"Unforgettable" Japan tour broadens horizons for 1st XV rugby team

Will: "...many of the boys made strong friendships, which now span over 9,000 kilometres."

The first stop of the tour was the capital of Japan, and the most populated city in the world, Tokyo.

Over our five-night stay in the Shinjuku City (a special ward of Tokyo) we experienced some of the best things that Tokyo has to offer.

We were straight into the deep end, with the boys (and coaches) having to quickly learn how to navigate the extremely complicated train system that is used by millions each day.

Some Tokyo highlights were travelling to the world famous ‘Shibuya Crossing’, which is regarded as the busiest crossing in the world. There was also the 150m high, 360-degree observation deck of Tokyo Tower, where we were able to grasp the pure magnitude of the city that stretched out to the horizon in all directions.

In Tokyo, the team got to take in some of the city's iconic sights, including the view from the famous Tokyo Tower

The boys were given a lot of freedom to explore in smaller groups—we experienced authentic Japanese food, tried out hands in baseball batting cages and entered our precious coins into the alluring vending and claws machines that seem to be on every corner. Our time in Shinjuku was truly unforgettable. 

In Tokyo, we trained at the home base of Urayasu D-Rocks (a semi-professional rugby team) with 30 young local players, which was a great experience for both us and the Japanese players.

Looking back, it seems fitting that we visited Nakayama Racecourse to experience Japanese horse racing on the morning of our first game of the tour against Toin Gakuen 2XV, as once the whistle blew the opposition were straight out of the gates and running hard.

Toin Gakuen’s 1st XV are the reigning secondary school champions, so we knew that we were in for a challenge. The result ended up being a resounding 80-5 thumping at the hands of the disciplined and proficient Toin team.

The team played some hard-fought games against three Japanese high school teams

Despite valiant efforts from all HIBS players, we were no match. However, I firmly believe that this was the most beneficial game of rugby that any of our players will ever experience. We took so much away from that game, about the discipline and respect for the game that those Japanese players showed.

The after-match function with the Toin Gakuen players is also worth mentioning, all of the boys made some great connections with the Japanese students through some google translate conversations. 

Our next destination was Osaka. Making the three-hour trip on the famous shinkansen (bullet train) was another great bucket list experience for the team, as was catching a glimpse out of the train window of the iconic Mt Fuji.

We spent three nights in the Dotonbori district of Osaka, which is popular for its shopping, street food and eye-catching signage.

The boys were lucky to get a lot of free time to explore the bustling streets. We also had our two team video sessions and a training session on a 2019 rugby world cup training field at Hanazono Stadium.

Thanks to the Asia New Zealand Foundation we were able to experience a full-day tour of Osaka: starting with a walking tour through Ichiban and Dotonbori districts and following this visiting Osaka Castle, a historic Japanese castle and an iconic Japanese landmark and a highlight of our tourist time in Osaka.

Another highlight was an authentic Japanese cooking class where we learnt the recipe for one of Osaka’s speciality dishes, Okonomiyaki—a Japanese cabbage pancake.  

 The next stop on our journey was the smaller city of Yokkaichi.

Here the boys experienced our most authentic part of the trip—attending Yokkaichi Senior High School for a couple of periods.

Attending Yokkaichi Senior High and staying with students' families was a highlight of the team's time in Japan

We learnt the different ways that Japanese students approach a school day and had the opportunity to help two classes improve their English skills.

A significant part of our time at the high school was performing our school haka to their entire school in a courtyard.

Most of the boys will agree with me when I say that this was an unforgettable experience— hundreds of students watching, with students who couldn't attend directly watching through classroom windows.

We performed the haka with heart and the Japanese students were in awe. We also visited Asuka high school later that day for a training run and for one teammate, Ollie, a sumo wrestle. 

Two HIBS players trying their hand at origami

 After training, we were collected by our homestay families, who we would spend the next two nights with, which would turn out to be one of the most memorable parts of the journey.

For some, the homestay entailed a visit to a traditional Japanese onsen, others experienced a traditional tea ceremony. Some of the team went to the nearby Suzuka F1 track, others watched a local rugby match—everyone had their own unique experience with their homestay family.

The hospitality received during our time in Yokkaichi was amazing; many of the boys made strong friendships, which now span over 9,000 kilometres. Those are memories that will never be forgotten. 

Our time in Yokkaichi also involved our second rugby match of the trip, against a Yokkaichi Invitational team.

The match was held at the incredible Suzuka Sports Garden. The stadium seats 14,000 fans and is the home of a professional rugby team called ‘Mie Honda Heat’.

After a tough loss in Tokyo, the boys were ready for a fresh crack.

We carried the energy from our strong warmup and echoing haka straight onto the field and dominated from the get-go.

We had taken all of our learnings from our first game and applied them to this game. It was a complete performance from the team, everyone stepped up. Many of our tries were created with flair and offloads, leading to a few long range tries.

The game ended in a 76-0 win in our favour. 

Eating out at a typical Japanese restaurant

 After our Homestay in Yokkaichi ,we continued on to Kyoto by bus.

Kyoto has a population of 1.5 million people and is renowned for its rich history and cultural heritage.

The team went on a cycle tour on the second day where we biked 10 kilometres to the Arashiyama monkey park and had lunch on the streets. A range of bikes, including tandem bikes, made for a great day full of laughs.

In Kyoto, we were again allowed to explore the city in smaller groups in our free time. The boys made the most of this opportunity to devour some more Japanese kai and go shopping. 

Kyoto was also the location for our final rugby game of the trip.

The team started their tour being routed by a classy Tokyo team, before turning the tables and winning comfortably in Yokkaichi, before a close win in Kyoto

In our only night game of the trip, we played Kyoto Kogakuin High School on their amazing artificial rugby pitch.

Their warm-up routine was very impressive, all four of their teams warmed up together in unison stretching their entire body while chanting.

The match kicked off at 6pm and as the game continued, we became more dependent on the flood lights.

It was great to play a team with such a large squad as they were able to interchange their team to make the game as even as possible.

The team played hard and left everything out there as it was our final game.

We ended up scraping a win with a try in extra time, which was a great way to finish off the rugby side of the trip.

Will: "...we all grew as rugby players, a team and as global citizens. "

Many of the boys exchanged shirts with the Japanese players and now have some cool training shirts and singlets to show for it. 

 I asked some of the players for their favourite moments of the trip, and I think that this would be a great way to round off the report by mentioning some things they said and I haven't mentioned in this report.

Most of the team loved our day at Universal Studios Osaka, where we rode rides and enjoyed a day in the amazing theme park. There was also the night in Shinjuku, where we rented out a karaoke room and everyone had their opportunity to sing, the highlight being the Y13’s performance of ‘Set Fire to the Rain’ by Adele.

An evening of Karaoke was a big hit in Shinjuku

There were also many other great moments and activities that I couldn’t mention them all.

We were able to visit four amazing cities in Japan, play three games of rugby and experience the best of what Japan has to offer.

The boys are all very privileged to have gotten this opportunity and we all grew as rugby players, a team and as global citizens.

This was truly an unforgettable trip that we will all look back on fondly in the future. Let’s hope that it will lead to a few more wins for the First XV this year!

The Foundation's sports programme supports New Zealand sports professionals to build meaningful connections with Asia through immersive exchanges, leadership development and collaborative initiatives.