Michael Hooper Named Game Captain

Toyota Verblitz has announced its 23-man squad for Round 12 of NTT Japan Rugby League One, where they will face Sagamihara Dynaboars at Nagaragawa Stadium on March 22nd. Due to injuries, hooker Yoshikatsu Hikosaka, lock Daichi Akiyama, and flanker Akito Okui will be replaced in the lineup. No.8 Ryusei Koike will make his first start of the season, while Isaia Mapusua, who was injured just before kickoff in Round 10 against Kobe Steelers, returns to the reserves. Flanker Michael Hooper will serve as the game captain.

At the press conference, head coach Steve Hansen, Michael Hooper, and Shinya Komura spoke about the upcoming match. Hooper, set to captain the side, stated, "A lot of the work has been done. Aaron (Smith) and Kaito (Shigeno) are the game leaders on the field. Shinya (Komura) and Matt McGann are our quarterbacks." With 125 caps for the Wallabies and years of experience captaining the team, leading a team is second nature to him.

"We didn't get the result, but we put a better physical performance in against Toshiba. We've carried that into training this week and all we can control at the moment is our training."

Rather than dwelling on past results, the focus is on the present. When asked about his expectations for young players Aoki and Komura, Hooper kept it simple, “No expectations. I hope that they can really enjoy their game.”

Komura also shared, "Hooper told me, ‘We’ll support you in everything, so just play freely.’" A veteran leader knows how to bring out the best in younger players.

Komura, who has been on the bench for three consecutive matches, spent his three high school years studying in Hamilton, New Zealand. He played both fly-half and fullback and while he switched to wing/fullback from his second year at Teikyo University due to team demands, fly-half has always been the position he wanted to play. With Rikiya Matsuda and Tiaan Falcon out injured for the season, he now has an opportunity to grow into the role of playmaker.

"The advice I get from Foster after games has been incredibly helpful." In addition to his passing, kicking, and natural speed, his ability to communicate directly with the coaching staff in English—something he mastered in high school—gives him an advantage. On the Dynaboars, Komura said, "They’re a very physical team. Their foreign players are both powerful and fast." He expects to come off the bench in the second half, stating, "I want to speed up the tempo and move the ball around." He’s been entrusted with the role of closing out the game with a victory.

In their last meeting in Round 7, Verblitz lost 40-44, but the real story was the six tries they conceded in the first half, trailing 7-41 before mounting a comeback. "We know that we cannot be giving away too many points at the beginning of the game," said Hansen. That lesson shaped this week’s theme of focusing on the present.

“We’ve been focusing on staying in the now and doing the job that needs to be done, rather than making more mistakes,”  Hansen emphasized. Hooper added, “We're positive because we think we've got solutions to some of those points from last week.”  It has been six weeks since their last encounter. With fresh faces in the squad, Verblitz is determined to settle the score.

Hansen also addressed the arrival of flanker Pieter-Steph du Toit, announced on March 19th. He stated that the Springbok star will begin rehabilitation at the end of April, and his playing time will be decided based on his condition.