Japan??

[Gobsmacked]

If we're thinking of conferences or divisions of 6 teams, in the long run...

* NZ Warriors (Auckland)
* Christchurch
* Wellington
* Hamilton
* Fiji
* Tokyo

I was tempted to put PNG in there instead of Tokyo but I think a potential rivalry between the Cowboys & PNG Chiefs is too good to break up.

Swap Hamilton for PNG

 

[flippikat]

Swap Hamilton for PNG

That could work, especially with home-away-from home games for Warriors (Hamilton, Rotorua), Wellington (New Plymouth, Napier) & Christchurch (Dunedin).

Heck, even Fiji could play a trial in Samoa.

 

[yakstorm]

Worth noting the Japanese clubs basically killed off the Sunwolves in Super Rugby to protect their own interests- they’d likely do the same to any league team looking to set up.

They'd have a lot less leverage though. The Japan RFU has to answer to it's member clubs, the NRL does not.

The League One clubs also generally don't own their venues, using municipal or regional stadiums, so it makes sabotaging more difficult.

If the NRL was serious about a Japan NRL club, one strategy they could take is to approach one of the larger companies stuck in the lower L1 divisions to own the club or who have recently left Rugby Union in Japan. Mazda & IBM both recently sold their teams...

 

[Red&BlackBear]

This thread isn’t crazy talk at all.
I think Japan is as likely as US is - how likely that is, remains to be seen.

I think Japan would take to rugby league fairly quickly and I think rugby league would appreciate the commercial ownership models of Japanese rugby a lot.

Like most net-zero ideas (where’s there no pre-exisiting infrastructure), it just requires big vision and substantial ground work (inc. resources) - and then people willing to commit to it.

 

[RedVee]

So… a Japanese NRL team???
What to call them ?

Kamikaze? Samurai? Zeroes?

 

[Generalzod]

Konnichiwa…

 

[Bobby DIGital]

So… a Japanese NRL team???
What to call them ?

Kamikaze? Samurai? Zeroes?

Ninja Turtles coached by Master Splinter (Wayne Bennett).

 

[Clarency2]

Japan is a funny place. I was living there while the Rugby World Cup was on in 2015. Watched the Japan vs South Africa game in an almost empty bar with 5 other random Japanese fellas at 3:30am. Needless to say it was a very memorable moment. Anyway a week later 27 million people stayed up until midnight to watch their game against Samoa.

Point being... Japanese public interest is low - until it is high. That transition happens faster than anywhere else I have ever seen.

From a RL perspective that can be a good thing. Considering how SANZAAR treated Japanese Rugby Union I would think there is real potential for the NRL to get an elbow onto the table and sneak a bit of that JRU community - about 100,000 players.

There are over 10k Aussies living in Tokyo right now. Japan is also very high on the destination list for Australian tourists. Shared time-zone if you like? Tokyo is an absolute no-brainer for any talk of an NRL global round. Could open up some talks with the local JRU admin.

What's to lose?

 

[Gobsmacked]

Japan is a funny place. I was living there while the Rugby World Cup was on in 2015. Watched the Japan vs South Africa game in an almost empty bar with 5 other random Japanese fellas at 3:30am. Needless to say it was a very memorable moment. Anyway a week later 27 million people stayed up until midnight to watch their game against Samoa.

Point being... Japanese public interest is low - until it is high. That transition happens faster than anywhere else I have ever seen.

From a RL perspective that can be a good thing. Considering how SANZAAR treated Japanese Rugby Union I would think there is real potential for the NRL to get an elbow onto the table and sneak a bit of that JRU community - about 100,000 players.

There are over 10k Aussies living in Tokyo right now. Japan is also very high on the destination list for Australian tourists. Shared time-zone if you like? Tokyo is an absolute no-brainer for any talk of an NRL global round. Could open up some talks with the local JRU admin.

What's to lose?

100,000 players! That's a large talent pool!
The necessary build of a RU player is much bigger than league across the board, I'd say the the bulk of those players in Japan are far more suitable to League.

 

[marlins2.0]

Was there for the 2019 rugby world cup, 70k packed into a stadium to watch NZ wallop Namibia.

Day before we went to the pub for the afternoon/evening games, and it was standing room only from 2pm right through to Japan's game vs Samoa. There were people standing on the stairwell trying to get in, and handing their money to the person in front of them who would in turn do the same (about 15 people in the chain), to get a beer whilst they waited to get in. Quite incredible.

RWC signage all over the city, was definitely an event they pumped a lot into, but from what I understand they were treating it as a dress rehearsal for the Olympics. That said, people were very much into it. I was living in Asia at the time so being at well produced, well managed events with large attendances was nothing new, but the Kiwis and Aussies I spoke to over there visiting for the first time were in awe. A couple commented that they'd seen the same for Origin, but they couldn't believe the hype for the minnow games in what is still a relatively developing market.

Put a one off game there, promote it for a year, with smart people who understand the local market, we might be presently surprised.

 

[Clarency2]

Some solid Japanese rugby players:
Sho Furuhata - 1.85m; 115kg
Kanji Shimokawa - 1.88m; 105kg
Tomoki Osada - 1.79m; 90kg
Kazuma Ueda - 1.77m; 87kg
Shu Yamamoto - 1.9m; 108kg

and on and on and on. You can find highlights of Japan's Top League Rugby to see how they go. Tackling, passing, kicking, positioning - all the skills are there. The NRL just needs to make the decision to start the harvest.