2015–16 Top League

2015–16 Top League
Panasonic win the Lixil Cup for season 2015–16.
Countries	Japan
Date	13 November 2015 – 24 January 2016
Champions	Panasonic Wild Knights (4th title)
Runners-up	Toshiba Brave Lupus
Matches played	115
Top point scorer	Ayumu Goromaru (83 pts) Yamaha Júbilo
Top try scorer	Taiyo Ando (6 tries) Toyota Verblitz Shota Emi (6 tries) Suntory Sungoliath
← 2014–15 2016–17 →

The 2015–16 Top League was the 13th season of Japan's domestic rugby union competition, the Top League. It kicked off on 13 November 2015 and was completed on 24 January 2016.^[1] The final was won by Panasonic Wild Knights defeating Toshiba Brave Lupus by 27–26.

A short pre-season competition was also played from 3 September to 10 October 2015 to provide each Top League team with five official matches before the regular season.^[2]^[3]

Teams

The only change to the make-up of the league was the Challenge One winner Honda Heat replacing Kyuden Voltex.^[4]

Team	Region	Coach	Captain
Canon Eagles	Machida, Tokyo, Kantō	Yoji Nagatomo
Coca-Cola Red Sparks	Fukuoka, Kyushu	Tomohiro Yamaguchi	Kouta Yamashita
Honda Heat	Suzuka, Mie	Tomoaki Fujimoto
Kintetsu Liners	Higashiosaka, Osaka, Kansai	Ryusuke Maeda	Daiki Toyota
Kobe Steel Kobelco Steelers	Kobe, Kansai	Allister Coetzee	Daiki Hashimoto
Kubota Spears	Abiko, Chiba, Kantō	Toutai Kefu	Naomichi Tatekawa
NEC Green Rockets	Abiko, Chiba, Kantō	Masao Amino	Sunao Takizawa
NTT Docomo Red Hurricanes	Osaka, Kansai	Masahiro Shimoki
NTT Shining Arcs	Chiba, Chiba, Kantō	Rob Penney	Yuya Mizoguchi
Panasonic Wild Knights	Ota, Gunma, Kantō	Robbie Deans	Shota Horie
Ricoh Black Rams	Tokyo, Kantō	Damien Hill	Masahiro Noguchi
Suntory Sungoliath	Fuchū, Tokyo, Kantō	Andy Friend
Toshiba Brave Lupus	Fuchū, Tokyo, Kantō	Jimmy Stonehouse	Yoshikazu Morita
Toyota Industries Shuttles	Aichi, Mizuho	Masaya Niu	Tsuyoshi Matsuoka
Toyota Verblitz	Toyota, Aichi, Tokai	Hiroshi Sugawara	Kojiro Yoshida
Yamaha Júbilo	Iwata, Shizuoka, Tokai	Takanobu Horikawa

Format

Owing to the 2015 Rugby World Cup and Japan's entry into the 2016 Super Rugby tournament, the 2015–16 Top League format was altered from the previous year.

Pre-season league

A pre-season competition was staged to provide each Top League team with five matches before the regular season. In the first stage, played from 3–19 September, the 16 teams were placed into 4 pools of 4 teams each and a round-robin was played within each pool.^[2]^[3]

For the second stage, played from 3–10 October, the top teams in each pool were bracketed together to determine the pre-season competition winner. Semifinals and a consolation final and final were played to decide positions 1 to 4. The second-ranked teams in each pool played off for positions 5 to 8, the third-ranked teams played off for positions 9 to 12, and the bottom teams from each pool played off for positions 13 to 16.^[2]^[3]

Regular season

For the Pool stage, the 16 teams were placed into 2 pools of 8 teams each and a round-robin was played within each of the pools. At the conclusion of the pool stage, the top 4 sides in each pool advanced to the title play-offs to determine the Top League champion and the final classification positions 1 to 8. Similarly, the bottom 4 sides in each pool went on to the lower bracket play-offs to determine the final classification positions 9 to 16.

Pre-season

Standings

Top League - Pre-season pool stage
Pool A
	Club	Played	Won	Drawn	Lost	Points For	Points Against	Points Difference	Try Bonus	Losing Bonus	Points
1	Toyota Verblitz	3	3	0	0	91	46	+45	2	0	14
2	Panasonic Wild Knights	3	2	0	1	93	50	+43	2	1	11
3	NEC Green Rockets	3	1	0	2	59	85	−26	1	0	5
4	Honda Heat	3	0	0	3	38	100	−62	0	0	0
Updated: 19 September 2016 Source: rugbyarchive.net
Pool B
	Club	Played	Won	Drawn	Lost	Points For	Points Against	Points Difference	Try Bonus	Losing Bonus	Points
1	Suntory Sungoliath	3	3	0	0	77	26	+41	1	0	13
2	Kintetsu Liners	3	2	0	1	111	46	+65	2	1	11
3	Yamaha Júbilo	3	1	0	2	62	78	−16	1	0	5
4	Coca-Cola Red Sparks	3	0	0	3	29	119	−90	0	0	0
Updated: 19 September 2016 Source: rugbyarchive.net
Pool C
	Club	Played	Won	Drawn	Lost	Points For	Points Against	Points Difference	Try Bonus	Losing Bonus	Points
1	Kobe Steel Kobelco Steelers	3	3	0	0	71	28	+43	0	0	12
2	NTT Docomo Red Hurricanes	3	1	0	2	40	44	−4	0	1	5
3	NTT Shining Arcs	3	1	0	2	39	46	−7	0	0	4
4	Kubota Spears	3	1	0	2	29	61	−32	0	0	4
Updated: 19 September 2016 Source: rugbyarchive.net
Pool D
	Club	Played	Won	Drawn	Lost	Points For	Points Against	Points Difference	Try Bonus	Losing Bonus	Points
1	Toshiba Brave Lupus	3	3	0	0	74	53	+21	2	0	14
2	Ricoh Black Rams	3	2	0	1	70	73	−3	1	0	9
3	Canon Eagles	3	0	1	2	40	44	−4	0	2	4
4	Toyota Industries Shuttles	3	0	1	2	69	69	−14	1	1	4
Updated: 19 September 2015 Source: rugbyarchive.net • Teams ranked 1 (Green background) qualify to semifinals. • Teams ranked 2 (Blue background) qualify for 5th place semifinals. • Teams ranked 3 (White background) qualify for 9th place semifinals. • Teams ranked 4 (Yellow background) qualify for 13th place semifinals.
Source: rugbyarchive.net Four points for a win, two for a draw, one bonus point for four tries or more (BP1) and one bonus point for losing by seven or less (BP2). If teams are level at any stage, tiebreakers are applied in the following order: • Difference between points for and against • Total number of points for • Number of matches won • Aggregate number of points scored in matches between tied teams • Number of matches won excluding the first match, then the second and so on until the tie is settled

