Head Coach Yumeno Noda and Captain Arisa Nishi Reflect on Tokyo Sankyu Phoenix 7s Season

This season, Tokyo Sankyu Phoenix were runners-up in the Taiyo Seimei Women’s Sevens Series 2026 (TWSS), an improvement on the 6th place last season. We spoke with two club members who have represented Sakura 7s & 15s, Head Coach Yumeno Noda in her second season in charge, and young captain Arisa Nishi, about the progress they have made.

The Taiyo Seimei Women’s Sevens Series sees the best Japanese 7s women’s players and a large international contingent compete in the top 12 clubs across three legs before the Grand Final tournament. 

Pre-season, the Tokyo Sankyu Phoenix signed Japanese players Sayaka Tanaka, Emii Tanaka, Hiyori Kawachi, Mine Manam, Korai Sakurako, as well as Kiwi Temalesi Rayasi. They announced the season captains were Arisa Nisha and Komaki Hinata.

They were without the services of Japan 7s star Wakaba Hara (Sakura 7s, Olympics 2020/2024), who retired, or overseas talent such as Canadian Olympian Charity Williams, opting for a team of locally based players. Last season, Williams was their top try scorer (26) and played for the opposing team, Yokohama TKM, this year.

Photo Credit – Tokyo Sankyu Phoenix

Yumeno Noda took over as the new Head Coach of the Tokyo Sankyu Phoenix last season, in which they struggled with injuries to get any consistency and finished 6th overall. 

The year before she arrived, they finished in third place in the Taiyo Seimei Women’s Sevens Series, but they showed improvement every leg of this season and pushed Nagato Blue Angels in the final, but fell short 19-26 to end as runner-up.

The first leg of the Taiyo Seimei Women’s Sevens Series 2026 season was played in June, and the club finished in 9th place before landing in 5th place in the second leg and 3rd in the final regular season leg. They secured the top 8 placement needed to compete in the finals in Sapporo. 

In the finals weekend, they defeated Nippon Sport Science University Women’s Rugby Club 43-0, before beating one of the top teams, Mie Pearls, 31-14 in the semifinal, and then the close loss in the final to the four-time champions.

Photo Credit – Tokyo Sankyu Phoenix – Head Coach Yumeno Noda

Progress and Learnings

“I’m very happy with the season, but it was a bit of a shame to lose the final. This was only my second season in charge. The biggest change was compromise, as when you coach you face a host of challenges all of the time. I used to think I had to get everything perfect, but now with the limited time in the coaching seat, I’ve gradually become better at narrowing those down,” explained Head Coach Yumeno Noda.

“Of course, I believe there is a difference between compromising and giving up; rather than trying to do everything perfectly, I focus on what was needed at the time.

Comparing that first season and this second season, I was constantly thinking about how I could create an environment where the players can grow more and develop with as little burden on them as possible. I feel I’ve also grown in terms of my planning skills.”

Noda knows the pressures of playing – she is a former Sakura 7s & 15s player and competed at RWC 2017.

She explained that some of the reasons they improved as a squad were better cohesion, fewer injury setbacks and also much better communication. They had also focused on the players’ conditioning and fitness and were better physically prepared, as there are short turnarounds between the tournaments. 

“Last year, we had a high number of injuries, and there was also a lack of communication with the players, and we were much better in both this season.

The season is quite long, as they played from February to August, so we also focused on non-rugby training, like breathing, strength and running. I spoke to a lot of leaders in the group, like Arisa and Rinka (Matsuda), to get feedback on areas to improve – and the skills and conditioning to focus on.”

Arisa Nishi is only in her early 20s and has already played for the Sakura 7s on the Asian 7s series, HSBC SVNS, as well as the Paris 2024 Olympics, and is capped in XVs – she played in the RWC 2025 in England.

When we asked if she had enjoyed the captaincy, her answer was short and direct – “Yes!” Some players don’t make for good captains, but she is capable in both.

“I am confident in the role, and I feel like the pressure has given me extra strengths. I enjoyed leading this team and the responsibility. I feel like I had good open communication with the coach and teammates, and we could see how we improved as a group as the season went on,” said the captain, Arisa Nishi.

“In the first tournament, we had some good individual strengths, but as we played the other tournaments, we gelled better as a team and were stronger together.”

Japanese 7s player Savannah Bodman, Ryoha Okamoto & Rinka Matsuda all scored in the final of the WSS 2026. Last season Bodman was one of the best players in the ARESS for Sakura 7s and wants to represent Japan.

