sport, rugby

HE'S BEEN described as a Japanese version of Australian Wallabies playmaker Matt Toomua, and the ACT Brumbies are confident their first Asian recruit will come to Canberra ready to make an immediate impact in Super Rugby. The Brumbies have signed Japan's Harumichi Tatekawa, coach Stephen Larkham confident the 23-year-old will be a contender for a Super Rugby debut in round one. Former Australian coach and now Japan mentor Eddie Jones recommended Tatekawa to the Brumbies, while Wallabies great Toutai Kefu has declared him ''the best Japanese player I've seen''. ''How that translates to Super Rugby is a bit unknown,'' said Kefu, who coaches Tatekawa's Kubota club. ''I think he can do it, he's a talented kid. Skill-wise he can do everything and he's a big, tough boy. ''He's like Matt Toomua, but he's still another foot taller than Toomua and that's unusual in Japan.'' At 181-centimetres tall and 94 kilograms, Tatekawa is a back-line power player in the Japanese competition. While Japan has long been considered a rich retirement option for ageing Australian players, the Brumbies are looking to cash in on its potential talent. The Melbourne Rebels signed the first Japanese player in Super Rugby history when they recruited hooker Shota Horie for the past two seasons. Tatekawa's move to Canberra is part of a development plan and there is a view an Asian side could become part of an expanded Super Rugby competition in the future. It is understood the ARU was investigating dispensation for all five Australian teams to add an Asian player to their respective rosters to develop the game in that region. But Larkham said Tatekawa wasn't coming to Canberra to make up numbers, backing him to push for a place in the Brumbies' starting XV for their season opener against the Queensland Reds next month. The Brumbies will have a translator at training to help Tatekawa settle in when he arrives in the middle of this month. His arrival will also add valuable depth while Wallabies inside-centre Christian Lealiifano recovers from post-season ankle surgery, ruling him out until at least March. Larkham, who ended his own playing career in Japan, is confident Tatekawa is ready for Super Rugby. ''Another player in that 10-12 position is great for us, it allows depth and we're quite lucky to have Haru,'' Larkham said. ''There's going to be a lot of competition from those positions and Haru will definitely be pushing for one of those spots given his form for the Japanese team. ''Having played over in Japan for three years, they know the rugby lingo and that won't be a problem. ''The standard of footy in Japan is a little bit less than Super Rugby, but I think individual players have the skills and when you put them in a good system you'll see improvement. ''I've got no doubt Haru will be ready to play. Sometimes they don't get exposure at high-level rugby and this is a good opportunity.'' Kefu described Tatekawa as a ''unique'' talent and said getting used to the increased tempo and physicality would be his biggest challenges. ''By letting these players go to Australia, it's going to snowball development and make them better players by opening a pathway,'' Kefu said.

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