Latest news with #WarnerDearns
The Mainichi
25-06-2025
- Sport
- The Mainichi
Rugby: Japan lock Dearns to join Super Rugby's Hurricanes next season Category: Sports
TOKYO (Kyodo) -- Super Rugby's Hurricanes have signed Japan lock Warner Dearns for the 2026 season, the club based in his native New Zealand said Wednesday. The 23-year-old helped Brave Lupus Tokyo win their second consecutive Japan Rugby League One title in the 2024-2025 season and plans to return to the team in the 2026-2027 season. "I'm really excited about the opportunity to join the Hurricanes and take on a new challenge in Super Rugby," Dearns said in a statement through the club. "I'm looking forward to continuing to grow as a player and giving everything I have for the jersey." Dearns went to high school in Japan and has 21 caps for the Brave Blossoms, including at the 2023 Rugby World Cup in France.
RNZ News
24-06-2025
- Sport
- RNZ News
Hurricanes sign NZ born Japan lock Warner Dearns for next Super Rugby season
Photo: Japan Rugby Football Union The Hurricanes have bolstered their tight five ahead of next Super Rugby season with the signing of Japan international Warner Dearns for 2026. Twenty-three-year-old Dearns was born in Wellington and grew up in Hawkes Bay, where his father Grant was a strength and conditioning coach for the NPC side. Photo: Japan Rugby Football Union His mother is former Silver Ferns netballer Tanya Dearns. Warner Dearns moved to Japan as a teenager when his dad worked for the Green Rockets team near Tokyo. "I'm really excited about the opportunity to join the Hurricanes and take on a new challenge in Super Rugby," Dearns said. "I'm looking forward to continuing to grow as a player and giving everything I have for the jersey," Dearns will take a sabbatical from his Japanese club Toshiba Brave Lupus to join the Hurricanes for a season. "I'm also incredibly grateful to Toshiba Brave Lupus Tokyo for supporting me in taking on this challenge in 2026." The 2.02m and 124kg lock, who has made 21 appearances for Japan, adds height and strength to the Hurricanes forward pack. "It's really exciting news for the club to sign an international lock in Warner," Hurricanes head coach Clark Laidlaw said. "He's a young Kiwi guy who's plying his trade in Japan. His family moved up there, he's qualified for Japan, and he's taking a sabbatical from Toshiba. He had a lot of interest, not just in New Zealand, but around the world, so for him to choose to join the Hurricanes is really exciting. "Warner has family ties to the Hurricanes region - his sisters live in Wellington, his mum's the chief executive of Wairarapa Bush Rugby Football Union, his dad has been involved with Hawke's Bay in the NPC - so there's a lot of connection to the club." Photo: Toshiba Brave Lupus Laidlaw believes Dearns will have an immediate impact. "We're looking forward to welcoming him when he comes after the November tests. He's an exceptional athlete. He's got a good set piece, particularly at the lineout, as well as around the field, so we think he can really add to our game. "Warner's also experienced around the world, in Japan and international rugby, so he'll be really valuable as we build the team towards next season." Date of birth: 11 April, 2002 Place of birth: Wellington, New Zealand Position: Lock Height: 2.02m Weight: 124kg International side: Japan (21 tests, 4 tries) Club side: Toshiba Brave Lupus Tokyo (62 matches, 11 tries) Honours: 2x Japan Rugby League One champion (2024, 2025)
NZ Herald
24-06-2025
- Sport
- NZ Herald
Hurricanes sign Kiwi-born Japan lock Warner Dearns for 2026 season
The Hurricanes have signed Kiwi-born Japanese international Warner Dearns for the 2026 Super Rugby season. The 2.02m , 124kg lock has been allowed a temporary break from his contract with Toshiba Brave Lupus club, in Japan. 'I'm really excited about the opportunity to join the Hurricanes and take on a
Kyodo News
30-05-2025
- Sport
- Kyodo News
Rugby: Brave Lupus aim to retain League One title in trademark style
