Several Springboks’ seasons end early, Marx, Kolbe and De Allende power on, as Sir Steve Hansen fails to reach Japan knockouts
Sungoliath Tokyo winger Cheslin Kolbe and Canon Eagles captain Jesse Kriel.
The six teams who will progress to the Japan Rugby League knockouts stages have been confirmed with one round of the regular season left to play.
The Kobelco Kobe Steelers, Saitama Wild Knights, Kubota Spears Funabashi, Tokyo Sungoliath, Black Rams Tokyo and defending champions, the Toshiba Brave Lupus Tokyo, will feature in the knockouts once the final rankings are confirmed this coming weekend.
Kobe, the Wild Knights and Spears are in a three-horse race for the top spot, with just two points separating Dave Rennie’s Steelers and the rest.
The final round of action will just be about where the teams finish on the overall standings, as the Urayasu D-Rocks and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Sagamihara Dynaboars prop up the table and cannot move out of the relegation zone.
That means that clubs ranked seventh to 10th are out of the running for a play-off spot and are safe from the drop to division two.
Cheslin Kolbe and Sam Cane inspire Sungoliath’s turnaround
After an unprecedented five losses on the trot, Cheslin Kolbe and Sam Cane starred for Tokyo Sungoliath as they claimed a timely 54-38 victory over Toyota Verblitz, a result which secured their place in the post-season while spelling the end of their opponents’ campaign.
Cane rounded off one of Tokyo’s four first-half tries, three of which were scored in the final 10 minutes, with Kolbe playing a major role in the build-up to the five-pointer.
Sungoliath piled on further pain straight after the resumption, scoring twice in the first 10 minutes, and while they matched their four-try haul in the second half, Verblitz managed to deny them a try bonus point by crossing for two five-pointers in the first 40 and four times in the second.
Former All Blacks winger Mark Tele’a scored two of the three tries in the final 10 minutes to make the scoreline more respectable in what was Sir Steve Hansen’s final home game at the helm of the club.
The defeat, coupled with Toshiba Brave Lupus’ 35-29 win over the Shizuoka BlueRevs, also ended Toyota’s hopes of featuring in the knockouts. During his time with Verblitz, Hansen led the side to the play-offs just once, reaching the semi-finals of the 2020/21 Top League.
Kwagga Smith’s BlueRevs bow out
Springboks flanker Kwagga Smith captained the Shizuoka BlueRevs against the defending champions, the Brave Lupus, knowing that only a victory would keep their hopes of making the post-season alive.
It was nip and tuck for the BlueRevs as they headed into the break all square with Toshiba at 22 apiece, but a Takuro Matsunaga penalty either side of Taichi Mano’s converted try gave the title holders a 13-point buffer.
That proved to be too much for Shizuoka to overcome as Malo Tuitama’s try came with the clock in the red. While it secured a losing bonus point, they finished the weekend eight points adrift from the top six.
Fellow Springbok Franco Mostert missed Honda Heat’s clash with the Steelers as they fell to a 24-19 defeat. Brodie Retallick got among the tries yet again for Dave Rennie’s men, scoring his 17th try in as many matches for the club, who reclaimed the top spot.
Kieran Crowley’s charges had an outside chance of being in the running for a play-off spot had they been able to topple Rennie’s Steelers, but ultimately came up short. They now head into the final weekend with an opportunity to finish as high as seventh and as low as 10th.
After starting the season with six successive defeats, the Canon Eagles continued their bid to end their campaign on a high as they secured their fifth win from their last seven outings. Their late season flourish means that they won’t be featuring in the promotion-relegation matches this campaign.
Leon MacDonald’s side raced into a 21-0 lead with captain Jesse Kriel scoring the first of the Eagles’ tries, who cruised to a 31-22 victory over the Mitsubishi Sagamihara Dynaboars. The result confirmed their involvement in Divison One for next season. The match also saw Faf de Klerk come off the bench in what was his final home game for Canon before he returns to South Africa having signed for the Cheetahs.
As for the Dynaboars, they will face fellow relegation series participant the Urayasu D-Rocks in the final round of the regular season.
What lies ahead
The weekend’s results mean that Toyota Verblitz, Shizuoka Blue Revs, Yokohama Canon Eagles and Mie Honda Heat will be playing for pride and possibly a higher finish on the table in the final round of the regular season.
The quartet cannot qualify for the play-offs and are clear of the relegation battle zone, meaning that their seasons will end at least a week earlier than the rest.
Meanwhile, round 18 throws up some interesting matchups as second-place Saitama Wild Knights, who fell to a stunning 27-24 defeat at the hands of the D-Rocks, host Richie Mo’unga’s Brave Lupus.
Smith will go toe-to-toe with Bok teammates Kriel and De Klerk as the BlueRevs and Ealges collide while Honda Heat and Verblitz face off in Hansen’s final game in charge of the latter.
Third-placed Kubota host top-of-the-table Kobe, with the result in that match likely to decide which of the two clubs gets the advantage of progress straight to the semi-finals, while fourth-placed Sungoliath hosts fifth-placed Black Rams Tokyo.
The first round of the post-season will take place on the weekend of May 23, with the fourth-ranked team playing five and three hosting six, with the respective winners playing the top two-ranked teams in the semi-finals a week later.