Honda Pick Up 1st Win of the Season

TOKYO (Oct. 30) – Honda Heat won their first game of the 2016-17 Japan Rugby Top League season Sunday when they beat Kintetsu Liners 36-20.

Park Song Gi kicked five penalty goals and converted tries by Nobutaka Ubukata, Lelia Masaga and Daisuke Konishi as the Heat lifted themselves off the bottom of the table.

Luke Thompson and Michael Stolberg touched down for the Liners – who have 2 wins and seven losses to their name – and Yasumasa Shigemitsu kicked two conversions and two penalty goals.

The victory sees Honda (6 points) go above Toyota Industries Shuttles on points difference, while Kintetsu are in 13th place with 12 points.

At the other end of the table Suntory Sungoliath picked up their ninth straight win as they beat Kubota Spears 38-0.

Takaaki Nakazuru crossed for his 12th try in the last six games and there were further five pointers for Hendrik Tui, Yusuke Aoki, Kotaro Matsushima, Go Aruga and Yukio Morikawa with Kosei Ono adding four conversions.

The win sees Suntory on 42 points, one behind league leaders Yamaha Jubilo. Kubota, meanwhile, are 12th with 15 points.

Panasonic Wild Knights are third in the standings, eight points behind Suntory thanks to a 60-7 victory over the Shuttles.

Keisuke Moriya scored after coming on as a first-half replacement, Daniel Heenan and Akihito Yamada also bagged two tries apiece, and Ryota Hasegawa, Tetsuya Shitara and Keisuke Uchida also crossed the chalk with Takuya Yamasawa kicking three conversions.

Benjamin Saunders touched down for Shokki with Sam Greene adding the extras.

The league takes a four-week break in November while Japan play one test at home and three in Europe.