the Chiefs vs Kubota Spears Funabashi Tokyo Bay will be the opponent for the Gallagher Chiefs in their upcoming Cross Border Rugby preseason game.
The New Zealand team, which includes All Blacks veterans Josh Ioane, Quinn Tupaea, Aidan Ross, and Te Toiroa Tahuriorangi, hopes to increase their physicality and accuracy. The game will air live on Sky Sport and kick off at 6.30 p.m. NZT.
The games are scheduled for early February, with the goal of establishing the exchange as a regular event on the rugby schedule in the upcoming years. Best Streaming options to Watch Super Rugby Pacific 2024
The Chiefs will try to reply against Kubota Spears Funabashi Tokyo Bay in the second and last round of The Cross Border Rugby 2024, while the Blues will try to win against Yokohama Canon Eagles on Saturday, February 10, in order to finish their trip to Japan undefeated.
The typically Waikato-based Chiefs have picked a formidable 28-man squad for the encounter on Saturday, with Anton Lienert-Brown and Bradley Slater serving as co-captains.
Cross Border Rugby – Chiefs vs Kubota Spears
Event: Chiefs vs Kubota Spears
Date: 10th February, 2024
TV: Sky Sport 1
Chiefs vs Kubota Spears Cross Border Rugby Preview
Of the three players we met with this week, only Liam Williams was chosen for the Cross Border game against the Chiefs; Coles and Foley both assisted the squad in getting ready.
The New Zealand-based Chiefs, who lost to the Saitama Panasonic Wild Knights 38–14 last weekend, will aim to complete their time in Japan with a victory. All Black midfielder Anton Lienert-Brown is back to lead the Chiefs, forming a formidable midfield tandem with fellow international Quinn Tupaea.
In addition to Josh Ioane, an All Black with one cap who is making his debut in Cross Border Rugby, Lienert-Brown will be in his eleventh season with the Chiefs.
Coach Clayton McMillan of the Chiefs has made nine changes to the starting lineup from the team that was defeated in Saitama, with three All Blacks being included in the reserve side.
All Black hooker Dane Coles and Wallaby flyhalf Bernard Foley are not available to Kubota Spears coach Frans Ludeke, but Wales fullback Liam Williams gets his first glimpse at a Super Rugby team. The Japanese team is led by South Africans Schalk Erasmus, JD Schickering, and Ruan Botha in the second row, and centre Rikus Pretorius.
Although the 89-test cap fullback has only made two appearances in Japan, he scored a try in the second of those games, and the 32-year-old is eager to face Super Rugby opponents.
Erasmus, a 25-year-old uncapped former hooker for the Bulls and Western Province, will also play his first Super Rugby match against New Zealand.
How To Watch Cross-Border Rugby 2024
JRLO declared that TV Kanagawa will show one game of the Cross-Border contests, while J SPORTS On Demand will stream the matches live in Japan.
- For fans in the Pacific Islands – Digicel
- Fans in New Zealand – Sky Sport
International fans from beyond these territories should be able to watch the matches live on NZR+, the New Zealand Union’s digital channel.