Most of Division 1 in the JRLO are on a break before Round 11 but Tokyo Sungoliath and Mitsubishi Sagamihara Dynaboars will play their snow-postponed match this weekend, while there are also fixtures in Division 2 and Division 3, with the top-of-the-table clash between SkyActivs Hiroshima and Sayama Secom Rugguts one to watch.
Most of Division 1 in the JRLO are on a break before Round 11 but Tokyo Sungoliath and Mitsubishi Sagamihara Dynaboars will play their snow-postponed match this weekend, while there are also fixtures in Division 2 and Division 3, with the top-of-the-table clash between SkyActivs Hiroshima and Sayama Secom Rugguts one to watch.
Division 1
Saturday March 7
Tokyo Sungoliath vs Mitsubishi Sagamihara Dynaboars - Prince Chichibu Memorial Rugby Ground (Tokyo)
The Round 7 match which was postponed due to snow earlier this year will see high-flying Tokyo Sungoliath in 4th host the Mitsubishi Sagamihara Dynaboars who are languishing in 11th in the Division.
Sungoliath has a big win over Shizuoka BlueRevs last weekend, while the Dynaboars suffered a narrow loss to Toyota Verblitz in the 78th minute
Mitsubishi Sagamihara Dynaboars Matt Vaega is having a great season and he scored twice in defeat and now is second on the Division try-scoring ladder and has 45 points overall (as well as having made 564 meters). Flyhalf James Grayson is on the bench, but both internationals Brad Weber and Lukhanyo Am start.
Seiya Ozaki scored a hat trick and Isaiah Punivai twice in the Tokyo Sungoliath bonus point win last week. Former All Black captain and current club captain Sam Cane starts but two-time RWC winner Cheslin Kolbe, who has 5 tries this season, is not in the matchday squad. Starting lock and Brave Blossom Harry Hocking has 45 lineout wins, the third most in the Division.
In Round 11, Sungoliath will take on the Toshiba Brave Lupus Tokyo in the Fuchu derby on 15th March at Prince Chichibu Memorial Rugby Ground (Tokyo) and they could inflict a 5th straight defeat on the defending champions.
Saturday March 7
Nippon Steel Kamaishi Seawaves v Hanazono Kintetsu Liners; at Iwate, 1pm
6th ranked Nippon Steel Kamaishi Seawaves lost by a single point in the previous round they played and now host the Division leaders in what will be a tough fixture on Saturday.
The Kintetsu Liners have not reached 40 points only once this season and have won all six games so far. They have a one point advantage on the log over Toyota Industries Corporation Shuttles Aichi and this weekend’s fixture will bring them level on 7 matches so it's a key game to extend their lead at the top.
Key overseas signings Akira Ioane, Manie Libbok (leads the Division points stats with 63 so far), Burger Odendaal, and captain Peter Umaga Jensen (5 tries) all start.
Nippon Steel Kamaishi Seawaves have played the least matches so far, this will be their 6th, and Kiwi flyhalf Mitchell Hunt, tied-second on the points charts, has been a pivotal player for the side and he starts at ten again.
Hino Red Dolphins v Green Rockets Tokatsu; at Tokyo (AGF Field), 1pm
Bottom-placed Hino Red Dolphins nearly won their first game of the season last week, and they host 4th on the log Green Rockets Tokatsu who were also on the losing side in the previous round.
Teruya Goto has scored 4 tries this season for the visitors and starts on the right wing, while former Wallaby Rory Arnold captains the team.
For the hosts, Australian flyhalf Tony Alofipo has scored the most points for the team (26) and starts, and their top try scorer (3) Ko Kojima is among the reserves.
Division Three
Saturday March 7
Le RIRO Fukuoka v Yakult Levins Toda; at Fukuoka, 1pm
The hosts, Le RIRO Fukuoka, lost last weekend and now sit in 4th but with a game in hand, while the visiting Yakult Levins Toda are only one place and one point below them on the log.
Syoutarou Matsuo, the Le RIRO Fukuoka player, sits third in the division for points scored this season with 67, while Tongan Amanaki Lisala has scored the most tries for the side, 4, one ahead of Doga Maeda.
For Yakult Levins Toda, their top try scorer also has 3, and thats Tsubasa Shinno but they were hammered last weekend 7-50 by Sayama SECOM Rugguts
SkyActivs Hiroshima v Sayama SECOM Rugguts; at Hiroshima, 1pm
Can SkyActivs Hiroshima make it 9 wins from 9 as they host second-placed Sayama SECOM Rugguts, who themselves have lost just once which was to the same opposition this weekend back in the opening round 26-40.
Shota Kutsuna scored 22 points last weekend in a big win and he also scored twice and was Player of the Match, so he will be one to watch.
SkyActivs Hiroshima scored six tries in that win in the opening round in mid-December, all by different players and this will be their biggest challenge since that game. They also come into the weekend off the back of a big bonus point win in which Tye Nash scored twice and he will start again on Saturday.
