Kruis, Parkes to play rugby in Japan next season
England lock George Kruis and Welsh centre Hadleigh Parkes have signed to play for Panasonic Wild Knights in next year’s Japanese Top League, the club announced yesterday.
Kruis, capped 45 times for his country and once for the British and Irish Lions, featured at last year’s World Cup but coach Eddie Jones mainly used the 30-year-old as a substitute in England’s run to the final.
New Zealand-born former Southern Kings star Parkes, 32, was an ever-present force for the Welsh side that lost in the semifinals to eventual champions SA.
For the Scarlets player, the decision effectively means an end to his international career and he said that moving to Japan “certainly wasn’t a quick or easy decision”.
“But when you have to weigh up your family’s future, it is an incredible opportunity for us and we are excited about what lies ahead,” Parkes said.
Welsh rules mean someone playing outside Wales can only be selected for the national team if he has already won 60 caps or is uncapped. Parkes has won 29. Former Saracen Kruis refused to see the move to Japan as calling time on his international career. “I would like to think there is plenty left in the legs and this is definitely not an England retirement,” he said.
Kruis and Parkes are following the well-trodden route of a short spell in Japan towards the end of their careers — a path taken by some of the legends of the game.
Former All Blacks flyhalf Dan Carter was perhaps the highest profile of these, recently announcing he was leaving the Kobelco Steelers after taking them to the 2018-2019 Top League title.
The next Japanese Top League season is slated to begin in January after the coronavirus forced the cancellation of the 2020 edition.
The Panasonic Wild Knights, coached by former Wallabies coach Robbie Deans, won three straight Top League titles from 2014-2016.