Bulls head coach Johan Ackermann has confirmed his interest in Kubota Spears hooker Malcolm Marx and Shizuoka Blue Revs captain Kwagga Smith. The former Urayasu D-Rocks boss revealed that both Springboks stars and former Lions teammates are on his wish list for the South African URC side who opened their season with a comprehensive 47-13 win away against Zebre on Saturday. Ackermann, who was replaced at Urayasu by Greig Laidlaw in 2024 despite leading the Chiba-based team to

Former Toshiba Brave Lupus utility-back Stephanus du Toit has returned to his native South Africa while plotting his next opportunity in the game after becoming a free agent in June, five months after making his League One debut. The 25-year-old's talent was nurtured at the world-renowned Paarl Gymnasium High School which has produced a conveyor belt of South African legends including Schalk Burger, Jean De Villiers and Handré Pollard. His eye-catching displays caught the att

Ex-All Blacks head coach Ian Foster has named his former New Zealand wing Mark Tele'a as co-captain at Toyota Verblitz as the former takes over the reigns from compatriot Steve Hansen. Big-spending Toyota finished a disappointing ninth-place last season under Hansen – who was assisted by Foster – despite boasting an abundance of world-class talent including Tele'a, Springboks great Pieter-Steph du Toit (who suffered a season-ending shoulder injury in round three), ex-Japan ca

New Urayasu D-Rocks signing Jordan Petaia has been recalled by the Wallabies for the first time since the 2023 Rugby World Cup ahead of their Test match against the Springboks in Perth on 27 September. Former Queensland Reds utility-back Petaia, 26, walked away from rugby in 2024 to take part in the NFL’s International Player Pathway (IPP) program and signed with Los Angeles Chargers the following April before being released four months later. The Victoria native, who made hi

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

Springboks lock Ruan Nortjé has joined countryman Malcolm Marx at League One runners-up Kubota Spears, the Japanese club announced on Tuesday. The 6ft 7in second row, 27, arrives from URC side the Bulls and will link up with his new team following the conclusion of the Nations Championship in November. Nortjé, who has won 18 caps in the green and gold after making his Test debut in 2022 against Wales, was named on Monday in Rassie Erasmus’ side to face England in the opening

Springboks scrum-half Grant Williams has signed for League One champions Kobe Steelers. The Sharks’ speedster, 29, who can also play on the wing, will arrive this Autumn following South Africa’s Nations Championship campaign. The 2023 World Cup winner starts for his country in their season-opening game against ex-All Blacks head coach Scott Robertson’s Barbarians in Gqeberha on Saturday. Williams, a two-time Rugby Championship winner and former European Challenge Cup winner,

South African lock Lood de Jager returned from a seven-month injury lay-off to help Saitama Wild Knights defeat Sam Cane’s Suntory Sungoliath 26-19 in League One's third-place play-off. The 33-year-old made his first appearance of the season having recovered from hip surgery following South Africa’s end-of-year tour in 2025. Fit-again de Jager played 56 minutes in the penultimate club game of the Japanese season to hand the Springboks a major boost heading into a congested su

Yokohama Canon Eagles captain Jesse Kriel has vowed to stay in Japan until he leads the Kanagawa club to League One glory. The double World Cup winner is the club’s first foreign-born captain and reflected on a testing campaign in an interview on the club website. Kriel, 32, scored eight tries in 13 appearances this season as Leon MacDonald's talent-rich side finished in a disappointing 10th place finish. Yokohama lost 12 of their 18 games but produced a three-match winning-s

Springboks superstar Cheslin Kolbe will return to his former club the Stormers this summer after Suntory Sungoliath announced today that he will depart after completing his third season in Japan. The competition’s top points scorer wrestled with the decision of whether to stay in Japan but, having played rugby outside of South Africa since 2017, has opted to make an early return to his homeland. RugbyJP.com understands that Kolbe, who left the Stormers in 2017 to play in the

Suntory Sungoliath has today announced that Springboks star Cheslin Kolbe will be leaving the club at the end of the season. Two-time World Cup winner Kolbe, 32, was prominent on Saturday as he scored 17 points in the club’s 40-35 quarter-final win against Black Rams Tokyo to book a semi-final clash against Dave Rennie and Ardie Savea’s Kobe Steelers on Saturday. The division’s top points scorer is poised to make an early return to his former club the Stormers who have alread