Pre-season play-offs

Fourth bracket

13th–16th semifinal
B4	Coca-Cola Red Sparks	24
D4	Toyota Shokki Shuttles	35	Thirteenth play-off
			W1	Toyota Shokki Shuttles	21
13th–16th semifinal			W2	Kubota Spears	17
A4	Honda Heat	10
C4	Kubota Spears	40		Fifteenth play-off
			L1	Coca-Cola Red Sparks	24
			L2	Honda Heat	21

Third bracket

9th–12th semifinal
A3	NEC Green Rockets	20
C3	NTT Shining Arcs	28	Ninth play-off
			W3	NTT Shining Arcs	48
9th–12th semifinal			W4	Canon Eagles	25
B3	Yamaha Jubilo	24
D3	Canon Eagles	27		Eleventh play-off
			L3	NEC Green Rockets	18
			L4	Yamaha Jubilo	26

Second bracket

5th–8th semifinal
B2	Kintetsu Liners	22
D2	Ricoh Black Rams	32	Fifth play-off
			W5	Ricoh Black Rams	17
5th–8th semifinal			W6	NTT Docomo Red Hurricanes	26
A2	Panasonic Wild Knights^*	–
C2	NTT Docomo Red Hurricanes	w/o		Seventh play-off
			L5	Kintetsu Liners	w/o
			L6	Panasonic Wild Knights^†	–

Notes:

^* Panasonic forfeited their semifinal. NTT Docomo gained the walk over.
^† Panasonic forfeited the 7th place final. Kintetsu gained the walk over.

First bracket

1st–4th semifinal
B1	Suntory Sungoliath	23
D1	Toshiba Brave Lupus	21	Final
			W7	Suntory Sungoliath	24
1st–4th semifinal			W8	Kobelco Steelers	27
A1	Toyota Verblitz	14
C1	Kobelco Steelers	30		Third play-off
			L7	Toshiba Brave Lupus	13
			L8	Toyota Verblitz	20

Regular season

Standings

	Club	Played	Won	Drawn	Lost	Points For	Points Against	Points Difference	Try Bonus	Losing Bonus	Points
Top League - Pool Stage
Pool A
1	Yamaha Júbilo	7	6	0	1	226	140	+86	5	0	29
2	Kobelco Steelers	7	5	0	2	235	137	+98	5	2	27
3	Toyota Verblitz	7	5	0	2	203	125	+78	5	1	26
4	Canon Eagles	7	5	0	2	196	142	+54	4	1	25
5	Toyota Industries Shuttles	7	3	0	4	175	212	-37	1	0	13
6	NTT Docomo Red Hurricanes	7	2	1	4	141	197	-56	1	1	12
7	NEC Green Rockets	7	1	1	5	100	202	-102	0	1	7
8	Coca-Cola Red Sparks	7	0	0	7	143	264	-121	1	2	3
Updated: 27 December 2015 Source: rugbyarchive.net • Teams 1 to 4 (Green background) advance to the title play-offs. • Teams 5 to 8 (Blue background) go on to the lower bracket play-offs.
Pool B
	Club	Played	Won	Drawn	Lost	Points For	Points Against	Points Difference	Try Bonus	Losing Bonus	Points
1	Panasonic Wild Knights	7	6	1	0	290	137	+153	5	0	31
2	Toshiba Brave Lupus	7	5	1	1	253	100	+153	4	0	26
3	Kintetsu Liners	7	5	0	2	189	193	-4	3	0	23
4	NTT Shining Arcs	7	4	0	3	190	142	+48	4	2	22
5	Suntory Sungoliath	7	4	0	3	227	148	+79	4	1	21
6	Kubota Spears	7	2	0	5	118	240	-122	1	1	10
7	Honda Heat	7	1	0	6	99	253	-154	0	1	5
8	Ricoh Black Rams	7	0	0	7	129	282	-153	1	1	2
Updated: 27 December 2015 Source: rugbyarchive.net • Teams 1 to 4 (Green background) advance to the title play-offs. • Teams 5 to 8 (Blue background) go on to the lower bracket play-offs.
Source: rugbyarchive.net Four points for a win, two for a draw, one bonus point for four tries or more (BP1) and one bonus point for losing by seven or less (BP2). If teams are level at any stage, tiebreakers are applied in the following order: • Difference between points for and against • Total number of points for • Number of matches won • Aggregate number of points scored in matches between tied teams • Number of matches won excluding the first match, then the second and so on until the tie is settled

Pool stage

Round 1

	13 November 2015	Panasonic Wild Knights	38–5	Suntory Sungoliath	Chichibunomiya Rugby Stadium
	19:00	Try: Yamada 6' c, 40' c Pietersen 51' Yu 67' c Con: Barnes (2) 6', 40' Parker (1) 67' Pen: Barnes (4) 3', 11', 17', 33'		Try: Pisi 60'	Attendance: 10,792 Referee: Mike Fraser (NZL)

	14 November 2015	Ricoh Black Rams	12–39	NTT Shining Arcs	Chichibunomiya Rugby Stadium
	11:40	Try: Hasegawa 19' c Kauhenga 64' Con: Peters (1) 19'		Try: Miura 28' c Mafi 46' Ishibashi 50' c Mitsui 58' c Koizumi 77' c Con: Jantjies (3) 28', 50' 58' Ogura (1) 77' Pen: Jantjies (2) 8', 35'	Attendance: 8,158

	14 November 2015	Toshiba Brave Lupus	47–3	Kubota Spears	Chichibunomiya Rugby Stadium
	14:00	Try: Leitch 7' c Kahui 31' c, 66' c Oshima 43' c Hirose 59' Kraska 69' Con: Steyn (3) 7', 31', 43' Ogawa 66' Pen: Steyn (3) 12', 25', 49'		Pen: Moriwaki (1) 23'	Attendance: 11,085

