Toshiba Brave Lupus Tokyo is a Japanese

rugby union Rugby union, commonly known simply as rugby, is a close-contact team sport that originated at Rugby School in the first half of the 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand. In its m ...

team in the

Top League Japan Rugby League One (formerly the Top League) is a rugby union competition in Japan. It is the highest level of professional rugby competition in the country. The Japan Rugby Football Union created the competition in 2003, by absorbing the ...

. They are based in Fuchu, Tokyo, as is their local rival Suntory Sungoliath. They won the second ever Top League championship in the 2004-5 season and the

Microsoft Cup The Top League Championship is Japan's highest-level knockout tournament for rugby union clubs. Held annually, the leading teams from the Top League regular season qualify for the playoffs to decide the Cup title. From 2018 onward, the All-Japa ...

in 2005 under their innovative and inventive coach Masahiro Kunda, himself a former hooker for Toshiba and

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

. They are particularly known for the strength of their mauls. Before the Top League was created, the team was called Toshiba Fuchu after their location. Their slogan for 2006 season was "Once again to the Pinnacle (Restart)". The team rebranded as Toshiba Brave Lupus Tokyo ahead of the rebranding of the Top League to

Japan Rugby League One Japan Rugby League One (formerly the Top League) is a rugby union competition in Japan. It is the highest level of professional rugby competition in the country. The Japan Rugby Football Union created the competition in 2003, by absorbing the ...

in 2022.

Honours

* All-Japan Championship ** Champions: 1997, 1998, 1999, 2004, 2006 (joint champions with

NEC Green Rockets NEC Green Rockets Tokatsu (formerly NEC Green Rockets) is a Japanese rugby union team in the Japan Rugby League One. The team's captain iRyota Asano The previous captain was Takuro Miuchi, who was also the captain of the Japan national rugby unio ...

), 2007 *

: ** Champions: 2004-05, 2005–06, 2006–07, 2008–09, 2009-10

Current squad

The Toshiba Brave Lupus Tokyo squad for the 2023 season is: * * denotes players qualified to play for the

on dual nationality or residency grounds. All Blacks Richie Mo’unga has signed with the Toshiba Brave Lupus Tokyo and is due to join the side after the

2023 Rugby World Cup The 2023 Rugby World Cup is scheduled to be the tenth men's Rugby World Cup, the quadrennial world championship for men's rugby union teams. It is scheduled to take place in France from 8 September to 28 October 2023 in nine venues across the cou ...

.https://www.rugbypass.com/news/richie-mounga-officially-signs-in-japan/

Past players

* Francois Steyn - fly half and full back for Toshiba *

Shogo Mukai , (born Iyo, October 2, 1961) is a Japanese former rugby union coach who coached the Japan national rugby union team from 2001 up to the 2003 Rugby World Cup. Mukai played as a full back and won 13 caps for the Japan national rugby union team bet ...

- full back for Toshiba and Japan, now head coach of

Coca-Cola Red Sparks The Coca-Cola Red Sparks ( ja, コカ・コーラレッドスパークス) was a Japanese company-owned rugby union team based in Fukuoka city, Kyūshū. The team was initially founded as Kitakyushu Coca-Cola and then changed its name to Coca- ...

* Masahiro Kunda - hooker for Toshiba and Japan * Andrew McCormick - centre, former captain of the

Japan national rugby union team The Japan national rugby union team, often known as the Cherry Blossoms, Sakura, and more recently The Brave Blossoms (''ブレイブ・ブロッサムズ - Bureibu burossamuzu'') is traditionally the strongest rugby union power in Asia and has ...

, now coaching at Coca-Cola Red Sparks * Wataru Murata - scrum half (before he went to France and then played for

Yamaha Jubilo Shizuoka Blue Revs (formerly the Yamaha Júbilo) are a rugby union team based in Iwata, Shizuoka, Japan. The team came second behind Toshiba Brave Lupus in the second season of Japanese rugby's Top League (2004–05). They were coached by former ...

) *

Shinji Ono is a Japanese professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for J1 League club Hokkaido Consadole Sapporo. Career Urawa Reds Ono grew up in the Shizuoka Prefecture and began his professional career with Urawa Reds in the J1 League in 1998. ...

- number 8 * Yohei Suzuki - full back * Ruatangi Vatuvei - lock/centre (moved to

Kintetsu Liners Hanazono Kintetsu Liners rugby team are a Japanese rugby union team owned by Kintetsu Corporation which was founded in 1929. They have won the All-Japan Championship three times as an amateur team. Their home is at Hanazono Rugby Stadium in Hig ...

before 2007-8 season) *

Kei Yasuda is a Japanese singer, musician and actress under the Hello! Project. She was a member and co-leader of the Japanese girl group Morning Musume. Yasuda, along with Mari Yaguchi and Sayaka Ichii, were the second generation of singers to be recru ...

- lock * Mamoru Ito - scrum half * Scott McLeod - centre

Honours

Current squad

Past players

References

External links