Matsuda scored 6 tries on the final day of the tournament in Sapporo – she also scored two hat-tricks in two Tests for the Sakura XV in the Asia Rugby Emirates Women’s Championship this year as they defended their XVs title.

Top Japanese and International Quality on Taiyo Women’s Sevens Series

The Japanese Women’s Series sees several top-quality international players with HSBC SVNS and Olympic experience.

Yumeno Noda said, “We can see the strengths of the Japanese players in this Series and their ability to be united and forge connections and communicate and display good rugby technique & skill. I felt like everyone was on the same level, whether they were from Japan or overseas. Everyone has strengths and weaknesses.”

As a player, Arisa enjoys the opportunity to play against world-class players from other nations in the Taiyo Women’s Sevens Series. “I get excited to play against international rugby players in the WSS – it’s a very good opportunity to play with them and grow and develop.”

Photo Credit – Tokyo Sankyu Phoenix 7s Season – Captain Arisa Nishi

They also form good bonds on and off the field. Charity Williams, for example, was a teammate last season and a rival this season playing with Yokohama TKM, but as soon as the whistle was blown, it was like hanging with friends, and they have a good connection and friendship, she said.

Rinka Matsuda, Suzuha Okamoto, Misaki Matsumura, and Arisa were all called up from the Phoenix to the Japan SDS 7s Women’s camp in August 2026 – with the Japanese looking to defend their Asian Rugby Sevens title, and they will be hosting the coveted Asian Games Rugby 7s in October.

Arisa Nishi has not represented Japan this year but wants to play for Japan at the Asian Games 2026 and Olympics in 2028. “I want to go to the Los Angeles Olympics, and I want to keep playing Sevens, but the Asian Games and Olympics are my target.”

For Tokyo Sankyu Phoenix, Arisa Nishi is confident they can keep improving and challenge Nagao Blue Angels for the title next season.

“I want to be the champion next season because we are confident we can compete against the local and international players and any team – so I am sure we can be champions next year.’

Photo Credit – Tokyo Sankyu Phoenix – Arisa Nishi

Tough Choices

The Tokyo Sankyu Phoenix squad has a theme every season. Last year it was “Bloom Up”, and this year it was “Tough Choices”.

Temalesi Rayasi, in her first season with the club in the Taiyo Women’s Sevens Series, told us early in the campaign, “Our team motto for this year is ‘tough choice’, and I really like that. I’m that type of person who, when I get tired, it’s really hard for me to be motivated and find that grit and to keep going. So ‘Tough Choice’ has resonated with me a lot, and I really like that message for our team this year.”

Photo Credit – Tokyo Sankyu Phoenix

We asked the Head Coach who comes up with these and why Tough Choice this season?

Yumeno Noda said, “I created Tough Choice. I believe that to achieve results in a match, it is important not to take the easy way out – just like in real life. You need to make tough choices. I incorporated the word tough not only in relation to the decisions we make during a match, but also in terms of what we do when the going gets tough and how we hold ourselves to account. In fact, the players themselves added the sub-subtitle, “No Excuses”. 

The fact that the players themselves came up with the phrase “No Excuses” made me realise once again that I too must be tougher. I must face the players and the team without making excuses and ensure we prepare for our season the best possible way.”

Photo Credit – Tokyo Sankyu Phoenix

The tough choice is not only for players but also for us coaches, and we want to make decisions – the tough decision – to have a club of hard-working players.”

Of the club, and why she likes the environment at Tokyo Sankyu Phoenix, she said that they work and encourage each other to work hard for the same goals. 

“Every day they are training hard and never compromise. We share the tears and the joyous moments, and it’s not just on the field, but we have a great camaraderie and enjoy socialising together off the field and have great connections.”

Thank you to Tokyo Sankyu Phoenix players Yuho & Yuna Nozawa for assisting with translations. Rugby Asia 247 has entered a content agreement with the Tokyo Sankyu Phoenix club for a second season – we will be bringing you player, coach, and staff interviews until 2027. 

Taiyo Women’s Sevens Series 2026 News

• Taiyo Seimei Women’s Sevens Series 2026 Sapporo Grand Final Review – Nagato Blue Angels Make It Four In a Row.
• Taiyo Seimei Women’s Sevens Series 2026 Round 3 Kitakyushu.
• Taiyo Seimei Women’s Sevens Series 2026 Round 2 Tochigi.
• Taiyo Seimei Women’s Sevens Series 2026 Round 1 Kumagaya.