League One’s division one play-offs kick off on Saturday with TJ Perenara’s Black Rams Tokyo facing Sam Cane’s Suntory Sungoliath as World Cup winners and ex-All Blacks teammates clash at Tokyo’s Chichibunomiya Rugby Stadium. The history-making Rams are making their first appearance in the top-flight post-season after former All Blacks centre Tabai Matson, who played for then-Top League side Yamaha Jubilo (now Shizuoka Blue Revs) from 2001 to 2006, impressively steered the To

Ex-All Blacks wing Charles Piutau and former URC Player of The Year Sanele Nohamba have both left division one Japanese side Shizuoka Blue Revs. Yuichiro Fujii’s side, who are captained by Springboks star Kwagga Smith, has endured a disappointing campaign as they narrowly missed out on a play-offs spot with a seventh-placed finish. The Yamaha-backed Blue Revs will make wholesale changes to their squad this summer after announcing the departure of 14 players today including tw

Blacks Rams Tokyo’s World Cup-winning captain TJ Perenara lauded Suntory Sungoliath full-back Cheslin Kolbe as one of the best players in the world ahead of their League One quarter-final next week. Perenara, who was speaking at the Japan Rugby League One (JRLO) Play-Offs Media Conference in Akihabara, Tokyo, on Thursday afternoon, identified the Springboks superstar - who finished the regular season as the top points scorer - as the greatest threat posed by their Tokyo rival

Suntory Sungoliath star Cheslin Kolbe believes he’s still developing as a player after helping the Fuchu side past rivals Black Rams Tokyo in a preview of the upcoming quarter-final between the two sides in two weeks' time. The 32-year-old double World Cup winner contributed 17 points in his team's 39-22 win in the final round of the regular season on Sunday to finish with a personal best haul of 185 points. South Africa’s pocket rocket’s try and 12 points from the tee saw hi

Wallabies fly-half Noah Lolesio inspired Toyota Industries Shuttles Aichi to a 34-27 win against Manie Libbok’s title-chasing Kintetsu Liners to seal the division two championship as the beaten Osaka side also missed out on the promotion play-offs. Newly-crowned champions Toyota Shuttles can look forward to a two-leg promotion/relegation play-off against Glenn Delaney’s Mitsubishi Dynaboars later this month. Surprise package Shimizu Koto Blue Sharks, who survived a relegation

Yokohama Canon Eagles scrum-half Faf de Klerk held a farewell press conference following the club's 31-22 win over Kanagawa rivals Mitsubishi Dynaboars at Chichibunomiya Rugby Stadium in Tokyo on Sunday. South Africa's double World Cup winner, 34, will end his four-year stay at the club following their final game next week Shizuoka Blue Revs to return to his homeland to join the Cheetahs. “It’s been a great four years," said the former Sale Sharks star who came on to play in

Yokohama Canon Eagles scrum-half Faf de Klerk will return to his homeland this summer to join the Cheetahs on a two-year deal the South African club has announced. The Currie Cup side, who were eliminated from the European Challenge Cup in the pool stage, announced the arrival of the 34-year-old double World Cup winner on Sunday afternoon. A Club statement read: “Springbok icon Faf de Klerk joins the Toyota Cheetahs on a two-year deal: world-class experience, relentless energ

Suntory Sungoliath star Cheslin Kolbe will stay in Japan for the ‘foreseeable future’ his management agency Roc Nation Sports International has revealed. Two-time World Cup winner Kolbe, 32, is enjoying his best season so far for the Fuchu outfit with a haul of 141 points including eight tries for the play-off contenders. The Springboks ace, who has played his club rugby outside of his homeland since 2017, was linked with a summer return to URC title contenders the Stormers.

Generational rivals and World Cup winners Faf de Klerk and Aaron Smith are poised to face off for what could be the final time in their illustrious careers when Yokohama Canon Eagles host Toyota Verblitz on Saturday. South African stalwart De Klerk, 34, and All Blacks veteran Smith, 37, both start as the former's relegation-threatened Yokohama side look to make up ground on Steve Hansen’s Aichi outfit who are in eighth position. The fit-again Springboks ace, who joined his co