JRLO 2023-2024 Round 11 Preview

The JRLO 2023-2024 Round 11 for Divisions 1, Round 10 for Division 3 and Round 9 for Division 2 will be played from 22-24 March 2024 this weekend in Japan.

In last weekend’s action, New Zealand’s Head Coach Scott Robertson was in attendance at the Prince Chichibu Memorial Rugby Ground on Sunday to watch the Brave Lupus Tokyo side, which included All Blacks Shannon Frizell and Richie Mo’unga, beat Sagamihara Dynaboars 41-19.

Robertson also saw All Blacks flanker Ardie Savea’s Kobe Steelers lose to Saitama Wild Knights at Kobe Universiade Memorial Stadium on Saturday.

Soon, Tokyo Sungoliath’s Sam Cane and Toyota Verblitz’s Beauden Barrett will be eligible to return to national duty after their “sabbatical” in Japan in the JRLO.

Also spotted over the weekend was hooker Codie Taylor in the crowd, fueling speculation the NZ hooker could be heading to the JRLO.

The All Blacks will be due to play the Brave Blossoms in Yokohama on October 26 2024.

An additional piece of news is that some fixtures will also now be streamed on RugbyPassTV but won’t be available in Japan, New Zealand, Malaysia, and Africa.

Division One JRLO 2023-2024 – Round 11 Fixtures

One of the big talking points this weekend is the return of Springbok Cheslin Kolbe for the Canon Eagles and he is due to start on his familiar left wing. Jessie Kriel, also sidelined due to injury, is speculated to be heading back to Japan soon after his injury.

Friday 22nd March 2024

Not many would bet against the Wild Knights overseeing another undefeated season, but Kubota Spears Funabashi Tokyo Bay host them on Friday looking to stop the former champions as they did in the final last season.

Kubota’s season has been disrupted with injuries; Wallaby Bernard Foley has been out since round three, try-scoring winger Haruto Kida is out, and each of Wales fullback Liam Williams and All Black hooker Dane Coles have missed the last two weeks but the hooker returns this week.

Of concern to Frans Ludeke’s Spears is that they have lost all four of their home matches this campaign.

• Kubota Spears Funabashi Tokyo Bay v Saitama Panasonic Wild Knights; at Tokyo

Saturday 23rd March 2024

Seventh-placed Verblitz play a Shizuoka side positioned one below them on the table, and the race for the semifinal berths is well and truly on. Verblitz lost to Sungoliath last weekend in a remarkable game, where they threw away a 21-point lead to lose after a frantic final ten minutes 38-39 and were condemned to a 6th defeat this season, despite their star-studded lineup.

Yokohama Canon Eagles are in fifth place and head to play Tokyo Suntory Sungoliath with the hosts brimming after their last-second win over Verlitz last week. The Eagles have lost three of their last five matches and also were at fault for their own demise last week when they lost to Kubota Spears Funabashi Tokyo Bay in the final minutes of the match.

Tokyo Suntory Sungoliath has only two losses this season and sees the return of Springbok winger Cheslin Kolbe this weekend while All Black backrower Sam Cane is likely out for some time.

• Shizuoka Blue Revs v Toyota Verblitz; at Shizuoka
• Tokyo Suntory Sungoliath v Yokohama Canon Eagles; at Tokyo

Sunday 24th March 2024

Ricoh Black Rams Tokyo head to play cross-town rivals Toshiba Brave Lupus Tokyo, and while the former is in 10th place and look to compete in the promotion/relegation series, they still play semi-finalist contendors in their remaining matches and could have a say in their outcome at the season’s end.

Mie Honda Heat must know they have to prepare for the Replacement Battle, even though they won last week with a 20-19 victory over Kintetsu – Kieran Crowley’s side will be mentally targeting the end-of-season challenge to stay in Division 1.

Their opponents on Sunday are Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Sagamihara Dynaboars, and Mie Honda Heat have beaten them in seven of their last eight fixtures. Glen Delaney’s Dynaboars will be looking to end that run of defeats, as well as a 3rd straight loss in the Division.

Hanazono Kintetsu Liners are still looking for their first win of the season, despite going into their fixture with Mie Honda Heat last week as favourites, they lost their 10th straight match. This weekend they enter the Kansai derby against Kobelco Kobe Steelers (who also went down last week 18-28 but against table-topping Saitama Panasonic Wild Knights).

