Scotch College

Japan Rugby tour report

The Scotch College Japan Rugby touring party consisting of 26 players and three managers departed Melbourne airport at approximately 9:30am on Friday the 11th of April. Most were excited, but others were just eager to catch up on sleep from the previous night's Year 12 formal.

We arrived at Tokyo Narita at approximately 7:00pm Japanese time (1 hour behind EST). From there we moved to our hotel. The next day, we travelled to Tenri via Shinkansen (Bullet train). Management pleaded with us to act responsibly when entering and exiting these bullet trains because at each spot we would usually have less than one minute between doors opening and closing to ensure all persons and baggage were either on or off the train.

Later we arrived at our accommodation. This place wasn't anything like your average hotel. It was described as a traditional Japanese student accommodation for those students wishing to study the local religion. Shoes weren't to be worn inside and were replaced with a pair of slippers. Beds were just mattresses on the ground, with a pillow equivalent to a small beanbag, and the bedrooms did not require locks on the doors. Many players commented that it was also much the same when they were staying with their billet families later in the tour. Later that day we had a short training session on the bitumen car park over the road from the accommodation, just to loosen up from all the travelling.

The next day we had a morning of sightseeing at the local temple, but all focus was on the game later in the day. It was expected to be our hardest, because of information we only found out the previous night, that we were no longer playing Tenri High School but rather playing the Tenri schoolboy side consisting of four schools. Management soon advised us that this was going to be the first of many surprises that the Japanese had in store for us. Later we arrived at the grandstand, and inspected the pitch. It was big, and the surface was made up of dry grass with small pebbles beneath in some patches. It felt very much like a soft form of steel wool to touch and grazes during the match were to be expected. The previous day's travel didn't do wonders for our game and neither did the roaring sun, but to their credit they were fitter, faster, better drilled and more disciplined. And it showed because they were the better team on the day, showing some tremendous support play, beating us 43-12.

The next day we had some more sightseeing in Nara, just a short bus ride from Tenri. We saw the largest Buddha in Japan, The Daibatsu, and built around it, one of the largest timber buildings in the world. Later we took a Shinkansen to Hiroshima where we settled in to our hotels in pairs and had a free evening to make our own dinner arrangements. This night we gained an understanding of how expensive Japan really is. Most people that night spent close to about 1400 yen, which is about AU$20 just for a standard meal. Later we arrived at the pitch and were surprised at the sight of thick, rich, green grass as the playing surface. We got changed and warmed up on a soil pitch adjacent to the ground. Similar to our last game, the sun was punishing. But despite weather conditions we played a much-improved performance from last time and beat Hiroshima Kogyo High School 24-10. After the game, we showered, and went straight to the after match function, held just next to the ground. After that, we went back to the hotel with a win under our belt, and enjoyed a relaxing free evening again that night.

The next day, many people visited the peace park. This is a park directly under where the first atomic bomb was dropped in 1945. It has a museum within the park especially devoted to teaching people about the devastation an atomic weapon can cause. It portrays many graphic images and has many objects relating to the unbelievable power that an atomic blast generates.

Three days later and it was game day. We walked to the arena, which was about 10 minutes from our room. The arena seated approximately 10,000 people but unfortunately due to rain, it was not a 'sell out crowd'.

We had a pretty good game that day, but we went down to Kyushu Sangyo High School marginally 20-19. Following the after match function, we went back to our billets' homes where we stayed for one night. Many of the homes were traditional Japanese style as I described before.

Two days later we went to school with our billets, where we received a full-guided tour. Seiryo High School had enrolled approximately 100 boys and approximately 700 girls. During recess and lunch times, whilst walking through a corridor, the team would be swamped by literally hundreds of screaming Japanese girls wanting their picture taken with all the members of the team. Naturally the team soaked up the atmosphere, realising they would never see anything like this again, upon arrival in Australia.

The next day was game day. We knew we were in store for a tough match, after seeing the size of their trophy cabinet, and being reminded of it each time you'd move in and out of the front door of their class room block. And it was all devoted to rugby! The whole School was watching us. We couldn't understand a word any of them were saying so we just assumed all the girls were cheering for us. In the first half Seiryo High School, utilising their amazing speed in the back line, absolutely blew us out of the water, scoring far too many tries to none. In the second half we played a much smarter game, not letting Seiryo break our line until after 20 minutes in, and only conceding two blind side tries, showing much improvement from the first half.

Three days later and it was game day. We had a brief tour of the School in the morning and the match in the afternoon. Kumagaya Technical High School wasn't much of a School, it was more like a TAFE. Later that day we had a short bus ride to the arena. Kumagaya were rugby mad! The arena that seated thousands had a statue out the front of a giant rugby ball, and also a massive clock that had bits and pieces hanging of it and around it which was supposed to signify a rugby ball in motion, when the wind is blowing. Unfortunately we lost the match 43-0.

The next day we had sightseeing in Tokyo, where boys had the opportunity to buy electronics that hadn't quite made it on to the Australian market. After that, we went to the airport, and it was back to Australia. Despite winning only 1 match, the tour was still a major success, highlighting our strong points and our weak points to work on throughout the season. None of it would have been possible without the hard work of Ian Lundie and Bruce Norton. Thanks must also go to Max Reeve, physiotherapist, who healed us in our times of soreness, and the Wark and Behmer families who also attended the tour, and acted as official cheer squad and at times, even official statisticians.

Anthony Kastelan - Year 11