	14 November 2015	Toyota Industries Shuttles	24–17	NEC Green Rockets	Mizuho Rugby Stadium
	11:40	Try: Takada 26' c Vaka 29' c Vatuvei 42' c Con: Hegarty (3) 26', 29', 42' Pen: Hegarty (1) 69'		Try: Owada 8' c Kamaike 32' c Con: Norton-Knight (1) 8' Tamura 32' Pen: Norton-Knight (1) 40'	Attendance: 5,320

	14 November 2015	Toyota Verblitz	11–18	Yamaha Júbilo	Mizuho Rugby Stadium
	14:00	Try: Taniguchi 46' Pen: Monji (2) 26', 57'		Try: Tuiali'i 4' Yatomi 8' c Con: Goromaru (1) 8' Pen: Goromaru (2) 15', 42'	Attendance: 8,676

	14 November 2015	NTT Docomo Red Hurricanes	23–19	Coca-Cola Red Sparks	Kintetsu Hanazono Rugby Stadium
	12:00	Try: Shigeno 19' Watanabe 35' Paea 43' c Con: Sato (1) 43' Pen: Sato (1) 3' Pollard (1) 58'		Try: Katsuki 15' c Osajima 53' c Yamada 71' Con: Fukuda (2) 15', 53'	Attendance: 6,930 Referee: Kyosuke Toda

	14 November 2015	Kintetsu Liners	25–12	Honda Heat	Kintetsu Hanazono Rugby Stadium
	14:05	Try: Spies 11' Penalty Try 24' c Taufa 29' Kim 54' Con: Shigemitsu (1) 24' Pen: Shigemitsu (1) 16'		Try: Lemeki 20' c Sogeta 63' Con: Morita (1) 20'	Attendance: 8,774

	15 November 2015	Kobe Steel Kobelco Steelers	23–18	Canon Eagles	Kobe Universiade Memorial Stadium
	13:00	Try: Ellis 6' c Penalty Try 21' c Con: Yamanaka (2) 6', 21' Pen: Yamanaka (3) 49', 61', 66'		Try: Bond 33' le Roux 67' c Con: Mitomo (1) 67' Pen: Mitomo (2) 38', 42'	Attendance: 7,863

Round 2

	21 November 2015	Ricoh Black Rams	18–24	Honda Heat	Yamaguchi Ishin Park Stadium
	11:30	Try: Kauhenga 69' c Komatsu 79' Con: Peter (1) 69' Pen: Peters (2) 9', 54'		Try: Kamada 3' c Moto 60' c Soqeta 65' c Con: Morita (3) 3', 60', 65' Drop: Konishi 74'	Attendance: 4,570 Referee: Kyosuke Toda

	21 November 2015	Canon Eagles	34–17	NTT Docomo Red Hurricanes	Yamaguchi Ishin Park Stadium
	14:00	Try: Kikutani 24' c le Roux 40' c Hashino 49' c Fukui 76' c Con: Mitomo (4) 24', 40', 49', 76' Pen: Mitomo (2) 31', 35'		Try: Iongi 61' c Park 80' c Con: Pollard (2) 61', 80' Pen: Saiguchi (1) 3'	Attendance: 5,039

	21 November 2015	Suntory Sungoliath	55–14	Kubota Spears	Nishikyogoku Athletic Stadium
	11:40	Try: Emi 17', 76' c Tui 23' c du Preez 30' c Nagatomo 46' Sasaki 58' c Nagare 61' c Takemoto 72' c Con: Pisi (6) 23', 30', 58', 61', 72', 76' Pen: Pisi (1) 38'		Try: Otukolo 48' c Saunders 54' c Con: Moriwaki (2) 48', 54'	Attendance: 5,247

	21 November 2015	Panasonic Wild Knights	47–27	Kintetsu Liners	Nishikyogoku Athletic Stadium
	14:00	Try: Kitagawa 22' c, 42' c Sasakura 41' c Holani 54' c Pietersen 64' c Con: Barnes (4) 22', 41', 42', 54' Parker (1) 64' Pen: Barnes (2) 1', 28' Parker (2) 68', 79'		Try: de Allende 18' c Spies 32' c Murashita 78' c Con: Shigemitsu (3) 18', 32', 78' Pen: Shigemitsu (2) 13', 16'	Attendance: 7,278

	21 November 2015	Yamaha Júbilo	43–0	Toyota Industries Shuttles	Yamaha Stadium
	13:00	Try: Piutau 15' c, 76' c Ito 24' c Hino 35' c Potgieter 49' c Horie 61' Con: Goromaru (5) 15', 24', 35', 49', 76' Pen: Goromaru (1) 39'			Attendance: 9,051

	21 November 2015	Coca-Cola Red Sparks	18–35	Toyota Verblitz	Level-5 Stadium
	14:00	Try: Toyota 61' c Yamashita 74' Con: Fukuda (1) 61' Pen: Fukuda (2) 3', 31'		Try: Ando 7' c, 13' Taumoepeau 20' c Wada 32' Hikosaka 48' Con: Monji (2) 7', 20' Pen: Monji (2) 68', 80'	Attendance: 3,725 Referee: Tatsuya Matsuoka

	21 November 2015	Toshiba Brave Lupus	13–37	NTT Shining Arcs	Kagoshima Kamoike Stadium
	14:00	Try: Yamamoto 14' c Con: Steyn (1) 14' Pen: Steyn (2) 31', 42'		Try: Tsuruya 20' c Mafi 51' c, 63' c Tsuruda 70' c Con: Jantjies (2) 20', 51' Ogura (2) 63', 70' Pen: Jantjies (1) 13' Ogura (2) 57', 67'	Attendance: 4,911 Referee: Mike Fraser (NZL)

	22 November 2015	NEC Green Rockets	12–46	Kobe Steel Kobelco Steelers	Hitachi Kashiwa Soccer Stadium
	13:00	Try: Tamura 23' c Usui 64' Con: Tamura (1) 23'		Try: Bekker 4' Anderson 32' Shomen 37' c Kizu 51' c Yamashita 54' c Taniguchi 60' c Vakauta 78' Con: Yamanaka (4) 37', 51' 54', 60' Drop: Yamanaka (1) 15'	Attendance: 7,980 Referee: Shinya Kato

