(written by Azul, November 4th, 2021)
Today (November 3rd), I went to Komazawa Park Athletic Stadium in Tokyo to watch the Kanto University Rugby match between Waseda University and Teikyo University. Since this blog has many readers from overseas, I would like to explain about Japanese university rugby.
In the case of rugby in Japan, it can be roughly divided into the following categories
1. Working adult rugby (professional teams)
2. University rugby (amateur)
Under this, there is rugby for high school students and younger, but it is the two above that attract spectators and are mainly used for entertainment. In terms of ability, of course, the adult rugby team is higher. In the past, there was a time when the No. 1 working man’s team and the No. 1 university rugby team played for the Japanese championship. At that time, university rugby was the more popular team. However, at the first RWC in 1987, Japan’s rugby gradually lost its popularity as it showed the difference in its ability with the world’s strongest nations.
Later, in the 8th RWC 2015, after Japan showed that it could compete with the world, university rugby is regaining its former popularity.
This is why I went to watch domestic university rugby for the first time in a long time. The venue was Komazawa Park Athletic Stadium, where I watched a Top League game this spring.
In Japan, the new corona infection has finally subsided and people are now able to watch sports as usual. However, there are still some restrictions. The number of visitors is limited to about 50%. Spectators are required to wear masks. Loud cheering is prohibited.
Today’s game was scheduled to start at 11:30 a.m. I arrived at the nearest station, Komazawa University, 30 minutes before the game started. There was a huge crowd for today’s match between two popular teams, more than for the Top League match we had in April. (Although in April, the Komazawa Stadium was limited to a maximum of 3,000 people due to the new Corona.) Later, I found out that the number of visitors for today’s game was over 10,000.
Before the game started, I stopped at a convenience store on the way to buy lunch, but the line was so long that it took me more than 10 minutes to buy it.
I would like to give a brief introduction of the two teams playing today.
First, the Waseda University Rugby Club. It is a popular team that divides the popularity of Japanese rugby into two along with Meiji University. The regular game held every year in early December at the old National Stadium has been packed many times. It is also a prestigious team that has produced many Japanese national rugby players. The club was founded in 1917, so it has a history of 104 years.
The team has won the University Championship 16 times. They have won the Japan Championship four times. The team has produced Shinnosuke Kakinaga, Naoto Saito, Shogo Nakano, and Ryohei Yamanaka as the current representatives of Japan. The team is characterized by “proximity, continuity, and development”. The team uses the entire ground for open attacks. The team’s jersey is a black and white dun pattern.
Next is the Teikyo University Rugby Club. Founded in 1970, they are a new team compared to traditional schools, and won nine consecutive University Championships from 2009 to 2017.
The team is characterized by a strong all-round style in both FW and BK. The team’s jersey is deep red. The team has produced 10 players to represent Japan, including Shunsuke Asaoka, Yukio Morikawa, Atsushi Sakate, Kosuke Horikoshi, Daichi Akiyama, Kazuki Himeno, Yutaka Nagare, Rikiya Matsuda, Ryodo Nakamura, and Naohiro Kotaki.
These two teams are both undefeated so far. This was an important match to fight for the championship of the Kanto Intercollegiate Tournament. Teikyo University was defeated by Waseda University in a practice match this summer, so they are hoping to make up for it in an official match.
In the first half, Teikyo overwhelmed Waseda at the point of contact. especially in the scrum. I was curious to know what kind of training they usually do to make such an overwhelming difference, since there should have been no difference in the practice games during this summer camp. While Teikyo’s defense was so strong that Waseda’s attack was cut off, Teikyo’s attack had a strong sense of connection among all players, and each player kept moving forward incessantly. At the end of the first half, Teikyo University leads by 9 points, 12-3. While Teikyo scored two tries, Waseda only scored a PG at the end of the first half. In the first half, in terms of content, Waseda was completely defeated.
I thought, “This is not good for Waseda,” but when I listened to the people around me, they said that they lost the first half last year, too. Now, will they be able to get back on track in the second half?
In the 46th minute of the second half, SH Hosoya scored a try and also scored a conversion goal to make it 12-10. Teikyo’s lead was only two points. , and the large crowd at the stadium was excited.
However, Teikyo introduced three international students as impact players. In the 60th minute, Mitieri scored a try in the right corner, and in the 65th minute, number 8 Nobuhara scored a try in the middle right corner.
In the 70th minute, FL Tongatama scored the third try of the second half to make it 27-10, and they also scored a conversion goal to make it 29-10, giving Teikyo a massive 19-point lead.
In the 73rd minute, after an open attack on the right side, FB Kawase of Waseda broke through and WTB Maki scored a try in the right middle to make it 29-15.
In the 73rd minute, again Waseda FB Kawase cut through the defense with his individual skills and scored a try near the goal posts. 29-22. Teikyo’s lead was only 7 points.
In the 80th minute, with one play left, Waseda came close to scoring a try, but Teikyo got the ball back and kicked it out to end the game. In the end, Teikyo University won the game in the end.
In today’s game, I was impressed with Teikyo’s performance as a team since the beginning of the season. However, at the same time, I was also impressed by the individual determination of Kawase, the FB of Waseda. I hope that he will improve his physical ability one more level and play an active role in the national team in the near future.
＊＊ Jersey Collection 47 ＊＊
The official replica jersey of the French national rugby team from 1998. The price when new was about 10,000 yen in Japan. The color is white, so it is a second jersey. NIKE product. Purchased at E-BAY for 1980 yen in Japanese yen. Brand new and unused. The reason why it is so cheap is because there is a faint stain on the lower part of the jersey. The seller is a sporting goods store, and because of this stain, the jersey became bad stock and was sold at a discount. Of course, I don’t care about it at all. The second jersey of the French national team is very rare, so it is a valuable item.
