Was away for part of Silver Week, but made it to several games, and six more this past weekend.
One of the ugliest things I had the misfortune to look at was the Sagamihara Rise pummeling the Itochu Wings, in a a clear mismatch. I am not really sure what bothered me more: the Rise running their no-huddle and calling time outs late in the 4th quarter when ahead by more than a dozen touchdowns; or the some of the Wings who seemed to give up almost as soon as the game began. I don't like calling anyone out here, but on some plays I counted four offensive lineman standing and watching their defensive counterparts in the offensive backfield, tackling the QB or ball carrier for a loss. Above all, football is about never, ever quitting. Ever.
The Rise are, of course, the rebirth of Onward, who suddenly lost their corporate sponsorship late last year. They reformed as a municipal team, and are enjoying great support from (and involvement with) Sagamihara. Unfortunately, technically as a brand new team, they had to begin again in Division 3. They have a 60-man roster of Division 1 talent, playing against mostly teams that are lucky to get 20-25 suited up for a game.
According to Coach Dan Lynds, the hardest thing is keeping the players motivated and focused against the over-matched competition. Seems that their scrimmages are more of a challenge than the regular season games right now. At the end of the season, they are hoping to play a charity bowl game against a team from Kansai in a similar condition. Anyway, unless something changes, the Rise will be wearing white for two more years- which is about when they will be finally back to pickin' on someone their own size.
The nightcap at Oi on Wednesday was somewhat more interesting and competitive, with the Mitusi Seagulls coming from behind with 22 points in the 4th quarter to beat the Steelers.
Both teams are able to suit up around two dozen players, so they are obviously in need of players.