Round 3

	28 November 2015	Suntory Sungoliath	19–25	Kintetsu Liners	Mizuho Rugby Stadium
	11:40	Try: Ono 12' c Murata 39' c Tsukamoto 67' Con: Ono (2) 12', 39'		Try: Kashimoto 4' c Spies 7' c Tanaka 30' Con: Shigemitsu (2) 4', 7' Pen: Shigemitsu (2) 15', 71'	Attendance: 3, 055 Referee: Tomohiro Ogawa

	28 November 2015	Toyota Verblitz	45–21	Toyota Industries Shuttles	Mizuho Rugby Stadium
	14:00	Try: Ando 6' c Monji 21' c Robinson 33' c Mizuno 36' c Hikosaka 58' c Bothma 78' c Con: Monji (6) 6', 21', 33', 36', 58', 78' Pen: Monji (1) 14'		Try: Hegarty 26' c Saunders 42' c Vaka 66' c Con: Hegarty (3) 26', 42', 66'	Attendance: 6,449 Referee: Shuhei Kubo

	28 November 2015	Honda Heat	10–41	Toshiba Brave Lupus	Shizuoka Stadium
	11:40	Try: Ubutaka 30' Nakata 60'		Try: Yuhara 17' c, 26' Ogawa 45' c Kahui 52' c Steyn 70' Messam 77' c Con: Steyn (4) 17', 45', 52', 77' Pen: Steyn (1) 8'	Attendance: 7,628 Referee: Tsuyoshi Matsumoto

	28 November 2015	Yamaha Júbilo	39–19	NEC Green Rockets	Shizuoka Stadium
	14:00	Try: Goromaru 15' c Havili 49' c Nakazono 62' c Hino 71', Potgieter 76' c Con: Goromaru (4) 15', 49', 62', 76' Pen: Goromaru (2) 32', 37'		Try: Goto 12' Higginbotham 42' c Kamaike 67' c Con: Tamura (2) 42', 67'	Attendance: 13,051 Referee: Mike Fraser

	29 November 2015	Kubota Spears	9–34	NTT Shining Arcs	Kobe Universiade Memorial Stadium
	11:40	Pen: Moriwaki (3) 26', 33', 51'		Try: Penalty Try 63' c Mafi 66' c Yamashita 77' c Jantjies 79' c Con: Ogura (2) 63', 66' Jantjies (2) 77', 79' Pen: Ogura (2) 10', 44'	Attendance: 5,244

	29 November 2015	Kobe Steel Kobelco Steelers	24–25	NTT Docomo Red Hurricanes	Kobe Universiade Memorial Stadium
	14:00	Try: Penalty Try 54' c Sato 73' c Anderson 77' c Con: Tanabe (3) 53', 73', 77' Pen: Yamanaka (1) 2'		Try: Watanabe 41' c Kriel 45' c Inoue 62' c Con: Saiguchi (2) 45', 52' Pen: Saiguchi (2) 6', 16'	Attendance: 10,833

	29 November 2015	Panasonic Wild Knights	59–28	Ricoh Black Rams	Ota Athletic Stadium
	13:00	Try: Kitagawa 6' c McCalman 11' c, 50' c Heenan 20' c Valu 59' c Nishiara 63' c Hayashi 66' c Nunomaki 76' c Con: Miwa (8) 6', 11', 20', 50', 59', 63', 66', 76' Pen: Miwa (1) 34'		Try: Kauhenga 16' c, 73' c Tsujii 42' c Hoshino 80' c Con: Foley (4) 16', 42', 73' 80'	Attendance: 5,756 Referee: Taizo Hirabayashi

	29 November 2015	Coca-Cola Red Sparks	25–31	Canon Eagles	Ōita Bank Dome
	13:00	Try: Wykes 5' Tsuiki 51' Pen: Fukuda (5) 6', 31', 38' 50', 56'		Try: Penalty Try 18' c le Roux 58' c Uematsu 68' c Suginaga 71' c Con: Moriya (1) 18' Mitomo (3) 58', 68', 71' Pen: Moriya (1) 24'	Attendance: 5,176 Referee: Kazuhito Taniguchi

Round 4

	5 December 2015	Ricoh Black Rams	7–52	Toshiba Brave Lupus	Kumagaya Athletic Stadium
	12:00	Try: Yamamoto 60' c Con: Foley (1) 60'		Try: Tokunaga 4' c Yamamoto 9' c Yuhara 15' Kajikawa 20' c, 47' c, 67' c Kahui 26' Kotaki 30' c Con: Ogawa (5) 4', 9', 20', 30', 47' Steyn (1) 67'	Attendance: 6,372

	5 December 2015	NTT Shining Arcs	28–35	Panasonic Wild Knights	Kumagaya Athletic Stadium
	14:05	Try: Jantjies 23' c Kikuchi 62' c Koizumi 77' Con: Jantjies (1) 23' Ogura (1) 62' Pen: Jantjies (2) 2', 42' Ogura (1) 80'		Try: Kitagawa 34' c Holani 49' c Sasakura 58' Horie 65' c Con: Barnes (3) 34', 49', 65' Pen: Barnes (3) 8', 15', 27'	Attendance: 10,009 Referee: Kyosuke Toda

	5 December 2015	NEC Green Rockets	15–33	Canon Eagles	Kochi Haruno Athletic Stadium
	13:00	Try: Owada 27', 76' c Con: Webb (1) 76' Pen: Webb (1) 25'		Try: Ives 2', 71' c Moriya 40' c Fukui 52' c Fujimoto 80' c Con: Mitomo (4) 40', 52', 71', 80'	Attendance: 1,852

	6 December 2015	Honda Heat	21–59	Suntory Sungoliath	Umakana Yokana Stadium
	11:40	Try: Soqeta 33' c Konishi 34' c Coetzee 53' c Con: Morita (3) 33', 34', 53'		Try: Makabe 5' c Emi 12', 78' c Tui 15' c, 44' c Murata 19' Ono 50' c Tsukamoto 59' c Pisi 68' c Con: Ono (7) 5', 15', 44', 50', 59', 68', 78'	Attendance: 14,133 Referee: Shuhei Kubo

