The JRLO 2024 Semifinals and the first leg of the Replacement Battles will be played over the weekend of May 18-19 2024, with the final of League One 2023-2024 being played in Tokyo next weekend.
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JRLO 2024 Semifinals – Division 1
With the Japan Rugby League One semifinal playoff teams aiming to win the coveted Championship trophy, defending champions Kubota Spears Funabashi Tokyo Bay won’t be there to defend their title. Not many are looking beyond former title-winners Saitama Panasonic Wild Knights from lifting the silverware.
The semi-finals will be held on Saturday and Sunday at Prince Chichibu Memorial Stadium in downtown Tokyo and it will be up to either Toshiba Brave Lupus Tokyo, Tokyo Suntory Sungoliath, or Yokohama Canon Eagles to try and stop the Wild Knights as the record-breaking season enters its final stages.
JLRO Division 1 and 2 broke previously held fan attendance records with an influx of international stars playing across all three divisions this season.
Chief Operating Officer Hajime Shoji said, “The Fuchu Derby [between Toshiba Brave Lupus Tokyo and Tokyo Suntory Sungoliath] is a traditional west Tokyo rivalry and always brings out the fans, while the supporters from Saitama [Panasonic Wild Knights] and Yokohama [Canon Eagles] turned out in large numbers when the teams played in last year’s semi-final, and I’m sure we will see the same again.”
Yokohama Canon Eagles vs Saitama Wild Knights – Saturday 18 May 2024 – Prince Chichibu Memorial Stadium, Tokyo, 2.05pm
Robbie Deans’ Wild Knights went through the 16-game regular season undefeated, and on the way recorded the highest number of points scored (747 points) and conceded the fewest points (275 points) – this was the juggernaut’s third unbeaten regular season from the last four!
The New Zealander has an impeccable record in knockout rugby throughout his career, and in Japan alone, he has overseen a 100 per cent record in the eight semi-finals he has qualified for, winning the national title five times.
The side will look to farewell a true Japanese great as Shota Horie will retire from professional rugby at the end of this campaign. One of the stalwarts in the undefeated season has been Springbok Lood De Jager who was unfortunate to miss out on the RWC 2023 win as he overcame a rare heart disorder. The second-rower has six tries from 10 games coming into the playoff.
Wild Knights & Brave Blossoms centre Dylan Riley has also racked up 13 tries this season thus far.
Canon Eagles will need to break some run to reach the final. In addition to ending a long winning streak of the Wild Knights – they will need to defeat Deans’ side for the first time in nine years and 15 matches, so Canon Eagles coach Keisuke Sawake will have been working on a grand scheme to do the unthinkable.
He is one of a few to have gotten the better of sides coached by Deans – winning the title with Tokyo Suntory Sungoliath twice in the 2016-17 and 2017-18 championship games.
Springboks star Faf de Klerk will miss Yokohama’s play-off semi-final against Saitama Wild Knights but Springbok Jesse Kriel is back.
The Eagles do have try-scoring talent to count on, with two players ranked among the top 10 try-scorers in the Division 1 league; Hooker Shunta Nakamura has 11, while centre Viliame Takayawa has 12.
Yokohama finished the regular season in fourth place to force Ardie Savea’s Kobe Steelers out of contention as the possible All Black captain leaves Japan among a host of big names.
Toshiba Brave Lupus Tokyo vs Tokyo Suntory Sungoliath – Sunday 10 May 2024 – Prince Chichibu Memorial Stadium, Tokyo, 2.05pm
Toshiba Brave Lupus Tokyo has won both times against Sunday’s opponents Sungoliath this season. The latter are five-time national winners but the last title was in the 2017-18 season.
Richie Mo’unga will hope to leave Japan with silverware as his Toshiba Brave Lupus take on Cheslin Kolbe’s Suntory Sungoliath both knowing that there are two tough games to go to try and claim the JRLO title. It is not just the Richie show, however, as Shannon Frizell (9 tries this season) and Brave Blossoms veteran Michael Leitch are key cogs for Brave Lupus.
Todd Blackadder’s Suntory Sungoliath have done well to reach the semifinals without some of the international signings for most of the season, notably Sam Cane (who has announced he will be back on a long-term three-year contract),
The times shown are local Japan Time (JT).
The Replacement Battles 2024 Preview
Heavy Industries Sagamihara Dynaboars and this weekend play Mie Honda Heat, who have conceded 744 points at an average of 46.5 per game in Division 1.
- Urayasu D-Rocks (1) v Hanazono Kintetsu Liners (12); at Tokyo, 12pm
- Toyota Industries Shuttles Aichi (2) v Mie Honda Heat (11); at Aichi, 12pm
- NEC Green Rockets Tokatsu (3) v Ricoh Black Rams Tokyo (10); at Chiba, 2.30pm
Divisions 1 & 2 Promotion/Relegation 2024
Divisions 2 & 3 Promotion/Relegation 2024
Japan Steel Kamaishi Seawaves defeated Kurita Water Gush Akishima in last season’s promotion battle over two legs and they play them again this weekend after having finished bottom in Division 2 with just a single win.
Water Gush, coached by the ex-Wallaby backrower Wycliff Palu, came into the match with 5 wins this season in Division 3 and a last surge ensured they reached this Replacement Battle.
- Japan Steel Kamaishi Seawaves (6) v Kurita Water Gush Akishima (3); at Iwate, 2.30pm – Sunday 19 May 2024
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.
The Japan Rugby League One also has been accessible to fans in Asia on Malaysian TV streaming provider, Astro, with matches on Astro SuperSport channel while some fixtures have been streamed on RugbyPassTV in certain territories.
The 2024 JRLO League One semi-finals will be streamed for free on World Rugby’s RugbyPass app and webpage for audiences *outside of Japan and New Zealand.
The full fixture list for this JRLO season can be seen here.
Japan Rugby League One 2023-2024
- Ardie Savea – Playing Rugby In The JRLO Has Been A Blessing.
- Rugby Life At JRLO Side Kubota Spears Funabashi Tokyo Bay – Bernard Foley, Dane Coles & Liam Williams.
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