George Kruis expects more Premiership players to go to Japan

When George Kruis made the life-changing decision to embark on a new career in Japan, taking himself out of the equation for England selection at the age of just 31, he did not consider himself as a trailblazer. The reasons behind his decision to opt for the brave new world of the Top League in Japan were old school desires to sample a new culture and create new memories before time ran out.

What has surprised the former Saracens lock, who has won 45 caps for England and one for the Lions in 2017, however is the number of phone-calls he has received recently from players from back home in the UK about life as a professional in Japan....

...Until now the vast majority of the overseas talent (around 95 per cent) has largely come from the southern hemisphere nations, yet Kruis believes it is inevitable that more will follow his footsteps from the Premiership as the profile of the Top League continues to grow. Wales back Hadleigh Parkes is his team-mate at the Wild Knights while Alex Goode spent this season with NEC Green Rockets while Freddie Burns joined Shokki Shuttles last year. Kruis expects more will follow.

“I know there will be more, more than there has been in the past,” said Kruis, who resides in Ota, a small city of a quarter of million people 50 miles northwest of Tokyo. I think the impact of Covid was a bit of a reality check for a few. In terms of the way maybe some will have been dealt with by clubs or taken a cut. It's a short enough career and I think that was just a bit of an eye opener for some.

“But also in terms of some people looking at their whole situation and thinking, ‘is it good time to, you know, enjoy a different experience?’ I guess a lot of people, not just in sport, are asking that question of themselves.”

GeordieFalcon wrote:Is that an English /British trait then...as its similar in football...few really go abroad.

You can list a handful over all the years...

Lineker, Mark Hughes, Gazza etc...but not floods of them.

Soul Requiem wrote:English players don't play abroad all that much in general so it's not that surprising that even fewer consider Japan.

Rugby Fan wrote:

Soul Requiem wrote:English players don't play abroad all that much in general so it's not that surprising that even fewer consider Japan.

I think you are right.

Nevertheless, the first three English players to win European Player of the Year did so from France (Jonny Wilkinson, Steffon Armitage and Nick Abendanon). Wilkinson got into Toulon just before England introduced their selection policy, so he's an outlier, while also being one of the best examples of the advantages of a move overseas.

I thought more English players would come to Japan because you get the benefits of playing with Southern Hemisphere stars, with a healthy pay packet, which seems like the best of both worlds for a rugby experience.I genuinely think the penny just didn't drop for them or their agents. The fact Kruis has signed on for another year might make more players take note. As he says, the way clubs treated their players when the wolves were at the door, has probably led more to think about their own best interests.