Here is the May 2025 Newsletter.
On Saturday, 12 April, the ‘2025 SIRC Coaching Seminar’ was held at the seminar room in Sangenjaya, attended by 40 SIRC coaches, who reaffirmed the basic principles of SIRC coaching.
At the beginning of the seminar, President Norman and Vice President Duncan gave presentations, reaffirming that ‘SIRC is a club with unique values that may differ from typical Japanese sports clubs.’ As an example, they stated, ‘We enjoy rugby and aim to make friends around the world through rugby. Of course, it would be possible that future elite players will emerge from SIRC, but we are not engaged in activities solely for the purpose of producing elite players.’
After keynote reports from Ninja, Shuriken, and Colts, who engaged in unique activities last year, Dave Nakamura, the SIRC Referee Committee Chair, presented plans to create a programme to train referees within SIRC.
Yusuke Kobayashi has returned as Head of Rugby in April and will work closely with the Head coaches of each class to continue implementing the SIRC Way this year.
Shibuya Colts will participate in the Tokyo Qualifiers for the National High School Sevens Tournament for the second consecutive year. The first round of the qualifiers will take place on 5 May at Fuchu Asahi Football Park, with matches against Seijo Gakuen at 10:00 and Kaisei High School at 11:00. Under current regulations, the youth club teams like Colts are only allowed to participate in official matches once a year, which is this 7-a-side tournament. If you have time, please come and cheer for the Colts at the venue!
The venue is here.
https://www.city.fuchu.tokyo.jp/shisetu/supotu/sakka/asahi.html
As a ‘unique activity being carried out amid Japan’s declining birthrate,’ the Colts’ activities will be featured on TV Asahi’s “Hodo Station.” The segment is scheduled to air on Friday, 2 May, and will include an interview with the former professional tennis player Shuzo Matsushima. Please tune in!
https://www.tv-asahi.co.jp/hst/
Shogun is participating in the Tokyo Junior Rugby Spring Tournament, divided into U13 and U15 categories. The first match was held on 27 April, with the U13 team competing in the 7-a-side division on 25 May against Setagayaku Rugby School and Musashino Rugby School, and the U15 team competing in the 12-a-side division on 11 May against Setagayaku Rugby School and on 18 May against Waseda Club.
While other middle school teams are practicing on weekends, Shogun only practices on Sundays, but they are heading into the matches with our motto “Enjoy Rugby”
The Reds class will be held on Sundays at 1:45 PM at the Azabudai Campus starting from 11 May due to the change of the work schedule of Head Coach Michaela. We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause to Reds class members and kindly ask for your understanding.
On Sunday, May 11th and 18th, from 10:30 AM to 12:00 PM, Jamie (Head Coach of Super Ninja will be hosting a ‘Parent-Child Touch Rugby’ event at the South Grounds of the Showa Campus. This is a free trial class. Due to time constraints, participation may be limited, but children may attend alone or with parents.
May 11 (Sun) happens to be Mother’s Day. Jamie will be hosting a ‘Touch Rugby Class for Mums.’ We look forward to seeing you there.
Dom’s Rugby Academy, which has been closed in April due to Colts practice, will finally resume on May 7th (Wed) at the South Grounds of the Showa Campus. The sessions will be held every Wednesday from 5:45 PM to 7:10 PM. The target grades are Jr Samurai, Godzilla, Samurai, Shogun, and Reds members.
https://domrug.sakura.ne.jp/dom_academy/
This academy focuses on improving individual players’ skills through small-group, intensive sessions. The participation fee is 15,000 yen for 10 sessions, but single-session participation is also available. The first session is free of charge. Those interested may apply via the form below.
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSeaRjPyGIvhCy8Ts9W6Z9HEiyW9YrL51Cf38vJZ3i8QfvPjYA/viewform
The SIRC Referee Seminar will be held on Sunday, 18 May, during the morning regular practice session at the Showa Campus. The instructor will be Dave Nakamura, Chair of the SIRC Referee Committee.
The seminar will be divided into two classes: ① for players in Junior Samurai and ② for players in grades Samurai. On the day of the seminar, each session will be done in games with commentary in the first half and receive explanations in the second half.
We plan to continue holding these seminars in the future, both in Showa and Azabudai.