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One of many sports activities I had tickets for within the Tokyo 2020 Olympics was area hockey however in fact Covid_19 put paid to my plans to observe that. I can’t say that I had an actual itch to see a stay hockey match within the aftermath of the Olympic video games however that modified this yr as I grew to become increasingly inquisitive about experiencing sports activities I’d by no means seen stay earlier than.
While googling nearly each Olympic sport a number of months in the past I got here throughout this Somo Japan Cup match involving the Japanese males’s and ladies’s nationwide hockey groups enjoying two video games in two days in opposition to Canada and France respectively.
While I’ve seen ice hockey in Tokyo earlier than I had by no means seen the sector model of it which us Brits simply name hockey. Say the phrase hockey in North America although they usually’ll simply assume your speaking concerning the sport performed on ice! Again after I was in highschool, hockey was one of many sports activities that I received most concerned in and performed fairly frequently with some success too.
This was within the aftermath of Nice Britain’s males beating Germany within the Olympic Last in Seoul in 1988. It was anticipated that hockey would actually take off after that gold medal victory and develop into one thing of a significant sport within the UK. That by no means occurred although and hockey solely ever appeared to reappear on our TV screens when the Olympics or Commonwealth video games rolled spherical each couple of years.
Attending to the hockey area in Shinagawa ward included a uncommon trip on the Tokyo Monorail which operates between Hamamatsucho and Haneda Airport. I disembarked after simply two stops at Ōi Keibajō-mae station; the gateway to Oi Racecourse. The horse racing takes locations on the west facet of the station however my vacation spot was positioned to the east within the not-so-snappily named Oi Wharf Central Seaside Park Sports activities Forest. I knew I used to be in the correct place after I noticed a hockey-related concrete artwork set up.
A really quick distance past that was Oi Hockey Stadium (4-1-19 Yashio, Shinagawa-ku) which was a lot greater than I used to be anticipating. It has a capability of 15,000 and was opened 4 years in the past in anticipation of the next years Olympics.
Grownup tickets have been 1000 yen for the grass financial institution or 2500 yen for the stands. It was a boiling scorching and humid afternoon, and as I’m unlikely to be a daily attendee, I opted for the latter. Meals, drinks and a small quantity of merchandise have been on sale on the stadium, and there have been additionally some hockey sticks on show too.
Amidst excessive temperatures, it was fairly refreshing to take my place within the lined stand the place some males in wigs have been giving a taiko drum show while the occasional aircraft flew shut overhead. Simply forward of the beginning the pitch was closely watered and the spray coming off the astroturf was noticable within the first quarter when the ball was handed round.
Simply forward of the three:30 pm begin, the groups entered the sector for the nationwide anthems.
This was truly the second match of the day (Sunday third September) because the Samurai Japan males’s staff had misplaced 4-2 to Canada at lunchtime having crushed them 2-0 the Saturday. In the meantime, Sakura Japan beat France 3-0 within the ladies’s match on the day one and their second matchup should’ve been the primary time I’ve watched hockey since seeing it on TV within the 2002 Commonwealth Video games! I could have seen a minute or two right here and there within the Olympics since then however definitely nothing notable in any respect.
With such a very long time away from hockey, it took me some time to get reaquainted with the principles assuming I even knew them within the first place which, regardless of enjoying the sport previously, I’m unsure I ever did!
Penalty corners are a staple of the sport and the most typical manner of scoring, and one did result in the one purpose of the primary half when a penalty stroke was awarded within the second quarter for some infringement by France that occurred on the again of a brief nook. I’m nonetheless unsure what occurred precisely regardless of seeing a few replays on the large display.
The ten minute half time break included one other demonstration of taiko drumming.
Sakura Japan are ranked tenth on the earth while France are solely twenty third so I used to be anticipating one other win for the house staff however the scores have been levelled up early within the third quarter.
Japan regained the lead quickly after although and that was the way it remained as they later ran down the clock by protecting possession of the ball and taking it into the nook as is usually carried out in soccer. Such unfavorable ways of not even making an attempt to attain definitely took me again to my very own enjoying days on a day when many reminiscences of my very own hockey experiences got here flooding again as I watched the motion unfold.
Who is aware of which groups I could have seen play had I truly been ready to make use of my Olympic tickets. While the ambiance of seeing such a sport within the Olympics might by no means be crushed right here, I used to be nonetheless very happy with seeing this worldwide match.
Last Rating: Sakura Japan 2-1 France
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