	6 December 2015	Coca-Cola Red Sparks	28–38	Yamaha Júbilo	Umakana Yokana Stadium
	14:00	Try: Yamamoto 12' c Sarugaku 32' c Matsuoka 55' c Suzuki 70' c Con: Fukuda (4) 12', 32', 55', 70'		Try: Ohdo 5' c, 29' c Hino 18' c, 23' c Piutau 37' c Con: Goromaru (5) 5', 18', 23', 29', 37' Drop: Otao (1) 74'	Attendance: 18,005 Referee: Tomohiro Ogawa

	6 December 2015	NTT Docomo Red Hurricanes	14–36	Toyota Verblitz	Kintetsu Hanazono Rugby Stadium
	12:00	Try: Saiguchi 22' c Paea 63' c Con: Pollard (1) 22' Saiguchi (1) 63'		Try: Wada 2' c, 39' c, 50' Ando 12' c Sugimoto 46' c Con: Monji (4) 2', 12', 39', 46' Pen: Monji (1) 20'	Attendance: 8,975 Referee: Shinya Kato

	6 December 2015	Kubota Spears	17–40	Kintetsu Liners	Kintetsu Hanazono Rugby Stadium
	14:05	Try: Takahashi 68' c Tomonaga 73' c Con: Tatekawa (1) 68' Takahashi (1) 73' Pen: Moriwaki (1) 22'		Try: Kim 7' c Tanaka 26' c, 75' Taufa 37' c, 49' c Tadanobu 54' c Con: Shigemitsu (5) 7', 26', 37', 49', 54'	Attendance: 11,404

	6 December 2015	Toyota Industries Shuttles	12–27	Kobe Steel Kobelco Steelers	Ningineer Stadium
	13:00	Try: So 15' c Yamashita 35' Con: Yamashita (1) 15'		Try: Hashimoto 23' Anderson 42' Maekawa 46' c Fourie 57' c Con: Yamanaka (2) 46', 57' Pen: Yamanaka (1) 63'	Attendance: 3,370 Referee: Tatsuya Matsuoka

Round 5

	12 December 2015	NTT Shining Arcs	5–38	Suntory Sungoliath	Chichibunomiya Rugby Stadium
	11:40	Try: Britz 53'		Try: Murata 6' c Aruga 28' c Burger 35' c Emi 40' c Pisi 79' c Con: Ono (5) 6', 28', 35', 40', 79' Pen: Ono (1) 21'	Attendance: 16,025

	12 December 2015	Toshiba Brave Lupus	17–17	Panasonic Wild Knights	Chichibunomiya Rugby Stadium
	14:00	Try: Yamamoto 26' c, 77' c Con: Ogawa (1) 26' Steyn (1) 77' Pen: Steyn (1) 10'		Try: Kodama 4' c Penalty Try 61' c Con: Barnes (2) 4', 61' Pen: Barnes (1) 40'	Attendance: 20,138 Referee: Taizo Hirabayashi

	12 December 2015	Honda Heat	12–17	Kubota Spears	Kintetsu Hanazono Rugby Stadium
	12:00	Try: Nakata 20' c Konishi 29' Con: Morita (1) 20'		Try: Otukolo 1' c Penalty Try 52' c Con: Moriwaki (1) 1' Takahashi (1) 52' Pen: Talkahashi (1) 53'	Attendance: 5,050

	12 December 2015	Kintetsu Liners	40–22	Ricoh Black Rams	Kintetsu Hanazono Rugby Stadium
	14:05	Try: Toyoda 1', 72' c Taufa 13', 66' c Winterstein 42' c Con: Shigemitsu (3) 42', 66', 72' Pen: Shigemitsu (3) 25', 40', 52'		Try: Hoshino 16' c Nanai-Williams 54' c Kauhenga 78' Con: Foley (1) 16' Peters (1) 54' Pen: Foley (1) 7'	Attendance: 6,355

	12 December 2015	Toyota Verblitz	34–3	NEC Green Rockets	Toyota Stadium
	13:00	Try: Thomas 50' c, 64' c Ando 58' c, 73' c Con: Monji (4) 50', 58', 64', 73' Pen: Monji (2) 24', 43'		Pen: Webb (1) 7'	Attendance: 7,352 Referee: Sam Grove-White (Sco)

	12 December 2015	Yamaha Júbilo	41–20	NTT Docomo Red Hurricanes	Yamaha Stadium
	13:00	Try: Horie 23' c Sa'u 46' c Yatomi 55' c Penalty Try 66' c Hino 69' Helo 74' Con: Goromaru (4) 23', 46', 55', 66' Pen: Goromaru (1) 10'		Try: Sato 7' c Tsujii 80' c Con: Saiguchi (1) 7' Pollard (1) 80' Pen: Saiguchi (1) 3' Drop: Paea (1) 40'	Attendance: 9,710 Referee: Tatsuya Matsuoka

	12 December 2015	Kobe Steel Kobelco Steelers	47–24	Coca-Cola Red Sparks	Misaki Park Stadium
	13:00	Try: Taniguchi 8' c Shomen 27' c Ellis 30' c Wing 46' Maekawa 52' c Kizu 55' c Anderson 79' c Con: Tanabe (6) 8', 27', 30', 52', 55', 79'		Try: Kuwazuru 9' c Kawaguchi 41' c Yamada 68' c Con: Fukuda (1) 9' Lafaele (2) 41', 68' Pen: Fukuda (1) 34'	Attendance: 7,381 Referee: Akihisa Kajiwara

	13 December 2015	Toyota Industries Shuttles	19–35	Canon Eagles	Gifu Nagaragawa Stadium
	13:00	Try: Asami 32' Matsui 56' c Penalty Try 79' c Con: Hegarty (1) 56' Gerrard (1) 79'		Try: Hashino 41' c Thomson 44' c Moriya 51' c le Roux 64' c Suginaga 80' c Con: Moriya (5) 41', 44', 51', 64', 80'	Attendance: 2,160 Referee: Shuhei Kubo

