Wild Knights 24 - 26 Kubota Spears

● full_time 80 minutes

31 May 2026

Stage: SF Round 20

Prince Chichibu Memorial Stadium

In a thrilling encounter, the Kubota Spears triumphed over the Saitama Wild Knights with a final score of 26-24. Early in the match, Shaun Stevenson kicked a penalty for the Spears, but Jack Cornelsen quickly responded with a try for the Wild Knights, converted by Takuya Yamasawa. The game saw momentum shift as Dylan Riley received a yellow card, allowing Halatoa Vailea to score for Kubota, which was converted by Bernard Foley. The second half featured a crucial try from Maurice Marks for the Wild Knights, but the Spears answered back with a try from Haruto Kida, also converted by Foley. Late in the match, Yusaku Kihara and Takaya Saito scored for Saitama, but it wasn't enough to secure the win. Ultimately, Kubota's disciplined play and effective use of penalties secured their narrow victory. The match highlighted the competitive rivalry between the two teams, with Kubota continuing their recent dominance.

Weather

Temperature: 28.8°C (Feels like 28.4°C) Condition: Cloudy Wind: 8.9 km/h, gusting to 20.6 km/h Humidity: 45% Cloud Cover: 96%

Highlights

Events

0' kickoff
9' penalty Shaun Stevenson
16' try Jack Cornelsen
17' conversion Takuya Yamasawa
30' yellow_card Dylan Riley
33' substitution Koga Nezuka
35' try Halatoa Vailea
36' conversion Bernard Foley
40' substitution Takuya Yamasawa
40' substitution Halatoa Vailea
40' substitution Malcolm Marx
40' substitution Tyler Paul
40' half_time
40' second_half
40' yellow_card_complete Dylan Riley
49' penalty Bernard Foley
51' substitution Tomoki Osada
51' substitution Asaeli Ai Valu
51' substitution Ben Gunter
55' try Haruto Kida
56' conversion Bernard Foley
56' substitution Craig Millar
57' substitution Keijiro Tamefusa
57' substitution Yuya Hirose
60' try Maurice Marks
61' substitution Faulua Makisi
61' substitution Atsushi Sakate
64' drop_goal_miss Bernard Foley
66' substitution Bernard Foley
66' substitution Ippei Okada
68' penalty Shaun Stevenson
68' substitution Esei Haangana
70' penalty Shaun Stevenson
75' yellow_card Merwe Olivier
76' try Yusaku Kihara
79' try Takaya Saito
79' conversion Takaya Saito
80' full_time