2025 has been another bumper year for watching rugby and yet again I managed to attend enough matches to warrant the continuation of this compilation post series.

None of them really merited their own post so I have collated them into this rankings list. As with my football compilation posts, it’s certainly not one to be taken too seriously as it’s based on a mixture of occasion, weather, people I met, and maybe even the rugby itself! Unlike the football compilations, the stadia won’t play too much of a part as they all took place at just four different stadiums!

10. Water Gush Akishima 64 – 26 LeRIRO Fukuoka @ AGF Field, Chofu (Tokyo), Sunday 19th January.

My first experience of third tier rugby in Japan came about just because I wanted to see the team with the rather weird and unique name play! As it was mid-January, I was also keen to get my sporting year under way with some live action. There may have been a lot of points scored but it really did show the difference in level between some teams in this country.

Weather: Cloudy, Price: 2000 yen, Attendance: Unknown

9. Fujitsu Frontiers 37-0 Ebina Minerva AFC @ Chichibunomiya Rugby Stadium, Minato-ku (Tokyo), Friday 29th August.

Hang on a minute, this was not even a rugby match! True. This opening match of Japan’s American Football X-League season was held at Tokyo’s iconic home of rugby for the first time ever, and for that it merits inclusion in this compilation post. Nothing to do with the fact that I needed one more match to round it up to ten!! More details here.

Weather: Hot, Price: 2200 yen, Attendance: Unknown

8. Japan Women 30-19 Spain Women @ Chichibunomiya Rugby Stadium, Minato-ku (Tokyo), Saturday 26th July.

The attendances have been steadily growing for Sakura 15 matches in recent years, and this was the best atmosphere yet thanks to a group of passionate fans congregated in one part of the stand. This was the second test on the back of the previous week’s match in Kitakyushu, and the home side seemed to be in control for most of the match which perhaps wasn’t truly reflected in the final score.

Weather: Warm, Price: 2000 yen, Attendance: 5,244

7. Urayasu D-Rocks 19-61 Toshiba Brave Lupus @ Chichibunomiya Rugby Stadium, Minato-ku (Tokyo), Friday 25th April.

A rather one-sided contest as the away team blitzed it with try after try as they played some great phases of rugby. Sadly, there was never any signs of jeopardy for Michael Leitch and his fellow players as they had D-Rocks on the backfoot very early on.

Weather: Cloudy, Price: 2500 yen, Attendance: 11,408

6. Urayasu D-Rocks 34-21 Mitsubishi Dynaboars @ Chichibunomiya Rugby Stadium, Minato-ku (Tokyo), Friday 9th May.

It may have been a very wet night, but the first half certainly didn’t dampen the spirits on or off the field. The atmosphere created by the Dynaboars faithful was fantastic and the tries rained in throughout an entertaining match.

Weather: Rainy, Price: 1500 yen, Attendance: 8,650

5. Tokyo Sankyu Phoenix 13-5 Pearls @ Chichibunomiya Rugby Stadium, Minato-ku (Tokyo), Sunday 2nd February.

A really enjoyable and closely fought final on a bitterly cold and wet afternoon. Despite their dominance in the first half, Phoenix were unable to put the game out of sight.

Weather: Cold & wet, Price: 1000 yen, Attendance: 1,447

4. Toshiba Brave Lupus 18-13 Kubota Spears @ Japan National Stadium, Shinjuku-ku (Tokyo), Sunday 1st June.

The Play-Off final may not have been as spectacular as the 2024 version, but it was still fairly impressive. Brave Lupus deservedly won the League One title again after dominating much of the game but were never quite able to finish off their opponents and their resolute defence even when they were a man down for ten minutes in the second half.

Weather: Cloudy, Price: 2000 yen, Attendance: 51,009

3. Mitsubishi Sagamihara Dynaboars 44-40 Toyota Verblitz @ Sagamihara Gion Stadium, Minami-ku (Kanagawa Prefecture), Sunday 9th February.

Seeing English players James Grayson and Lewis Chesham (on loan from Leicester Tigers at the time) in action was the main reason I ventured all the way over to Sagamihara. On a very sunny afternoon the home team did all the work in the first half and just about clung on in the final minutes as Verblitz nearly came back from the death to snatch it.

Weather: Sunny, Price: 3900 yen, Attendance: 5,287

2. Urayasu D-Rocks 22 – 33 Kubota Spears @ Chichibunomiya Rugby Stadium, Minato-ku (Tokyo), Friday 14th March.

The home side surprised me by dominating the first half and deservedly led 15-0 at the break. When they added a break-away try very early in the second half and had a 22 point advantage it seemed like they were going to continue as they left off. Not so though as Spears scored a couple of tries soon after and there was a sense of inevitability after that as they fought back to win with room to spare. A free pink shirt was given out to all spectators too!

Weather: Calm/Mild, Price: 0 yen, Attendance: 14,056

1. Toshiba Brave Lupus 42 – 31 Saitama Wild Knights @ Chichibunomiya Rugby Stadium, Minato-ku (Tokyo), Saturday 22nd March.

Whilst it didn’t quite reach the heights of last year’s title-deciding play-off match, it was another great contest between these two teams. Brave Lupus were yet again victorious on a very sunny March afternoon. The guy next to me kindly lent me his sunglasses for the whole match as the sun was glaring into the eyes of us in the back stand.

Weather: Sunny, Price: 3500 yen, Attendance: 16,937

Click here to read ‘TF Top 10……Rugby Match Experiences of 2024’

Click here to read ‘Tokyo’s Iconic Rugby Venue Hosts An American Football Match For The 1st Time Ever!’

Click here to read ‘I Met a Leicester Tigers & England Rugby Union Legend’

Click here to read ‘Rugby Fans Should “Try” & Visit This Themed Shrine In Kyoto!’