie Jones’ team's low-key 100th anniversary celebrations in Tokyo on Saturday. © RugbyJP We ask

Springboks star Kurt-Lee Arendse is aiming to power last season’s basement outfit Mitsubishi Dynaboars to a play-off spot next season after being unveiled for his second spell with the club. The 30-year-old World Cup winner enjoyed a strong campaign with Glenn Delaney’s Sagamihara-based side in the 2024-2025 season, scoring seven tries in 12 games and helping the club to a ninth-place finish. © RugbyJP.com Arendse, who attended Japan’s game against Fiji on Saturday with teamm

Japan fly-half Ryunosuke Ito will miss the Nations Championship’s Northern Hemisphere stage to play for Meiji University in the Kanto University Intercollegiate Championship. Ito, 21, made headlines in July when he made his Brave Blossoms debut as a student against Italy. The fourth-year student pulled the strings in his first pro rugby game and now, with just seven caps to his name, has locked down Japan’s number 10 jersey in the absence of Kobe Steelers standout Lee Seung-s

Honda Heat wing Tevita Li is set to qualify for Japan and hand Brave Blossoms head coach Eddie Jones another option in a problem position for the Pacific Nations Cup winners, RugbyJP.com understands. Auckland native Li, 31, has plied his trade in Japan since 2020 after leaving the Highlanders to join Suntory Sungoliath during the Top League era. In action against his old club Suntory last season - © JRLO The former New Zealand U20 international made a surprise move to Honda i

Former Glasgow Warriors number eight Jack Dempsey helped his new club Toshiba Brave Lupus Musashi to a win in their first pre-season game against rivals Saitama Wild Knights on Saturday. Dempsey, 32, has joined the 2024 and 2025 League One champions on a lucrative four-year deal and has been training with his new employers since August. The former Wallaby was signed as a replacement for All Black Shannon Frizell who returned to New Zealand in June after a three-year stay in J

Saitama Wild Knights-bound wing wizard Mark Nawaqanitawase has commented on his return to rugby union for the first time since his agent suggested that the dual-code star could switch allegiance to represent Fiji or Italy next year. Sydney-born Nawaqanitawase, 26, scored a brace to help the Sydney Roosters to a dramatic 19-18 NRL Grand Final win over Newcastle Knights on 4 October in the final game of his two-year deal. Sydney Roosters © The former Waratahs star last represen

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 Toshiba Brave Lupus flanker Shannon Frizell has returned to the All Blacks squad for the first time since the 2023 Rugby World Cup after being named in a 34-man squad for the two-Test Bledisloe Cup series against the Wallabies. The 32-year-old returned to New Zealand in June after spending three seasons with Japan Rugby League One outfit Toshiba alongside Richie Mo’unga during which time both players were unavailable for All Blacks selection. © JRLO Tonga-born Frizell,

New Toshiba Brave Lupus signing Jack Dempsey has confirmed his availability for Scotland for next season during his unveiling at the club’s base in Fuchu today. Sydney-born Dempsey, 32, has joined the two-time League One winners on a four-year deal as a replacement for All Black Shannon Frizell who has returned to New Zealand after three years in Japan. The ex-Wallabies international completed a three-year stand down period in 2022 and has since won 35 caps for Gregor Townsen

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

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

Ospreys head coach Mark Jones has billed new signing Marika Koroibete as an ‘explosive talent’ after the Australian wing made the surprise move from Saitama to Swansea. Former Wallabies standout Koroibete, 34, was a free agent after leaving Atsushi Kanazawa’s third-place play-off winners the Wild Knights in June. The dual-code star spent five seasons in Kumagaya, scoring 31 tries in 68 games including a crucial try in their 2022 League One final win over Suntory Sungoliath (b

League One champions Kobe Steelers have today confirmed the appointment of World Cup-winning All Black Andy Ellis as former head coach Dave Rennie’s successor in Hyogo. RugbyJP.com first heard that Ellis, 42, was being lined up for the job in April following the announcement of Rennie’s appointment as the new All Blacks head coach in March. The 2011 World Cup winner, who kicked the ball out to seal the All Blacks’ 8-7 win over France as the hosts lifted the Webb Ellis trophy

All Blacks captain and League One winner Ardie Savea is eyeing a long-term post-Rugby World Cup return to reigning champions Kobe Steelers. Savea, 32, was appointed as his country’s new captain on a permanent basis as part of Dave Rennie’s first squad announcement in June, just three weeks after helping the former Kobe head coach to clinch his first League One title. The 2023 World Rugby Player of The Year, who started the All Blacks’ Nations Championship wins over France, It

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

Kubota Spears full-back Shaun Stevenson has pledged his allegiance to Samoa for his return to Test rugby, RugbyJP.com can exclusively reveal. The 29-year-old full-back played the full 80 minutes in the League One final loss to Dave Rennie’s Kobe Steelers on 7 June despite picking up a leg injury 30 minutes into the first half. One-cap All Black Stevenson made 133 metres for Frans Ludeke’s back-to-back runners up – more than double second-placed Ardie Savea (65m) - and made fi

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