We are pleased to bring you the SIRC December Newsletter.
We are now only one month away from the end of the year. Today, we would like to introduce some of the main activities which will be taking place from December to next spring. Please note that classes will resume on Sunday, 12 January 2025.
Special Lecture by the Austrian Ambassador to Japan
As we announced recently, a special lecture and reception will be held at the Austrian Embassy on Thursday 5th December at 6.30pm, by Michael Rendi, the Austrian Ambassador as the guest speaker. As the former captain of the Austrian national rugby team, Ambassador Rendi will be speaking on the topic of ‘My Rugby: An Austrian journey’. There are still a few places left, so if you would like to attend, please apply using the form at the bottom of this letter.
Introduction of the ‘My Ball’ system
Recently the storage capacity of the SIRC warehouse at the South Ground on the Showa Campus is reaching its limit. The South Ground is a facility which the British School in Tokyo has borrowed from Showa Women’s University, and we are using it as part of the British School’s extracurricular activities.
In order to improve the situation with the storage at the South Ground, we have decided to introduce the ‘My Ball System’ in stages, starting with the younger grades. This is an initiative where, instead of taking practice balls out of the storage, each child brings their own ball (their ‘my ball’) to practice. Using this method will also help to reduce the burden on some parents of transporting many balls when they are taking part in activities in remote locations.
Also, because there is no storage facility on the Azabudai Campus, we have decided to introduce the ‘My Ball System’ there too. We would appreciate your understanding of the reasons given above and your cooperation in introducing this system. (Please note that the start date may be January or April 2025, depending on class circumstances.
Sales of SIRC original balls and stock balls
In conjunction with the introduction of the ‘My Ball System’ above, we have now completed the production of original balls with the SIRC design, and are selling them at a special introductory price of 3,800 yen per ball to those who wish to purchase them. Please note that the Size 4 balls have now sold out, and we are currently accepting applications for pre-orders. The application form is at the bottom of this letter.
In addition, in order to free up some space in the warehouse, we would like to sell the balls that we have been using for practice at a low price to those who are interested. We will be holding a sale at the South Ground and Azabudai Hills Ground during practice on 15th December, so please come along if you are interested. We will send out more details via WhatsApp for the class.
New class starting at Azabudai Ground (U4-U6)
As the current U4-U6 class at the Azabudai class has reached its maximum capacity, we will be starting a new U4-U6 class from January 2025. The class will run from 12:30pm to 1:45pm, and will be led by head coach Michaela Holt (a lady from South Africa). This class will mainly be for children in the U4 class. Therefore, children in the U4 class who are currently in the morning class will also be able to move to the afternoon class at this opportunity. The transfer form is at the bottom of this letter.
In addition, we are planning to open a new class on Saturday afternoons at the Azabudai class. We will provide details as soon as they are decided.
Events in January and February
The 2nd SIRC CUP
In January and February, SIRC will be holding a series of events at Nagasawa Ground. The first is the ‘2nd SIRC CUP’ to be held on Sunday 26th January. This tournament was established last year for youth rugby club teams like us, but as there are not yet enough youth club teams nationwide, this year we will be holding the tournament with the participation of high school club teams from Fukuoka and Kobe, as well as ordinary high school teams nearby.
SIRC Girls’ Rugby Festival
In April 2022, SIRC established a team of all girls called the ‘Reds’, and in May of the same year, we held the ‘Girls Festival’ in Nagasawa. This year, we will be holding the same festival on Saturday 22nd February 2025, for the first time in almost three years. The Reds coaches are currently planning an event to create opportunities for girls who currently enjoy rugby to interact with each other and to increase the number of girls who enjoy rugby. We will let you know when the details are finalised.
Homestay opportunities in early April
In early April, students from Melbourne Grammar School in Australia will visit Japan and play a friendly match with Shogun on 6 April. At that time, they are hoping to arrange homestays. This will be an opportunity to put into practice SIRC’s motto of ‘making friends all over the world through rugby’. The planned dates are Friday 4th to Sunday 6th April, for a stay of 3 days and 2 nights. We would like to ask any families who are interested in this to take this opportunity to give Australian junior high school students the chance to experience a homestay.
Cooperation from sponsor companies
Finally, at the call of Will our President, we would like to recruit new sponsors for SIRC. If you are able to help, please contact us at info@shibuyarugby.com.
If you know of any companies or people who might be interested in supporting us, please introduce us to them.
Koji Tokumasu,
Founder/Chairman
Shibuya International Rugby Club
| Special Lecture by the Austrian Ambassador to Japan Application Form  |
SIRC Original Ball Sales Application Form |
| Application Form for Transferring to a New Class at the Azabudai Campus (U4-U6)Class transfer application form  For classes at the Azabudai campus, please be aware that a facilities fee will be added to the membership fee in the near future (to be announced separately). |
