Английская Википедия:2008–09 Top League
Шаблон:Infobox rugby union season The 2008–09 Top League was the sixth season of Japan's domestic rugby union competition, the Top League. The Toshiba Brave Lupus defeated Sanyo Wild Knights by 17–6 in the final of the Microsoft Cup to claim the 2008–09 Top League championship.
The Top League is a semi-professional competition which is at the top of the national league system in Japan, with promotion and relegation between the next level down.
Preseason
Kintetsu Liners returned to the league, and Yokogawa Denki were promoted for the first time (and renamed Yokogawa Musashino Atlastars in the off season). They replaced Ricoh Black Rams and Mitsubishi Sagamihara DynaBoars.
Teams
| Team | Region |
|---|---|
| Coca-Cola West Red Sparks | Fukuoka, Kyushu |
| Fukuoka Sanix Blues | Fukuoka, Kyushu |
| IBM Big Blue | Chiba, Kanto |
| Kintetsu Liners | Osaka, Kansai |
| Kobelco Steelers | Hyogo, Kansai |
| Kubota Spears | Chiba, Kanto |
| Kyuden Voltex | Fukuoka, Kyushu |
| NEC Green Rockets | Chiba, Kanto |
| Sanyo Wild Knights | Gunma, Kanto |
| Suntory Sungoliath | Tokyo, Kanto |
| Toshiba Brave Lupus | Tokyo, Kanto |
| Toyota Verblitz | Aichi, Tokai |
| Yamaha Jubilo | Shizuoka, Tokai |
| Yokogawa Musashino Atlastars | Tokyo, Kanto |
Regular season
Final standings
| Top League Table | ||||||||||||||
| Club | Played | Won | Drawn | Lost | Points For | Points Against | Points Difference | Try Bonus | Losing Bonus | Points | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Файл:Toshibabravelupus.png Toshiba Brave Lupus | 13 | 12 | 0 | 1 | 563 | 211 | +352 | 11 | 0 | 59 | |||
| 2 | Файл:Sanyowildknights.png Sanyo Wild Knights | 13 | 12 | 0 | 1 | 584 | 197 | +387 | 10 | 0 | 58 | |||
| 3 | Файл:Suntorycolours.png Suntory Sungoliath | 13 | 10 | 0 | 3 | 482 | 298 | +184 | 10 | 1 | 51 | |||
| 4 | Файл:Kobesteelers.png Kobelco Steelers | 13 | 9 | 0 | 4 | 358 | 300 | +58 | 5 | 2 | 43 | |||
| 5 | Файл:NECgreenrockets.png NEC Green Rockets | 13 | 8 | 0 | 5 | 298 | 309 | −11 | 4 | 1 | 37 | |||
| 6 | Файл:Kubotaspears.png Kubota Spears | 13 | 8 | 0 | 5 | 309 | 334 | −25 | 4 | 1 | 37 | |||
| 7 | Файл:Yamahajubilo.png Yamaha Jubilo | 13 | 7 | 0 | 6 | 344 | 304 | +40 | 6 | 1 | 35 | |||
| 8 | Файл:Toyotaverblitz.png Toyota Verblitz | 13 | 6 | 0 | 7 | 310 | 286 | +24 | 4 | 3 | 31 | |||
| 9 | Файл:Kintetsuliners.png Kintetsu Liners | 13 | 5 | 0 | 8 | 319 | 348 | −29 | 6 | 2 | 28 | |||
| 10 | Файл:Redsparkscolours.png Coca-Cola West Red Sparks | 13 | 6 | 0 | 7 | 273 | 353 | −80 | 1 | 1 | 26 | |||
| 11 | Файл:Fukuokasanixblues.png Fukuoka Sanix Blues | 13 | 3 | 0 | 10 | 266 | 442 | −176 | 5 | 4 | 21 | |||
| 12 | Файл:Kyudenvoltex.png Kyuden Voltex | 13 | 3 | 0 | 10 | 345 | 451 | −106 | 4 | 2 | 18 | |||
| 13 | Файл:IBMbigblue.png IBM Big Blue | 13 | 1 | 0 | 12 | 222 | 496 | −274 | 1 | 3 | 8 | |||
| 14 | Файл:Yokogawaatlasstars.png Yokogawa Musashino Atlastars | 13 | 1 | 0 | 12 | 230 | 574 | −344 | 4 | 0 | 8 | |||
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Шаблон:Bull The top 4 teams qualified for the title play-offs. | ||||||||||||||
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Four points for a win, two for a draw, one bonus point for four tries or more (BP1) and one bonus point for losing by seven or less (BP2). | ||||||||||||||
Fixtures and results
Шаблон:Anchor Title play-offs
Top 4 sides of the regular season competed in the Microsoft Cup (2009) knock out tournament to fight for the Top League title. The top 4 teams of 2008–09 were Toshiba Brave Lupus, Sanyo Wild Knights, Kobe Steelers and Suntory Sungoliath.
