Toyota Verblitz

Toyota Verblitz
トヨタ自動車ヴェルブリッツ
Full nameToyota Verblitz
UnionJapan Rugby Football Union
Founded1941
LocationToyota, Aichi, Japan
Ground(s)Toyota Stadium
Mizuho Rugby Stadium (Capacity: 45,000
15,000)
Director of RugbySteve Hansen
Coach(es)Ben Herring
Captain(s)Kazuki Himeno
League(s)Japan Rugby League One
20237th
1st kit
2nd kit
Official website
toyotatimes-sports.toyota/teams/verblitz

Toyota Verblitz is a Japanese rugby union team in the Japan Rugby League One. Verblitz is a portmanteau of verde (Italian, Spanish and Portuguese for 'green') and blitz (German for 'lightning'). The team is owned by Toyota Motor Corporation and is not to be confused with the Aichi Shuttles rugby team, owned by Toyota Industries. It shares Toyota Stadium in the city of Toyota, Aichi with the football club Nagoya Grampus which also used to be owned by Toyota Motors.

Honours

  • All-Japan Championship
    • Champions: 1969, 1968, 1987
    • Runners-up: 2007

Results

Verblitz (surprisingly given the team's pedigree) failed to make the cut for the first season of the Top League (2003-4) but entered the Top League in the second season and were a contender for the second Microsoft Cup. They lost the Japan Championship final on February 27, 2005, to NEC Green Rockets 13–17.

Current squad

The Toyota Verblitz squad for the 2024-25 season is:[1]

Toyota Verblitz squad

Props

  • Japan Shogo Miura
  • Japan Gaku Shimizu
  • Japan Ryunosuke Momoji
  • Australia Samuelu Mataafa
  • Japan Shunsuke Asaoka
  • Japan Genki Sudo
  • Japan Yusuke Kizu
  • South Korea Che Run-ya*
  • Japan Takuma Nishino
  • Japan Taiga Kawasaki
  • Japan Hanjiro Hirai REP

Hookers

  • Japan Yoshikatsu Hikosaka
  • Japan Ryusei Kato
  • Japan Shintaro Fukuzawa
  • Australia Dowling Jonas Tanaka*
  • Japan Ryuhei Arita

Locks

  • Japan Daichi Akiyama
  • Japan Issa Yamakawa
  • Scotland Richie Gray
  • New Zealand Josh Dickson
  • Australia Toby Macpherson DEP [a]
  • South Africa Adré Smith REP

Flankers

  • Japan Kazuki Himeno (c)
  • Japan Isaiah Mapusua
  • South Africa Pieter-Steph du Toit
  • Japan Ryusei Koike
  • Japan Jingo Murata
  • Japan Kosei Miki
  • Japan Fetuani Lautaimi
  • Japan Akito Okui
  • Japan Will Tupou
  • Japan Keito Aoki REP
  • Australia Michael Hooper REP
  • New Zealand Blair Ryall REP

No8s

Scrum-halves

  • Japan Kaito Shigeno
  • New Zealand Aaron Smith
  • Japan Kaisei Tamura
  • South Korea Ryang Jong-chu*

Fly-halves

  • Japan Masahiro Kitamura
  • Japan Rikiya Matsuda
  • New Zealand Matt McGahan*
  • Japan Shinya Komura REP

Centres

  • Japan Nicolas McCurran
  • Japan Chihiro Matsuyama
  • Fiji Vatiliai Tuidraki*
  • Japan Siosaia Fifita
  • Japan Yuki Okada
  • Japan Shuhei Yamaguchi
  • New Zealand Joseph Manu
  • New Zealand Dick Wilson*

Wingers

  • Fiji Viliame Tuidraki*
  • Fiji Jone Nabetelevu*
  • Japan Yuichiro Wada
  • Japan Taichi Takahashi
  • Japan Kota Oyabu

Fullbacks

  • Japan Kippei Taninaka
  • New Zealand Tiaan Falcon
  • Japan Takemichi Nakano

Utility Backs


(c) Denotes team captain, Bold denotes player is internationally capped
  • * denotes players qualified to play for Japan on dual nationality or residency grounds.

Former players

Stadium

  • Gallery
  • Toyota Stadium
    Toyota Stadium
  • Mizuho Rugby Stadium
    Mizuho Rugby Stadium
  • Toyota Sports Center
    Toyota Sports Center

Notes

  1. ^ Macpherson was released from the team after round 11.

References

  1. ^ "Toyota Verblitz: The Team" (in Japanese). Toyota Verblitz. Retrieved 11 February 2019.
  2. ^ www.vcsnet.co.nz, VCS Websites (NZ)-Lower Hutt and Wellington. "Orene Ai'i | New Zealand Rugby History". www.rugbyhistory.co.nz.
  3. ^ "Rugby Database: Steven Yates Player Profile & Stats". www.rugbydatabase.co.nz.
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