KYODO NEWS - 9 hours ago - 20:51 | Sports, Rugby, All Defending champions Brave Lupus Tokyo are unlikely to part from their tried-and-tested game plan when they battle the Kubota Spears in the Japan Rugby League One final, lock Warner Dearns indicated Friday. Speaking ahead of Sunday's championship decider at Tokyo's National Stadium, Japan international Dearns said they would continue emphasizing the expansive, attacking rugby that yielded a league-best 741 points on their way to first place in the regular season. "We're a team that moves the ball," Dearns said. "If we can attack with the style that we have honed, we can win." The Todd Blackadder-coached team will also be confident of their defensive resilience after stopping the Kobe Steelers from scoring a try in a 31-3 semifinal rout last weekend. Their attacking movement has been underpinned by the playmaking of former All Black flyhalf Richie Mo'unga, the reigning League One MVP, who heads into the final on the back of a man-of-the-match performance against Kobe. Captain and No. 8 Michael Leitch and fullback Takuro Matsunaga are among the other linchpins in a Brave Lupus starting XV who will enter as favorites after winning as underdogs last year against the Saitama Wild Knights in front of some 56,000 at the Tokyo Olympic venue. "The cheering was so loud, it felt like the ground was shaking," Matsunaga said. "It won't come as a surprise this time around, so I will be able to enjoy it." After finishing the season third, the Frans Ludeke-coached Spears have had to contend with an extra round of playoff rugby, followed by a grueling semifinal win against Saitama. The 2022-2023 champions will aim to continue their strong defensive play, exemplified by hard-tackling South African hooker Malcolm Marx, who was at the forefront of both playoff wins. Scrumhalf Shinobu Fujiwara will also look for another big performance after scoring a brace of tries last weekend against a Saitama side that was expected to advance to their fourth straight League One final. "I want to read the situation quickly and perform at my best without rushing things," Fujiwara said. Related coverage: Rugby: Spears hold off Sungoliath to reach League One semis Japan Rugby League One to give domestic players more time on pitch Rugby: Sam Cane leads playoff-chasing Sungoliath to vital win over Toyota
The Mainichi
30-05-2025
- Sport
- The Mainichi
Rugby: Brave Lupus aim to retain League One title in trademark style
TOKYO (Kyodo) -- Defending champions Brave Lupus Tokyo are unlikely to part from their tried-and-tested game plan when they battle the Kubota Spears in the Japan Rugby League One final, lock Warner Dearns indicated Friday. Speaking ahead of Sunday's championship decider at Tokyo's National Stadium, Japan international Dearns said they would continue emphasizing the expansive, attacking rugby that yielded a league-best 741 points on their way to first place in the regular season. "We're a team that moves the ball," Dearns said. "If we can attack with the style that we have honed, we can win." The Todd Blackadder-coached team will also be confident of their defensive resilience after stopping the Kobe Steelers from scoring a try in a 31-3 semifinal rout last weekend. Their attacking movement has been underpinned by the playmaking of former All Black flyhalf Richie Mo'unga, the reigning League One MVP, who heads into the final on the back of a man-of-the-match performance against Kobe. Captain and No. 8 Michael Leitch and fullback Takuro Matsunaga are among the other linchpins in a Brave Lupus starting XV who will enter as favorites after winning as underdogs last year against the Saitama Wild Knights in front of some 56,000 at the Tokyo Olympic venue. "The cheering was so loud, it felt like the ground was shaking," Matsunaga said. "It won't come as a surprise this time around, so I will be able to enjoy it." After finishing the season third, the Frans Ludeke-coached Spears have had to contend with an extra round of playoff rugby, followed by a grueling semifinal win against Saitama. The 2022-2023 champions will aim to continue their strong defensive play, exemplified by hard-tackling South African hooker Malcolm Marx, who was at the forefront of both playoff wins. Scrumhalf Shinobu Fujiwara will also look for another big performance after scoring a brace of tries last weekend against a Saitama side that was expected to advance to their fourth straight League One final. "I want to read the situation quickly and perform at my best without rushing things," Fujiwara said.
