The new Top League may have been established to ensure the next generation of Japanese rugby players can compete on the world stage and Hirotoki Onozawa certainly made his mark with four tries -- but the party that marked the launch of the new league was for a time gate-crashed by some of the veterans of the company rugby scene on Saturday.
Suntory sungoliath's Hirotoki Onozawa leaves Kobe Steel's Takeomi Ito (far left) Takafumi Hirao (second from left) and Osami Yatsuhashi in his wake as he sprints away for the
second of his four tries during the opening game of the Top League at Tokyo's National
Stadium on Saturday. Suntory won 54-31.
Following a range of pre-game ceremonies at National Stadium in Tokyo, Suntory Sungoliath and Kobe Steel got down to business on the field, and while there were a few too many handling errors to call it a classic, it bodes well for a season of exciting rugby as both sides looked to capitalize their strengths to the fullest -- the speed and flair of Suntory against the experience and power of the Steelers.