Semi-finals
Final
Top League Challenge Series
Honda Heat and Ricoh Black Rams won promotion to the 2009–10 Top League via the 2009 Top League Challenge Series, while Mazda Blue Zoomers and Toyota Industries Shuttles progressed to the promotion play-offs.
Promotion and relegation play-offs
Two promotion/relegation matches (Irekaesen) were played with the winners qualifying for the Top League in the next season. The 12th-placed team from the Top League against the 3rd-placed team from Challenge 1. The 11th-placed team from the Top League against the 1st-placed team from Challenge 2.
So Sanix and Kyuden stayed in the Top League for the following season.
Top 10 points scorers
| Player | Team | Pts | T | C | PG | DG | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | David Hill | Файл:Toshibabravelupus.png Toshiba Brave Lupus | 226 | 11 | 60 | 17 | 0 |
| 2 | Ryan Nicholas | Файл:Suntorycolours.png Suntory Sungoliath | 158 | 5 | 41 | 17 | 0 |
| 3 | Shane Drahm | Файл:Kubotaspears.png Kubota Spears | 136 | 1 | 16 | 31 | 2 |
| 4 | Yasumasa Shigemitsu | Файл:Kintetsuliners.png Kintetsu Liners | 123 | 5 | 22 | 18 | 0 |
| 5 | Thinus Delport | Файл:Kobesteelers.png Kobelco Steelers | 122 | 4 | 18 | 22 | 0 |
| 6 | Genki Saito | Файл:Kyudenvoltex.png Kyuden Voltex | 117 | 2 | 28 | 16 | 1 |
| 6 | Tadanobu Ko | Файл:IBMbigblue.png IBM Big Blue | 117 | 2 | 22 | 20 | 1 |
| 8 | Masakazu Irie | Файл:Sanyowildknights.png Sanyo Wild Knights | 114 | 3 | 33 | 11 | 0 |
| 9 | Ayumu Goromaru | Файл:Yamahajubilo.png Yamaha Jubilo | 98 | 4 | 15 | 16 | 0 |
| 10 | Daisuke Haradome | Файл:Redsparkscolours.png Coca-Cola West Red Sparks | 88 | 4 | 16 | 12 | 0 |
Table notes
- Pts = Points scored
- T = Tries
- C = Conversions
- PG = Penalty Goals
- DG = Drop Goals
End-of-season awards
Best fifteen
| Position | Name | Team | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | PR | Hisateru Nirashima | Файл:Kobesteelers.png Kobelco Steelers |
| 2 | HO | Yusuke Aoki | Файл:Suntorycolours.png Suntory Sungoliath |
| 3 | PR | Kensuke Hatakeyama | Файл:Suntorycolours.png Suntory Sungoliath |
| 4 | LO | Hitoshi Ono | Файл:Toshibabravelupus.png Toshiba Brave Lupus |
| 5 | LO | Daniel Heenan | Файл:Sanyowildknights.png Sanyo Wild Knights |
| 6 | FL | Steven Bates | Файл:Toshibabravelupus.png Toshiba Brave Lupus |
| 7 | FL | Reuben Thorne | Файл:Yamahajubilo.png Yamaha Jubilo |
| 8 | No.8 | Ryukoliniasi Holani | Файл:Sanyowildknights.png Sanyo Wild Knights |
| 9 | SH | Fumiaki Tanaka | Файл:Sanyowildknights.png Sanyo Wild Knights |
| 10 | SO | David Hill | Файл:Toshibabravelupus.png Toshiba Brave Lupus |
| 11 | WTB | Hirotoki Onozawa | Файл:Suntorycolours.png Suntory Sungoliath |
| 12 | CTB | Ryan Nicholas | Файл:Suntorycolours.png Suntory Sungoliath |
| 13 | CTB | Seiichi Shimonura | Файл:Sanyowildknights.png Sanyo Wild Knights |
| 14 | WTB | Tomoki Kitagawa | Файл:Sanyowildknights.png Sanyo Wild Knights |
| 15 | FB | Hiroki Yoshida | Файл:Toshibabravelupus.png Toshiba Brave Lupus |
Table Notes
- PR = Prop
- HO = Hooker
- LO = Lock
- FL = Flanker
- SH = Scrum Half
- SO = Stand Off
- CTB = Centre Three Quarter Back
- WTB = Wing THree Quarter Back
- FB = Full back
References
External links
- Team Profiles (Japanese)
- Top League official site (Japanese)
- Final Table (Japanese)
Шаблон:Japan Rugby Top League Шаблон:Rugby union in Japan
