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Rugby World Cup winner and new Kobelco Kobe Steelers mentor Andy Ellis will take his first step as a professional coach against the former All black people Toyota Verblitz boss Ian Foster, when it’s sixth edition Japan Rugby League One opens on December 12.
Novak replaces current All Blacks coach Dave Rennie at the defending champions, teaming up with former director of rugby Wayne Smith, who will advise the club’s new man.
The combination renews the partnership that led Kobe to the 2018 title, Smith led the program with Ellis as captain during a season that ended with a 55-5 demolition Tokyo Sungoliath in the final.
Last season’s Premier League Player of the Year Brodie Retallick will move the side again.
Although All Blacks stars Ardie Savea and Anton Lienert-Brown are not returning, Kobe has picked up useful newcomers in Springboks scrum-half Grant Williams and former All Blacks winger George Bridge.
Williams is one of 10 Springboks from Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry to feature in Japan, with Pieter-Steph du Toit playing his 100th Test in South Africa’s 33-26 win New Zealand in Cape Town, returning to Verblitz.
Toyota’s All Black pair of scrum-half Aaron Smith and winger Mark Telea remain as the club bid for their first play-off appearance since the start of the League One era.
Australian boom star Mark Nawaqanitawase will bow out in Saitama Wild Knights’ clash with Jasper Wiese’s Urayasu D-Rocks, who caused one of the upsets of the season when they beat the inaugural league champions last year.
Nawaqanitawase is chasing a premiership in the National Rugby League finals with the Sydney Roosters before heading to Japan.
Ex Sunwolves and Yokohama Canon Eagles coach Keisuke Sawaka has returned to Sungoliath, whom he guided to their last title in 2017.
The Fuchu club, who have recruited Irish winger James Lowe, start against a vastly improved BlackRams Tokyo TJ Perenara.
The Eagles, with All Blacks Samipeni Finau and Stephen Perofeta replacing Faf de Klerk and Liam Coltman, open the Kanagawa derby against the Mitsubishi Sagamihara Dynaboars.
Sagamihara welcomes the return of Springbok wing Kurt-lee Arendse, following his seven-try debut on loan two years ago.
Runners-up last season Kubota Spears they added Springbok second-row Ruan Nortje to their roster and went up against the Shizuoka BlueRevs, who replaced Charles Piutau with Wallaby Hunter Paisami.
It’s all change for the Tochigi Honda Heat and Toshiba Brave Lupus when they meet, with the Heat now based in Tochigi and under a new coach as South African Marius Goosen replaces Kieran Crowley.
For the first time in four years, Brave Lupus will be without Todd Blackadder or Riche Mo’unga at the helm, with their former deputy Josh Symes replacing the head coach, who will be assisting Harlequins legend Nick Evans.
Springbok wing Aphelele Fassi, Scottish back-rower Jack Dempsey and All Black coach David Havili also jumped in.
But the biggest boost is the return of Brave Blossoms skipper Warner Dearnes, who will be chasing his fourth straight title after adding the Super Rugby Championship with Hurricanes to Toshiba’s back-to-back wins in League One.
The competition spans 18 rounds, including four weekends, for a total of 206 games before the start of the three-week playoff rounds, with the final set on June 6.
