Top League Profiles 2017-18: Panasonic Wild Knights
Top League Profiles 2017-18
Panasonic Wild Knights
2017-18 Introduction: In the 2016-17 season, Panasonic Wild Knights finished third overall on the final Japan Rugby Top League table on 61 points with 13 wins and two losses. Early season losses to Yamaha and then Suntory came back to haunt Panasonic with these two sides finishing above the Wild Knights at the end of the season. Nevertheless, form over recent seasons firmly suggests that Panasonic will again be right up there at the business end of the season again this year.
Former Wallabies and Crusaders head coach Robbie Deans is in his fourth season as coach at Panasonic this season and he is bound to keep the team on the winning path. The squad is brimming with talent and central figures for Panasonic in the coming season include hookers Shota Horie and Atsushi Sakate, veteran lock Daniel Heenan, flanker David Pocock, halfbacks Fumiaki Tanaka and Keisuke Uchida, playmaker Berrick Barnes and wings Akihito Yamada and Kenki Fukuoka. Furthermore, new names at Panasonic include the Sunwolves locks Sam Wykes and Kazuhiko Usami who came across from Coca-Cola and Canon respectively, while centre Richard Buckman joins the team from the Highlanders and former Wallabies wing Digby Ioane made the move from Honda.
The Coach: Former Wallabies and Crusaders head coach Robbie Deans is in his fourth season as coach at Panasonic in the 2017-18 season.
The Captain: The captain at Panasonic for the 2017-18 season is yet to be announced.
The 2017-18 Squad: (48) The list starts with captain and vice-captains and then continues through forwards and backs in order from props to fullbacks. All family names come last.
Forwards: Kazunori Chishima, Asaeli Valu, Keita Inagaki, Hiroshi Abe, Matthew Kofe Mafi, Shohei Hirano, Emersen Tamura, Shota Horie, Atsushi Sakate, Daniel Heenan, Yu Young-Nam, Kotaro Yatabe, Sam Wykes, Takumi Mikami, Kazuhiko Usami, Jack Cornelsen, Tadasuke Nishihara, David Pocock, Masaki Tani, Shunsuke Nunomaki, Ryota Hasegawa, Tomohito Miyakawa, Ryu Koliniasi Holani, Tevita Tupou and Ben Gunter. Backs: Fumiaki Tanaka, Keisuke Uchida, YutaTakagi, Taiki Koyama, Berrick Barnes, Rikiya Matsuda, Takuya Yamasawa, Richard Buckman, Yuga Hyakutake, Iori Kaji, Kwon Yu-In, Eiji Kaneda, Keisuke Moriya, Tatsuki Tomuro, Tomoki Kitagawa, Digby Ioane, Akihito Yamada, Yoshiaki Tsurugasaki, Kentaro Kodama, Kenki Fukuoka, Tadahiro Miwa, Yasutaka Sasakura and Yoshikazu Fujita. Coach: Robbie Deans (57).