Foley's Spears reach Japan Rugby League One final amid Waratahs return links

Bernard Foley’s Kubota Spears secured their place in the Japan Rugby League One grand final on Sunday, defeating the Saitama Wild Knights in a tight semi-final that turned on a first-half yellow card — all while speculation grows that the veteran flyhalf is set to return to the Waratahs, the club he guided to the 2014 Super Rugby title.

The pivotal moment came when Wild Knights centre Dylan Riley was sent to the sin bin for a deliberate knock-down. Replacement Spears centre Halatoa Vailea crossed during Riley’s absence, and later charged down a conversion to help Foley’s side withstand a late Wild Knights surge. Despite outscoring the Spears four tries to two — with two of those coming in the final three minutes — the Wild Knights were undone by a high error count and poor discipline.

The Spears will now face the Kobe Steelers in the grand final, with former Wallabies head coach Dave Rennie chasing his first club title since 2013. Rennie’s side advanced emphatically on Saturday, thrashing Tokyo Sungoliath 69-23 in the opening semi-final. The points tally set a record for a playoffs match across both the five-year history of League One and its predecessor Top League, which launched in 2003. Kobe led by only eight points at halftime before running riot in the second half.

For Foley, the final represents a fitting potential farewell to Japanese rugby. The 35-year-old flyhalf has been strongly linked with a move back to the Waratahs in Super Rugby, the franchise where he made his name and delivered one of Australian rugby’s most celebrated moments with his kicking display in the 2014 Super Rugby final against the Crusaders. Should the reports prove accurate, the League One grand final could serve as his last match in Japan before heading home.