NPC 2023

Canes4life

@Higgins no room for him in the Lions I guess.

Stargazer

Japan League One club Toyota Verblitz has agreed to some kind of rugby exchange with Southland. They have sent 4 players, who will play club rugby for Pirates Old Boys and possibly for Southland during the NPC.

Not sure of the exact wording, because I used Google to translate this media release:

【NEWS】NZ🇳🇿🏉ラグビー留学について | VERBLITZ BLOG

／NZ🇳🇿🏉ラグビー留学について＼この度、トヨタヴェルブリッツより#淺岡俊亮 PR#田村魁世 SH #丸山凜太朗 SO#山口修平 CTB/WTBの4名が、ニュージーランドサウスランドへ、ラグビー留学

Kiwiwomble

im cool with that if theyre coming to play club rugby and earn an NPC spot rather than coming straight in, best case they help raise the overall level of the club comp

Bovidae

Obviously using Hansen's connections. There are a lot more Japanese players in NZ than you might think, all the way down to school rugby.

gt12

@Kiwiwomble said in NPC 2023:

im cool with that if theyre coming to play club rugby and earn an NPC spot rather than coming straight in, best case they help raise the overall level of the club comp

They’ll play club rugby first but the article makes it clear that they are also there with the plan that they’ll play for Southland.

I imagine they all get named.

I like this idea of ‘rugby exchange’ though.

Even at my university here, we usually have two boys going to NZ to play footy each year. I guess there must be plenty of JP players coming (more women too soon I bet).

Stargazer

Picture only:
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Kiwiwomble

last i heard of John he was still knocking around dunners so a little surprised, top bloke, he coached one of my school teams whilst playing for Otago and working full time

Bovidae

@Stargazer I had noticed that Jack Parker was back playing club rugby in Taranaki. Another of the NPBHS players who ended up in the Canterbury system but obviously didn't get his opportunity. IIRC he was loaned to Buller last year.