Round 6

	19 December 2015	NEC Green Rockets	20–12	Coca-Cola Red Sparks	Chichibunomiya Rugby Stadium
	11:40	Try: Shigeno 14' c Goto 77' c Con: Tamura (2) 14'. 77' Pen: Tamura (2) 56', 64'		Try: Bateman 3' c Toyota 70' Con: Fukuda (1) 3'	Attendance: 5,963

	19 December 2015	NTT Shining Arcs	29–15	Honda Heat	Chichibunomiya Rugby Stadium
	14:00	Try: Bin 9' c Mafi 56' c Mayahara 63' Jantjies 74' c Con: Ogura (2) 9', 56' Jantjies (1) 74' Pen: Ogura (1) 2'		Try: Coetzee 39' c Ubutaka 48' Con: Lemeki (1) 39' Pen: Konishi (1) 26'	Attendance: 9,242 Referee: Akihisa Kajiwara

	19 December 2015	Canon Eagles	26–10	Toyota Verblitz	Machida Athletic Stadium
	13:00	Try: Morita 38' c, 52' Fujichika 55' Con: Harada (1) 38' Pen: Harada (3) 3', 9', 13'		Try: Thomas 34' c Con: Monji (1) 34' Pen: Monji (1) 17'	Attendance: 2,670 Referee: Taku Otsuki

	19 December 2015	Yamaha Júbilo	14–43	Kobe Steel Kobelco Steelers	Yamaha Stadium
	13:00	Try: Piutau 68' c Horie 77' c Con: Goromaru (2) 68', 77'		Try: Anderson 16' c Ohashi 20', 41', 47', 57' c Ellis 36' c Minamihashi 73' c Con: Yamanaka (3) 16'. 36', 57' Tanabe (1) 73'	Attendance: 12,842 Referee: Shuhei Kubo

	20 December 2015	Kubota Spears	27–30	Panasonic Wild Knights	Fukuda Denshi Arena
	13:00	Try: Finau 2' c Miyata 9' c Saunders 40' c Con: Moriwaki (3) 2', 9', 40' Pen: Moriwaki (2) 32', 43'		Try: McCalman 49' c Heenan 54' c Pietersen 67' c Con: Barnes (3) 49', 54', 67' Pen: Miwa (3) 6', 13', 24'	Attendance: 4,889 Referee: Sam Groves-White (Sco)

	20 December 2015	Suntory Sungoliath	37–20	Ricoh Black Rams	Yamanashi Chuo Bank Stadium
	13:00	Try: Tui 28' c, 62' Moriwaka 55' Emi 59' c Kakinaga 80' c Con: Pisi (2) 28', 59' Ono (1) 80' Pen: Pisi (1) 34' Ono (1) 75'		Try: Hasegawa 16' c Bourke 66' c Con: Foley (1) 16' Peters (1) 66' Pen: Foley (1) 39' Peters (1) 52'	Attendance: 3,899 Referee: Takashi Harada

	20 December 2015	Kintetsu Liners	12–58	Toshiba Brave Lupus	Konoike Athletic Stadium
	13:00	Try: Penalty Try 36' c Taylor 54' Con: Tadanobu (1) 36'		Try: Kahui 5' c Yamamoto 13' Toyoshima 24', 41' Yuhara 28' c Steyn 31' c Kotaki 49' c Ogawa 69' c Ito 74' Con: Ogawa (5) 5', 28', 31', 49', 69' Pen: Ogawa (1) 18'	Attendance: 6,156 Referee: Akihisa Aso

	20 December 2015	NTT Docomo Red Hurricanes	28–29	Toyota Industries Shuttles	Miyazaki Athletic Stadium
	13:00	Try: Hirase 8' c Ierome 54' c Shigeno 60' c Eto 63' Con: Sato (1) 8' Pollard (3) 54', 60', 63'		Try: Takada 38' c Vatuvei 77' c Con: Gerrard (2) 38', 77' Pen: Gerrard (5) 6', 18', 20', 51', 57'	Attendance: 3,975 Referee: Taizo Hirabayashi

Round 7

	26 December 2015	Canon Eagles	19–33	Yamaha Júbilo	Chichibunomiya Rugby Stadium
	11:40	Try: Harada 4' Hashino 14' c Usami 77' c Con: Mitomo (1) 14' Harada (1) 77'		Try: Havili 11' c, 68' Ito 17' c Goromaru 43' Con: Goromaru (2) 11', 17' Pen: Goromaru (3) 25', 47', 56'	Attendance: 22,843 Referee: Shinya Kato

	26 December 2015	Suntory Sungoliath	14–25	Toshiba Brave Lupus	Chichibunomiya Rugby Stadium
	14:00	Try: Ono 23' c Nagatomo 80' c Con: Ono (1) 23' Pisi (1) 80'		Try: Oshima 8' c Penalty Try 18' c Masuda 36' Con: Ogawa (2) 8', 18' Pen: Ogawa (2) 3', 32'	Attendance: 25,164 Referee: Shuhei Kubo

	26 December 2015	Toyota Industries Shuttles	70–17	Coca-Cola Red Sparks	Mizuho Rugby Stadium
	11:40	Try: Vatuvei 18' c Vaka 33' c, 51' c Saunders 46' c, 60' c So 56' c Takada 64' Asami 68' c Takeuchi 73' c Con: Gerrard (6) 18', 33', 45', 51', 56', 60' Hegarty (2) 68', 73' Pen: Gerrard (2) 40', 41' Hegarty (1) 80'		Try: Katsuki 10' c Tsuiki 79' c Con: Lafaele (2) 10', 79' Pen: Lafaele (1) 31'	Attendance: 3,277 Referee: Takashi Harada

	26 December 2015	Kintetsu Liners	20–18	NTT Shining Arcs	Mizuho Rugby Stadium
	14:00	Try: Tadanobu 35' c, 70' c Con: Shigemitsu (2) 35', 70' Pen: Shigemitsu (2) 17', 64'		Try: Suto 23' c Kin 28' Con: Jantjies (1) 23' Pen: Jantjies (2) 38', 47'	Attendance: 4,275

	26 December 2015	Kubota Spears	31–22	Ricoh Black Rams	Kincho Stadium
	11:40	Try: Finau 36' c Miyata 45' c, 80' c Shibahara 51' c Con: Moriwaki (3) 36', 45', 51' Takahashi (1) 80' Pen: Moriwaki (1) 6'		Try: Bourke 9' c Tsujii 13' c Hasegawa 20' Con: Foley (2) 9', 13' Pen: Peters (1) 33'	Attendance: 2,539 Referee: Akihisa Aso

