Mo'unga extends winning streak with Japanese title

Former All Black Richie Mo'unga extended his remarkable title-winning streak after leading Toshiba Brave Lupus to the Japanese championship with an 18-13 victory over Kubota Spears on Sunday.

The fly-half has finished every domestic rugby union season since 2017 with a winner's medal and he picked up another in the Japan Rugby League One final in front of more than 50,000 fans at Tokyo's National Stadium.

It was his second straight title in Japan with Toshiba, having joined them on a three-year deal after helping New Zealand reach the 2023 World Cup final.

Mo'unga gave another playmaking masterclass with a Toshiba side that had finished the regular season in first place.

The 31-year-old scored his team's first try with less than 10 minutes on the clock and set up their second with a crafty dummy early in the second half.

He also scored eight points with his boot.

Toshiba's victory denied Kubota's Australian fly-half Bernard Foley and South African hooker Malcolm Marx a second title in Japan.

Mo'unga jinked through the opposition defence to open the scoring in the eighth minute, although he missed the subsequent conversion from the touchline.

Foley reduced the deficit with a penalty almost 10 minutes later, before Mo'unga restored Toshiba's five-point cushion from the tee.

Foley kicked another but Toshiba added a second try seven minutes into the second half, with Mo'unga again at the heart of the action.

The fly-half charged forward as Toshiba broke at speed, and took out a Kubota defender with a dummy before slipping the ball to Yuto Mori to canter over the line.

Mo'unga thought he had scored another try soon after, only for a video review to chalk it off for a forward pass.

Harumichi Tatekawa scored a late try for Kubota to set up a tense finale, but Toshiba held on for the win.