Highlander35
Steve Williams (59)
That's not likely to exacerbate a bureaucratic mess is it? Forcing players to shift away from places they're playing good rugby to potentially pay them less, under a seemingly shambolic organisation, with so many weird factors coming out the wazzoo. Plus I don't know the make up of the Top League, but I'd assume teams would be based all around the country? Right now the Japanese boys spend 4 or 5 months in Australia/New Zealand, then 7 or 8 in their hometown playing and training for the local side. I'd assume moving to Tokyo for presumably longer than those 4 or 5 months, along with half your home games in Singapore and long tours of South Africa and Australasia. Whereas for say Shota, Leitch or Tanaka previously, it's been 8 games in the adopted home city, another 4 in the adopted country, then another 2 just one country over, with only a 2 game tour to South Africa.
Perhaps I've blatantly misread or exaggerated the situation, but Japan isn't Argentina. They've achieved their 2nd win in 8 world cups, albeit it's a goodun, and they have an opportunity to grab at least 3rd, if not 2nd with their 2 easiest games coming up over the next 2 weekends. The Argies have been strong competitors since 1995 at least. In the 20 years since, a metric buttload of players signed for European sides, they then reached a semi final in 2007, got into the Rugby Championship in 2012, and are only now playing hardball, as a fairly well developed Rugby nation. They can't afford, at this stage, to miss out on the best players because they'd choose to either play for another Super Side, or in a small handful of cases, opt out altogether.
Perhaps I've blatantly misread or exaggerated the situation, but Japan isn't Argentina. They've achieved their 2nd win in 8 world cups, albeit it's a goodun, and they have an opportunity to grab at least 3rd, if not 2nd with their 2 easiest games coming up over the next 2 weekends. The Argies have been strong competitors since 1995 at least. In the 20 years since, a metric buttload of players signed for European sides, they then reached a semi final in 2007, got into the Rugby Championship in 2012, and are only now playing hardball, as a fairly well developed Rugby nation. They can't afford, at this stage, to miss out on the best players because they'd choose to either play for another Super Side, or in a small handful of cases, opt out altogether.