Mills Albert Wellington Lions sign two overseas players from the Kubota Spears Tokyo Bay Funabashi
Mills Albert Wellington Lions sign two overseas players from the Kubota Spears Tokyo Bay Funabashi
Mills Albert Wellington Lions Head Coach, Alando Soakai, welcomes two players from the Kubota Spears Tokyo Bay Funabashi, the Japanese side he formerly called his own.
Yota Kamimori (loosehead prop) and Kazuki Kato (loosehead prop) recently landed in Wellington, following a stellar season with the Kubota Spears in the Japan Rugby League One competition.
The players will train with the wider Lions squad in the lead up to the Bunnings Warehouse NPC season and have the opportunity to push for selection in the NPC team or the Centurions squad.
“First of all, we would like to thank the Wellington Lions for the opportunity to be part of such a historic club,” says Kato (nicknamed Ikkyu).
“We are excited to be able to play under Coach Soakai again,” adds teammate Kamimori (nicknamed Kami). “We can't wait to receive the coaching and guidance that he gave us during his time at the Kubota Spears.”
Lions Head Coach, Alando Soakai, has a strong personal connection with the Kubota Spears, a side that he played for and then coached for 8 years. He saw great success during his time at the Spears, with the team eventually going on to win the Japanese League One competition in 2022/23, the first in the club’s history.
“Kami and Kazuki are players I’ve coached before, and they’re great men on and off the field. They’re both men who want to test themselves, and I believe they can get the job done for us,” says Soakai.
Soakai has been intentional in his decision to source local talent from the Wellington region this season, so emphasises that the call to import two players from Japan was not made on a whim.
“We want winning footy first and foremost. We want the best from the players who are available to us, and we’re really fortunate that we can find most of that here in our own backyard.”
Of his decision to bring over Kamimori and Kato, Soakai adds, “The level of rugby in Japan has really picked up in recent years. We’re seeing a lot of top-quality coaches and players moving over and adding depth and a wealth of experience to the Japanese competition.”
Soakai isn’t the only connection between the Wellington Lions and the Kubota Spears. Wellington legend and Lions spot coach, Dane Coles, famously put retirement on hold to go over and play with the Spears for their 2023/24 season.