Tokyo Sungoliath

Tokyo Sungoliath (formerly known as Suntory Sungoliath) is owned by the Suntory beverage company and is one of the Japanese rugby union teams in the Top League. The team is based in Fuchū, Tokyo, as is their local rival Toshiba Brave Lupus. The team rebranded as Tokyo Sungoliath ahead of the rebranding of the Top League to the Japan Rugby League One in 2022.^[1]

Tokyo Sungoliath
東京サンゴリアス

Union	Japan Rugby Football Union
Founded	April 1980
Location	Fuchū, Tokyo, Japan
Ground(s)	Chichibunomiya Rugby Stadium (Capacity: 27,188)
Coach(es)	Kiyonori Tanaka
Captain(s)	Yutaka Nagare
League(s)	Japan Rugby League One
2022	1st Playoffs: Runners-up
Team kit 2nd kit

Suntory coached by Katsuyuki Kiyomiya won the Microsoft Cup on February 24, 2008 by defeating Sanyo Wild Knights in a close and exciting game, 14-10. Suntory therefore became the champion of the Top League for the 2007–08 season.

On June 18, 2008 it was announced that George Gregan, the most-capped player in the sport's history, had joined the club on a two-year contract. (Daily Yomiuri, June 19, 2008) Gregan remained with the club until he announced his retirement at the end of the 2010–11 season.

Honours

• All-Japan Championship
  • Champions: 1995, 2000, 2001, 2011, 2012
  • Runner-up: 2008
• Microsoft Cup
  • Champions: 2007–08
  • Runner-up: 2005–06, 2006–07
• All-Japan Company Championship
  • Champions: 1995, 2001, 2002
• Top League Championship
  • Champions: 2011–12

History

The club was established in 1980, and since then they have won the All-Japan Championship on numerous occasions. They have also compete in the recently formed Top League since its founding in 2003. The team has been improving in the League over the past few years. Suntory Sungoliath famously beat Wales 45-41 on Saturday 3 June 2001 whilst they were on tour in Japan.

Top League Results

In the first season of the Top League, 2003–04, Suntory finished 4th. In 2004–05 they finished 8th. The team was 6th in the 2005–06 season and jumped up to 2nd in the 2006-7 season under new coach Katsuyuki Kiyomiya and assisted by Michael Jones. In 2006 Suntory Sungoliath lost the final of the Top League and Microsoft Cup title to Toshiba Brave Lupus by a score of 33-18. Then in February 2007, Suntory Sungoliath again lost the final of the Top League and Microsoft Cup to Toshiba Brave Lupus before a crowd of 23,076 at Tokyo's Chichibunomiya Stadium (home to Mark Secker), the first sellout at the ground in 10 years, with the final score being just 14-13 to Toshiba Brave Lupus. In the first Top League game of the 2007-8 season Suntory gained revenge over Toshiba with a 10-3 win on October 26, 2007. At the end of the 13-game season Suntory was second behind Sanyo Wild Knights, having lost to Sanyo and by just one point to Coca-Cola West Red Sparks, and drawn 31-31 with Toyota Verblitz in the final round. Sanyo and Suntory met again in the Microsoft Cup final on February 24 to decide the 2007–08 Top League champion. Suntory won that game 14-10 with a very strong mauling attack.

Top League Table

The table begins with the first season of the Top League, 2003-04.

Season	Order	Played	Won	Drawn	Lost	T	G	PG	DG	Penalties	Points For	Points Against	Points Diff	Pts	Coach
2003–04	4th	11	8	0	3	61	44	5	0	150	408	265	143	42	Yuji Nagatomo
2004–05	8th	11	4	0	7	43	28	12	0	142	307	282	25	24	Yuji Nagatomo
2005–06	6th	11	6	0	5	43	30	10	1	118	308	241	67	32	Yuji Nagatomo
2006–07	2nd	13	11	0	2	81	58	8	0	157	545	161	384	56	Katsuyuki Kiyomiya
2007–08	2nd	13	10	1	2	70	47	3	0	106	453	229	224	53	Katsuyuki Kiyomiya

Current squad

The Tokyo Sungoliath squad for the 2023 season is:^[2]

Tokyo Sungoliath squad
Props   Will Hay*   Kotaro Hosoki   Shintaro Ishihara   Ryosuki Iwaihara   Shinnosuke Kakinaga   Kenta Kobayashi   Yukio Morikawa   Kan Nakano   Muneshi Ohga   Genki Sudo Hookers   Kienori Go   Kosuke Horikoshi   Tatsuya Miyazaki   Shunta Nakamura Locks   Harry Hockings   Koji Iino   Yasuaki Katakura   Wataru Kobayashi   Callum McDonald   Tom Savage   Kenji Shimokawa   Takayasu Tsuji   Simoni Vunirangi	Loose Forwards   Blake Gibson   Ryuga Hashimoto   Sean McMahon   Sota Oketani   Naoki Ozawa   Masahiko Sagara   Tom Sanders   Tevita Tatafu   Hendrik Tui   Kai Yamamoto Scrum-halves   Takahiro Kimura   Yutaka Nagare (c)   Shinnosuke Oka   Genki Okoshi   Naoto Saito Fly-halves   Aaron Cruden   Mikiya Takamoto   Hikaru Tamura	Centres   Samu Kerevi   Ryoto Nakamura   Shogo Nakano   Taiga Ozaki   Isaiah Punivai Wingers   Shota Emi   Tevita Li   Takaaki Nakazuru   Hideto Niguma Fullbacks   Tony Alofipo   Ryosuke Kawase   Hiroki Kumoyama   Kotaro Matsushima   Keisuke Moriya   Seiya Ozaki   Kenta Tsukamoto
(c) Denotes team captain, Bold denotes player is internationally capped

• * denotes players qualified to play for the Japan on dual nationality or residency grounds.

Notable former players

• Tusi Pisi – Manu Samoa international fly-half
• Schalk Burger – South African flanker
• Fourie du Preez – South African scrum half
• Uche Odouza – winger, England (England 7s)
• George Gregan – Australian scrum-half and the 2nd most-capped player in international rugby history
• Rocky Havili – Tongan centre
• Toru Kurihara – Japan fullback or wing
• Simon Maling – former All Black lock from 2001 to 2004
• Beauden Barrett - All Black five-eighth, 2015 Rugby World Cup Winner
• Jamie Washington
• George Smith – former Australian flanker 2000-2009, 2013
• Norm Hadley – lock, former Canadian captain, Barbarian
• Glenn Ennis – former Canadian No. 8, Barbarian

Coach

•   Katsuyuki Kiyomiya (2006–09)
•   Eddie Jones (2009–12)
•   Naoya Okubo (2012–14)
•   Andy Friend (2014–16)
•   Keisuke Sawaki (2016–2019)
•   Milton Haig (2020-)

External links

• Suntory Sungoliath - official home page
• George Gregan and Goliath, 365.com (June 20, 2008)
• Suntory are Top League Champions - JRFU English website, February 24, 2008
• Stylish Sungoliath turn out lights on Wild Knights, Daily Yomiuri, October 16, 2006
• Wales suffer opening defeat, scrum.com, June 3, 2001

References

1. "La nouvelle ligue japonaise s'appelle la Japan Rugby League One". Asie Rugby (in French). 16 July 2021. Retrieved 16 July 2021.
2. "Suntory Sungoliath: The Team" (in Japanese). Suntory Sungoliath. Retrieved 29 November 2018.