Top League

In an effort to drive up the overall standard of Japanese rugby and improve the results of the Japan national rugby union team, the Japan Rugby Football Union has recently created a new semi-professional 12-team league, called the Top League. The first season was 2003-4.

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After the play-offs (see below) the teams will be as follows. Secom and Sanix have returned after a season out of the league. Thus the team line-up is identical to the first season, 2003-4.

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Kobe Steel Kobelco Steelers

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Kubota Spears

Japan national rugby union team: Japan (often known as "The Cherry Blossoms") is traditionally the strongest rugby union power in Asia, with only occasional losses to Korean rivals in the region, but has both enjoyed and endured mixed results against non-Asian teams over the years since this Western sport was introduced in 1899 by ...

Japan Rugby Football Union: Rugby union was first introduced to Japanese students at Keio University in Japan by Professor Edward Bramwell Clarke who was born in Yokohama and Tanaka Ginnosuke, both graduates of Cambridge University, in 1899. It had probably been played at the treaty ports (Kobe and Yokohama especially) before ...

Top League related Images and Photos (experimental)

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