‘Rugby has a great habit of making the world feel that little bit more connected,’ said Dan Biggar.
Dan Biggar has revealed a unique connection with Top 14 rival Naoto Saito. The Japanese international plays for French heavyweights Toulouse and is one of the supporting scrum-halves to Antoine Dupont. He played a role from the bench in their victory over Biggar’s Toulon in the Champions Cup over the weekend.
While Wales legend Biggar did not play in that game, he found the time to link up with Saito after the game, because the pair have history, as revealed by the Welshman on Instagram.
Writing on the social media platform, Biggar said: “From Tokyo to Toulon. Little did I know that when this young lad approached me for a selfie in Japan during the World Cup that we’d come face to face again six years later in Toulon.
“This time with him as a pro player with our opponents Toulouse. Rugby has a great habit of making the world feel that little bit more connected. Ganbattene, tomoyo.”
Check out the post and photos below.
Toulouse defeated their Top 14 rivals thanks to a late penalty kick from Thomas Ramos, setting up a mouth-watering semi-final against Bordeaux-Begles.
For Biggar, he’s hanging up his boots at the end of the season. He retired from international rugby after the World Cup, but continued playing for Toulon. These last few weeks of the domestic season will be the last-ever for the Wales icon.
Saito, on the other hand, signed for Toulouse ahead of the 2024/2025 season from Japan Rugby League One side Suntory Sungoliath, who currently have Sam Cane and Cheslin Kolbe on the books.
Speaking to the Toulouse YouTube channel a few months after settling in, Saito touched on some of the cultural differences he has experienced since moving to France.
“From the perspective of the differences between France and Japan, here everyone seems very calm and always relaxed,” he said. “I feel like we always have a good time. The French live their daily lives peacefully, compared to Japan, and enjoy life.
“One time, I remember, I had an appointment with the physiotherapist. I was a little late. So I ran to get there on time and I arrived barely a minute after the scheduled time. When I arrived, the physiotherapist told me that I didn’t need to hurry like that.
“I felt the cultural difference because in Japan you arrive 5-10 minutes early when you go somewhere. But in reality, it’s not that difficult to adapt to this new culture.”
