Hanazono Kintetsu Liners

Hanazono Kintetsu Liners rugby team are a Japanese rugby union team owned by Kintetsu Corporation which was founded in 1929. They have won the All-Japan Championship three times as an amateur team. Their home is at Hanazono Rugby Stadium in Higashiosaka, Japan, which was also opened in 1929. Early in 2008 Kintetsu won promotion back to the Top League for the 2008-9 season, and it was announced that former All Blacks coach Peter Sloane would be head coach. After 3 years with Peter Sloane, Ryusuke Maeda become head coach in 2011. The team rebranded as Hanazono Kintetsu Liners ahead of the rebranding of the Top League to the Japan Rugby League One in 2022. Honours All-Japan Championship Champions: 1966, 1967, 1974 Runner-up: 1961(NHK Cup), 1963 Company Championship Champions: 1953, 1956, 1957, 1961, 1966, 1967, 1969, 1974 Runner-up: 1948, 1951, 1955, 1958, 1959, 1960, 1963, 1965, 1973