	26 December 2015	NTT Docomo Red Hurricanes	14–14	NEC Green Rockets	Kincho Stadium
	14:00	Try: Paea 9' c Kriel 77' c Con: Pollard (1) 9' Paea (1) 77'		Try: Kamaike 46' Pen: Morita (3) 25', 36', 59'	Attendance: 5,466 Referee: Kyosuke Toda

	26 December 2015	Panasonic Wild Knights	64–5	Honda Heat	Ota Athletic Stadium
	13:00	Try: Yu 3' c Kodama 12' c Tanaka 17' c Hayashi 25' c, 72' Heenan 38' c McCalman 51' c, 60' c Parker 80' c Con: Barnes (5) 3', 12', 17', 25', 38' Miwa (3) 51', 60', 80' Pen: Barnes (1) 7'		Try: Lemeki 67'	Attendance: 5,284 Referee: Taku Otsuki

	26 December 2015	Kobe Steel Kobelco Steelers	25–32	Toyota Verblitz	Misaki Park Stadium
	13:00	Try: Maekawa (2) 39', 62' Wing 48' c Ohashi 65' Con: Tanabe (1) 48' Pen: Yamanaka (1) 3'		Try: Yates 19' c Matsushita 25' c Wada 51' Hikosaka 75' c Con: Monji (3) 19', 25', 75' Pen: Monji (2) 17', 72'	Attendance: 9,159 Referee: Taizo Hirabayashi

Lower bracket play-offs

Lower quarterfinals

9th to 12th bracket

Ninth place

9 January 2016 – 14:00 – Match 4

NTT Docomo Red Hurricanes

16 January 2016 – 14:05 – Match 8

Honda Heat

Winner Match 4

9 January 2016 – 11:40 – Match 1

Winner Match 1

Coca-Cola Red Sparks

23 January 2016 – 14:00

Suntory Sungoliath

Winner Match 8

9 January 2016 – 14:00 – Match 2

Winner Match 7

Toyota Industries Shuttles

16 January 2016 – 14:00 – Match 7

Ricoh Black Rams

Winner Match 2

Eleventh place

9 January 2016 – 11:40 – Match 3

Winner Match 3

NEC Green Rockets

Loser Match 8

Kubota Spears

Loser Match 7

23 January 2016 – 12:00

13th to 16th bracket		Thirteenth place

16 January 2016 – 11:40 – Match 5
Loser Match 2
Loser Match 3

		23 January 2016 – 14:00
		Winner Match 5
		Winner Match 6


		Fifteenth place
16 January 2016 – 12:00 – Match 6	23 January 2016 – 11:40
Loser Match 4	Loser Match 5
Loser Match 1		Loser Match 6

Lower quarterfinals

Match 1	9 January 2016	Coca-Cola Red Sparks	–	Suntory Sungoliath	Chichibunomiya
	11:40

Match 2	9 January 2016	Toyota Industries Shuttles	–	Ricoh Black Rams	Chichibunomiya
	14:00

Match 3	9 January 2016	NEC Green Rockets	–	Kubota Spears	Komazawa Stadium
	11:40

Match 4	9 January 2016	NTT Docomo Red Hurricanes	–	Honda Heat	Komazawa Stadium
	14:00

Play-offs 9th–12th and 13th–16th

Match 5	16 January 2016	Loser Match 2	–	Loser Match 3
	11:40

Match 6	16 January 2016	Loser Match 4	–	Loser Match 1
	12:00

Match 7	16 January 2016	Winner Match 2	–	Winner Match 3
	14:00

Match 8	16 January 2016	Winner Match 4	–	Winner Match 1
	14:05

Classification finals

15th place	23 January 2016	Loser Match 5	–	Loser Match 6
	11:40

13th place	23 January 2016	Winner Match 5	–	Winner Match 6
	14:00

11th place	23 January 2016	Loser Match 8	–	Loser Match 7
	12:00

9th place	23 January 2016	Winner Match 8	–	Winner Match 7
	14:05

Title play-offs

Quarter-finals

Semi-finals

Final

9 January 2016 – 13:00 – Match 4

Yamaha Júbilo

16 January 2016 – 14:00 – Match 7

NTT Shining Arcs

Winner of Match 4

9 January 2016 – 14:00 – Match 1

Winner of Match 1

Toyota Verblitz

24 January 2016 – 14:00 – Chichibunomiya

Toshiba Brave Lupus

Winner of Match 7

9 January 2016 – 11:40 – Match 2

Winner of Match 8

Kobelco Steelers

16 January 2016 – 14:05 – Match 8

Kintetsu Liners

Winner of Match 2

Third place

9 January 2016 – 13:00 – Match 3

Winner of Match 3

Canon Eagles

Loser of Match 7

Panasonic Wild Knights

Loser of Match 8

24 January 2016 – 11:40 – Chichibunomiya

5th to 8th bracket		Fifth place

16 January 2016 – 11:40 – Match 5
Loser of Match 4
Loser of Match 1

		23 January 2016 – 14:00
		Winner of Match 5
		Winner of Match 6


		Seventh place
16 January 2016 – 12:00 – Match 6	23 January 2016 – 11:40
Loser of Match 2	Loser of Match 5
Loser of Match 3		Loser of Match 6

Quarterfinals

Match 1	9 January 2016	Toyota Verblitz	–	Toshiba Brave Lupus	Mizuho Stadium
	11:40

Match 2	9 January 2016	Kobelco Steelers	–	Kintetsu Liners	Mizuho Stadium
	14:00

Match 3	9 January 2016	Canon Eagles	–	Panasonic Wild Knights	Kincho Stadium
	13:00

