Japan Rugby Top League 2016-2017: Round 5 Preview

Round Five Preview

In the only Friday evening game in round five, Panasonic Wild Knights play NTT Communications Shining Arcs at the Prince Chichibu Memorial Rugby Ground in Tokyo. The star-studded Panasonic side are wobbling early in the season after losing to Yamaha in the opening game of the season, and then going down 45-15 to Suntory in round four. In between, the Wild Knights had good wins over Kobe and Kintetsu, but the struggle for consistency continues. The NTT side went down to Kobe in the opening round and then came up with wins over Ricoh and NEC before making it three in a row with an 18-3 victory over Kintetsu in Sendai last round. The Shining Arcs will find the defending champions much tougher going this round, especially after the embarrassing loss to Suntory in their last outing.

In the first game of a double header at the Prince Chichibu Memorial Rugby Ground in Tokyo on Saturday afternoon, Kubota Spears and Kintetsu Liners go head to head. Kubota fell short to Toshiba in the first week and then lost to Toyota the next round, but after that posted wins over Toyota Industries and Honda. Kintetsu went down to Suntory in Osaka in round one, but backed up to beat Coca-Cola the following round. The Liners then lost to Panasonic in Osaka before tumbling to their third defeat of the season in round four, going down 18-3 to NTT in Sendai. Kubota are on a roll at the moment and with Kintetsu travelling up from Osaka, the Spears will fancy their chances of notching up their third win of the season.

In the latter game at Chichibu, Yamaha Jubilo play Ricoh Black Rams. Yamaha sit on top of the table after four rounds with 19 points from four straight wins over Panasonic, Canon, Sanix and Toshiba and Ricoh will have their work cut out matching it with Jubilo. Ricoh beat NEC in the first round before losing to NTT Communications and Suntory over the next two weekends, but bounced back to beat Canon 25-20 in their last outing. Coming into this round, Yamaha are one of only two sides yet to taste defeat, the other being Suntory, and so the Shizuoka-based Jubilo will be looking to keep their unbeaten start to the season intact against the Black Rams.

At the Expo ’70 Commemorative Stadium in Osaka on Saturday, Kobe Steel Kobelco Steelers play Toyota Industries Shuttles. Kobe beat NTT Communications in their first outing but slipped badly to Panasonic before overwhelming Coca-Cola. Last round, the Steelers racked up their third win of the season with a 27-7 victory over Toyota in Nagoya to stay near the top of the leader board. On the other hand, Toyota Industries have slumped to four losses from four starts going down to Toyota Verblitz in the opening round then Sanix, Kubota and NEC over subsequent rounds. Things are not getting any easier for the struggling Shuttles with the Steelers now starting to find some form.

In another double header on Saturday, Honda Heat play Coca-Cola Red Sparks in the early game at the Nishikyogoku Athletic Stadium in Kyoto. Honda and Coca-Cola are two of three teams yet to register a win this season, but that is set to change on Saturday afternoon. Honda have had a disappointing start to the season, losing to Sanix, Suntory, Toyota and Kubota while the same can be said for Coca-Cola with consecutive losses to Canon in Kumamoto, Kintetsu in Yamaguchi, Kobe in Kanazawa and Sanix in Fukuoka. A win is vital for the prospects of both sides as they try to move away from the cellar of the table or risk still being there at the end of the season.

In the latter game in Kyoto, NEC Green Rockets play Toyota Verblitz. The fortunes of these two sides are heading in opposite directions with Toyota near the top of the table with three wins and one loss, while NEC languish near the bottom with only the one win from four games. NEC started their season with losses to Ricoh, Toshiba and NTT Communications before claiming their first win with a 23-7 victory over Toyota Industries at Chichibu. In contrast, Toyota got out of the blocks with wins over Toyota Industries, Kubota and Honda. However, the Verblitz then came up against a different calibre of opposition in the form of Kobe last round with the Steelers winning 27-7 in Nagoya. The Green Rockets will be desperate for the win, but the Verblitz should prove too strong across the board.

On Sunday, Suntory Sungoliath play Canon Eagles at the Yamanashi Chuo Bank Stadium in Kofu city in Yamanashi prefecture. Suntory started with wins over Kintetsu, Honda and Ricoh before coming up against the might of Panasonic in round four. Few would have predicted a 45-15 win to Suntory and now they will try to make it five wins from five starts against the Eagles. Canon beat Coca-Cola in their opening game, and then lost to Yamaha, Toshiba and Ricoh over the following rounds. Another loss will see the Eagles start to drift from the leading bunch of teams, but on form, Suntory will be hard to beat. Suntory have been regular visitors to Yamanashi over recent years and the results have generally been in their favour.

At the Global Arena Stadium in Fukuoka on Sunday, Munakata Sanix Blues host Toshiba Brave Lupus. Newly promoted Sanix have been the surprise package of the opening rounds with wins over Honda and Toyota Industries, but they met their match against the classy Yamaha outfit in round three. Nevertheless, the Blues regrouped to beat Coca-Cola 19-16 at the Level-5 Stadium in Fukuoka last round to sit comfortably in the top half of the draw. Toshiba have also had a good start to the season with wins over Kubota, NEC and Canon, before losing 40-6 to Yamaha at the Yamaha Stadium last round. Sanix should not present too many problems for Toshiba, but the Blues have their tails up and the Brave Lupus better beware.