By Rich Freeman,
The Sunwolves will open their 2018 Super Rugby campaign on Feb. 24 in Tokyo against the Canberra-based Brumbies, it was announced Thursday.
SANZAAR -- the organization that runs rugby in the Southern Hemisphere -- has reduced the competition from 18 teams to 15 with the Sunwolves moving into the Australia Conference from the South Africa Conference.
The new format will see the Sunwolves play the four other Australian teams home-and-away, and take on four sides from New Zealand and South Africa, respectively.
Five of the Sunwolves' home games will be played at Tokyo's Prince Chichibu Memorial Rugby Ground, two at Singapore's National Stadium with the May 19 game against South Africa's Stormers at a venue still to be confirmed.
In announcing the schedule, SANZAAR CEO Andy Marinos also alluded to some of the structural changes that the Sunwolves have been asked to implement.
"In addition to the decisions that were taken around the Australian and South African Conferences, SANZAAR has also been working hard with Japan and the Sunwolves," he said.
"Their performances over the first two seasons have been disappointing and improvement is required. A structural reform has been implemented where responsibility for the Sunwolves will move from the Japan Rugby Football Union to the entity known as Japan Super Rugby Association. SANZAAR will be taking a more proactive role within its operating structures."
Having traveled well over 100,000 kilometers in both 2016 and 2017, the Japanese franchise will spend far less time in the air next year.
Following their second game of the season against the Melbourne Rebels in Singapore, the Sunwolves will play two games in South Africa against the Sharks and Lions.
They will then return to Japan to take on the Chiefs from New Zealand on March 24.
They will remain at home following a bye week to play the New South Wales Waratahs and Auckland-based Blues on April 7 and 14, respectively, before heading to New Zealand to play the Crusaders and Hurricanes.
The first weekend in May sees the side have their second bye before they take on the Queensland Red in Tokyo on May 12 followed by the Stormers.
The regular season ends with two two-week trips to Australia, either side of a game in Singapore on June 30 against South Africa's Bulls, one of the two teams the Sunwolves beat this year.