Match 4	9 January 2016	Yamaha Júbilo	–	NTT Shining Arcs	Nippatsu Stadium
	13:00

Semifinals and play-offs 5th–8th

Match 5	16 January 2016	Loser Match 4	–	Loser Match 1
	11:40

Match 6	16 January 2016	Loser Match 2	–	Loser Match 3
	12:00

Match 7 – Semifinal	16 January 2016	Winner Match 4	–	Winner Match 1
	14:00

Match 8 – Semifinal	16 January 2016	Winner Match 2	–	Winner Match 3
	14:05

Classification finals

7th place	23 January 2016	Loser Match 5	–	Loser Match 6
	11:40

5th place	23 January 2016	Winner Match 5	–	Winner Match 6
	14:00

3rd place	24 January 2016	Loser Match 7	–	Loser Match 8
	11:40

Final

	24 January 2015	Winner Match 7	–	Winner Match 8	Chichibunomiya Rugby Stadium, Tokyo
	14:00

Team details


Team 1
FB	15
RW	14
OC	13
IC	12
LW	11
FH	10
SH	9
N8	8
OF	7
BF	6
RL	5
LL	4
TP	3
HK	2	(c)
LP	1
Replacements:
HK	16
PR	17
PR	18
LK	19
FL	20
SH	21
CE	22
FB	23
Coach:


Team 2
FB	15
RW	14
OC	13
IC	12
LW	11
FH	10
SH	9
N8	8
OF	7
BF	6
RL	5	(c)
LL	4
TP	3
HK	2
LP	1
Replacements:
HK	16
PR	17
PR	18
FL	19
FL	20
SH	21
CE	22
FB	23
Coach:

Touch judges:

All-Japan qualification

The 2016 All-Japan Rugby Football Championship took place as a one-off final match played between the respective winners of the Japanese Top League competition and the All-Japan University Rugby Championship. The match will be played at the Chichibunomiya Stadium in Tokyo on 31 January 2016.^[5]

The abbreviated format was chosen due to the busy schedule for Japanese Rugby which included the 2015 Rugby World Cup as well as Asian qualification for the 2016 Olympics and the introduction of a Japanese Super Rugby team.^[5]

Challenge series

Challenge 2

The second-placed regional teams from East Japan, West Japan, and Kyushu played each other in a round-robin tournament for the right to join Challenge 1.

Challenge 1

The top-placed regional teams from East Japan, West Japan, and Kyushu were joined by the Challenge 2 winner to play each other in a round-robin tournament to gain promotion to the Top League for the following season.

End of season awards

Team of the season

#	Winner	Team
1.	Keita Inagaki	Panasonic Wild Knights
2.	Shota Horie	Panasonic Wild Knights
3.	Takuma Asahara	Toshiba Brave Lupus
4.	Andries Bekker	Kobe Steel Kobelco Steelers
5.	Daniel Heenan	Panasonic Wild Knights
6.	Michael Leitch	Canon Eagles
7.	Shokei Kin	NTT Shining Arcs
8.	Amanaki Lelei Mafi	NTT Shining Arcs
9.	Fumiaki Tanaka	Panasonic Wild Knights
10.	Berrick Barnes	Panasonic Wild Knights
11.	Shota Emi	Suntory Sungoliath
12.	Richard Kahui	Toshiba Brave Lupus
13.	JP Pietersen	Panasonic Wild Knights
14.	Tomoki Kitagawa	Panasonic Wild Knights
15.	Ayumu Goromaru	Yamaha Júbilo

References

↑ "Top League Schedule 2015-16 Season". Rugby News Japan. 29 May 2015. Archived from the original on 1 July 2015. Retrieved 1 July 2015.
1 2 3 "Japan - Pre Season League 2015/16". Rugby Archive. 2015. Archived from the original on 8 July 2015. Retrieved 8 July 2015.
1 2 3 "Japan Rugby Top League pre-season league". Suntory. 2015. Archived from the original on 8 July 2015. Retrieved 8 July 2015.
↑ "Top League trio retain status". jrfu.org. 14 February 2015. Archived from the original on 1 July 2015. Retrieved 1 July 2015.
1 2 Hinato (21 May 2015). "The final of the All Japan Championship 31 January". Japon Rugby (in French). Archived from the original on 7 July 2015. Retrieved 7 July 2015.

Top League

2015–16 Teams	Canon Eagles Coca-Cola Red Sparks Kobelco Steelers NEC Green Rockets NTT Docomo Red Hurricanes Toyota Industries Shuttles Toyota Verblitz Yamaha Jubilo Honda Heat Kintetsu Liners Kubota Spears NTT Shining Arcs Panasonic Wild Knights Ricoh Black Rams Suntory Sungoliath Toshiba Brave Lupus

Former Teams	Fukuoka Sanix Blues IBM Big Blue Kyuden Voltex Mitsubishi Dynaboars Secom Rugguts World Fighting Bull Yokogawa Musashino Atlastars

Seasons	2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 2003–04 2004–05 2005–06 2006–07 2007–08 2008–09 2009–10 2010–11 2011–12 2012–13 2013–14 2014–15 2015–16

Champions JRFU

Rugby union in Japan

Governing body

Japan Rugby Football Union

National teams

Men's	Japan Sunwolves A U-20 7's

Women's	Women's 7's

Competitions

International	Japan at the Rugby World Cup Asian Rugby Championship Asian Sevens Series

Transnational	Super Rugby

National	Top League Lixil Cup Challenge series All-Japan Rugby Football Championship

Amateur	All Japan University Rugby Championship National High School Rugby Tournament

Hosted events	2019 Rugby World Cup Japan Sevens 2001 World Games Sanix World Youth Tournament

Defunct	Japan Company Rugby Football Championship

Major figures

Category
Commons

Top-level rugby union club competitions

Tier 1 nations

International	Anglo-Welsh Cup British and Irish Cup European Rugby Champions Cup European Rugby Challenge Cup Pro12 Super Rugby

Domestic	Argentina Campeonato Argentino Nacional de Clubes Celtic Nations Ireland Scotland Wales Australia England Premiership Championship Italy France Top 14 Pro D2 New Zealand Mitre 10 Cup Heartland Championship South Africa

Other nations

Northern Hemisphere	Belgium Canada Czech Republic Denmark Finland Georgia Germany Japan Malaysia Netherlands Norway Poland Portugal Regional Rugby Championship Bosnia & Herzegovina, Croatia, Hungary, Montenegro, Serbia Romania Russia Spain Sweden Ukraine United States

Southern Hemisphere	Brazil Fiji Kenya Samoa Tonga Uruguay Venezuela

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