Japan's Top League Final
The Panasonic Wild Knights have won the title on the last two occasions, three times altogether. Toshiba have won it five times, last in 2010.
Both teams are coached by foreigners – Panasonic by New Zealander Robbie Deans and Toshiba by South African Jimmy Stonehouse.
In their squads each team has foreigners – Toshiba seven and Panasonic six. Toshiba's squad includes Liam Messam and Richard Kahui of New Zealand and Francois Steyn of South Africa. JP Pietersen of South Africa plays for Panasonic whose star of late has been New Zealander Hayden Parker. Berrick Barnes is fit again but will be on the bench.
Star hooker Shota Hori captains Panasonic, flyhalf Yoshikazu Morita Toshiba even though the Japan captain Michael Leitch is in the side. Leitch was a huge, positive influence on the side in their stunning 2015 performance. The previous captain, wing Toshiaki Hirose, is also in the side.
Both teams had good wins in the semifinals. Panasonic beat Alistair Coetzee's Kobelco Steelers 42-10 while Toshiba knocked out last season's runners-up Yamaha Jubilo 34-22. The Final is expected to be a close affair. When the teams met in December the results was a 17-all draw.
Steelers and Yamaha meet in the 3rd-Place play-off in a curtainraiser to the Final.
The referee for the match is 45-year-old Kyusuke Toda. His assistants are Akihisa Aso and Ryuta Kudo.
By Paul Dobson
@rugby365com
