Marx leads Springbok charge as Mo’unga eyes Japan rematch
PREVIEW: He may be heading back to New Zealand at season’s end, but Richie Mo’unga’s focus remains firmly on Japan Rugby League One, starting with Saturday’s title rematch between Brave Lupus and the Spears.
Mo’unga inspired Brave Lupus to last season’s championship with a man-of-the-match performance, despite playing with a broken hand, but he faces a tougher task this time around.
Brave Lupus are without several key figures, including skipper Michael Leitch and lock Warner Dearns, with just seven players from last year’s final starting this weekend.
Spears, by contrast, arrive at Prince Chichibu Memorial Stadium close to full strength and in ominous form. The unbeaten Spears are powered by a dominant pack led by Springbok hooker Malcolm Marx, whose influence at the breakdown has been central to their 13-match regular-season winning run.
South African influence is again a defining feature of the competition. Marx’s impact up front has been matched by the control of Wallaby Bernard Foley, who sits clear at the top of the points-scoring charts, while former Springbok scrumhalf Faf de Klerk’s injury has been keenly felt by struggling Eagles.
Elsewhere, Springbok wing Cheslin Kolbe remains a key figure for Wild Knights as they prepare for a fierce clash with old rivals Tokyo Sungoliath, a fixture that has produced plenty of edge in the League One era.
With the league beginning to take shape, South African players continue to loom large across Japan, and with Marx leading Kubota’s charge, Mo’unga and Brave Lupus will know they are in for another bruising test of their title credentials.
Should Kubota stumble, Saitama Wild Knights stand poised to assume sole command at the top of the championship table, although they also have an awkward tussle on their hands, meeting old rivals Tokyo Sungoliath.
With 11 national titles between them, which include victories by the Wild Knights over Sungoliath in each of the championship deciders of the final Top League and inaugural League One, a fierce rivalry exists between the clubs.
The Wild Knights have won all six matches between the sides in the League One era, including an eight-try 60-17 romp in May.
Steelers could narrow the gap if either of the top two stumble when they visit the troubled Eagles, whose new coach, Leon MacDonald, is struggling to arrest a decline that saw the side lose their final four games before the former (Auckland) Blues boss arrived at the start of the season.
The Eagles have now lost nine in a row and have not been helped by having to replace Springbok scrumhalf Faf de Klerk, around whom much of their attack revolved, after the South African was injured on the opening day of the season.
Former All Black hooker Liam Coltman has arrived to take up the third spot for foreign test players in the squad. Honda Heat are also finding things difficult, with their losing run in the regular season having stretched to 14 matches, but the arrival of Urayasu D-Rocks might offer relief after the latter’s three-match winning run was ended by Brave Lupus.
While D-Rocks have been playing well, and have not lost to Honda since 2012, Heat have not been as bad as their record looks, leading at halftime in three of this season’s five defeats, with the red card issued to second rower Mark Abbott killing off their hopes last time against Sungoliath when they were within a converted try of the lead.
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