Kintetsu Liners

Kintetsu Lners
近鉄ライナーズ

Full name	Kintetsu Liners
Union	Japan Rugby Football Union
Nickname(s)	Liners
Founded	1929
Location	Higashiosaka, Osaka, Japan
Ground(s)	Kintetsu Hanazono Rugby Stadium
Coach(es)	Peter Sloane
Team kit

Kintetsu Liners rugby team are a Japanese rugby union team owned by Kintetsu Corporation which was founded in 1929. They have won the All-Japan Championship three times as an amateur team. Their home is at Kintetsu Hanazono Rugby Stadium in Higashiosaka city, Japan which was also opened in 1929.

Early in 2008 Kintetsu won promotion back to the Top League for the 2008-9 season, and it was announced that former All Blacks coach Peter Sloane would be head coach (Daily Yomiuri, April 26, 2008).

Honours

• All-Japan Championship
  • Champions: 1966, 1967, 1974

Recent history

The team managed to stay in the Top League for the second season (2004-5) by defeating Fukuoka Sanix Bombs of Kyūshū by 45-42 to gain 10th place, and then winning a challenge game.

However, in the second season (2004-5) Kintetsu was placed 11th and therefore was automatically relegated with 12th-placed IBM Big Blue.

In 2008 Kintetsu played successfully in the Top Challenge One series for promotion and won the right to appear in the All-Japan Rugby Football Championship for the first time in 33 years.

Squad

Note: Flags indicate national union as has been defined under IRB eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-IRB nationality.

Player Position Union Koji Shigeeda Hooker Japan Keita Shiomi Hooker Japan Yusuke Nakamura Prop Japan Daiki Ishida Prop Japan Angduk Sung Prop Korea Eiji Okuda Prop Japan Kaoru Saito Prop Japan Kenta Yamamoto Lock Japan Isamu Matsuoka Lock Japan Takafumi Fukuroi Lock Japan Ruatangi Vatuvei Lock Japan Lua Lokotui Lock Tonga Takaaki Okuma Flanker Japan Luke Thompson Flanker Japan Mikio Sato Flanker Japan Yusuke Hamazato Flanker Japan Daisuke Akai Flanker Japan Touetsu Taufa Number 8 Japan Akimori Ono Number 8 Japan

Player Position Union Kim Chul Won Scrum-half Japan Takashi Sakuma Scrum-half Japan Fa'atonu Fili Fly-half Samoa Yasumasa Shigemitsu Fly-half Japan Chiyon Ryu Fly-half Japan Shyuji Yoshikawa Centre Japan Jeffrey Ierome Centre New Zealand Koji Terada Centre Japan Yohei Shinomiya Wing Japan Hiromasa Matsui Wing Japan Tafia Taufa Wing Tonga Yoshihiko Kakuhama Wing Japan Li Yang Wing China Yusuke Tanaka Wing Japan Kazuki Sakamoto Fullback Japan Rico Gear Fullback New Zealand

External links

• Kintetsu Liners - official home page