Dave Rennie will hope his Kobe side turns things around on Sunday and exacts revenge on the Liners who beat them in the same fixture last campaign 34-33 to end a seven-match losing streak in the Kansai derby.

The X-Factor could be the World Rugby Player of the Year Ardie Savea, who has lit up the JRLO this season and is tied in fifth place among individual try-scorers for the season. The loose forward has beaten 47 defenders with his ball and crossed the gain line more often than any other player in the league.

Another star for Kobe has been flyhalf, Bryn Gatland who joined from Super Rugby and is the top point-scorer in the league.

• Toshiba Brave Lupus Tokyo v Ricoh Black Rams Tokyo; at Tokyo
• Mie Honda Heat v Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Sagamihara Dynaboars; at Suzuka
• Kobelco Kobe Steelers v Hanazono Kintetsu Liners; at Hygo

Brief highlights of all JRLO matches will be available here.

All times shown are Japan local time.

Division 2 JRLO 2023-2024 – Round 9 Fixtures

Saturday 23rd March 2024

D-Rocks, coached by Johan Ackerman, will look to secure the maximum points away against the Voltex side on Saturday.

• Kyushu Electric Power Kyuden Voltex v Urayasu D-Rocks; at Saga

Sunday 24th March 2024

Kamaishi are looking to avoid the wooden spoon for the regular season but will need to overcome
the Red Hurricanes on Sunday who themselves are on a 6-match losing streak.

Toyota Industries Corporation Shuttles Aichi lost to Urayasu D-Rocks last week and need to beat NEC Green Rockets Tokatsu to keep their Division Two silverware hopes alive but the Green Rockets have been building momentum themselves.

The side, coached by ex-Wales coach Wayne Pivac, is on a six-match winning run, where they have only once been held to less than 40 points and have exceeded 60 points three times! Pivotal has been Namibian flyhalf Tiaan Swanepoel who is the second highest points scorer in the Division with 73 points.

The top points scorer happens to be Shuttles ex-England man Freddie Burns and the contest between the flyhalves could well divide the result on Sunday.

• Japan Steel Kamaishi Seawaves v Red Hurricanes Osaka; at Iwate
• NEC Green Rockets Tokatsu v Toyota Industries Corporation Shuttles Aichi; at Chiba

Image Credit: JRLO

Division 3 JRLO 2023-2024 – Round 11 Fixtures

Saturday 23rd March 2024

There is still a promotion target via the Replacement Battle up for grabs for the third-placed finisher in Division 3, and Mazda SkyActivs Hiroshima host Kurita Water Gush Akishima on Saturday with the hosts looking to nail that spot down. The two sides play once more after this weekend as they meet again on the final weekend of the regular season.

• Mazda SkyActivs Hiroshima v Kurita Water Gush Akishima; at Hiroshima

Sunday 24th March 2024

While it looks like Hino Red Dolphins and Shimizu Corporation Koto Blue Sharks will gain automatic promotion due to the JRLO expansion in 2025, the Division Three title remains to
be decided as the two face off on Sunday.

Hino has a a nine-point advantage, but there are 5 rounds left, so the Blue Sharks could try to halt them away from home this weekend, before the return fixture over the last weekend of the season.

• Hino Red Dolphins v Shimizu Corporation Koto Blue Sharks; at Gunma

Image Credit: JRLO

How To Watch JRLO

Matches from the JRLO can be seen in Africa on ESPN Africa, as well as in New Zealand via TVNZ, and in some regions on World Rugby’s global rugbypass.com website.

At the start of 2024, the Japan Rugby League One also announced to fans in Asia that they will be able to watch on Malaysian TV streaming provider, Astro, with matches on Astro SuperSport channel!

From this weekend (22nd March 2024), some fixtures will also now be streamed on RugbyPassTV but won’t be available in certain territories.

The full fixture list for this JRLO season can be seen here.

JRLO 2023-2024

• JRLO 2023-2024 Round 10 Preview.
• JRLO 2023-2024 Round 9 Preview.
• NTT JRLO Season 2023-2024 – Who Is Involved?
• Rugby Life At JRLO Side Kubota Spears Funabashi Tokyo Bay – Bernard Foley, Dane Coles & Liam Williams.