October 6 - looking through photos...

I like this shot...

it reminds me of Japan, football, the kids and the great time had by all.

October 3 – Asakusa, one more game and time to leave Japan

Woke up, breakfast at hotel and one final walk around Shinjuku before checking out.  

Bus trip to Asakusa for a look around.  Visit to Senjosi Temple which was rebuilt since being totally destroyed in World War II bombings.  Heaps of shops and people.  Lots of Japanese souvenirs which have been hard to find since Japanese are mostly obsessed with foreign objects generally.

The kids saw some Japanese kids playing baseball in the park and with Maria’s help (Grant’s mum on tour who has lived in Japan and can speak Japanese fluently) are invited to challenge the kids to a game of soccer.  Fun way for the kids to meet the locals one more time and do what they love.

Another bus trip to Nagoya shopping mall for final meal and shopping and then to the airport.

Final goodbyes to the local Japan Coerver coaches, especially Ken and Eeto which have been great with the kids.

Thanks to Jason for organising the trip.  Thanks to Bugsy and Adrian and Ed for their expert coaching and supervision of the kids.

Sayonara Japan.  The memories are etched into the childrens' minds.

October 2 – Alf and Charlie and Final Tournament

Bus out to Coerver Headquarters – first off is a training session with Alf Galustian and Charlie Cooke – both co-founders of Coerver – very rarely are they together and they don’t normally run training sessions together so its pretty special.  Charlie (as expected) has a very heavy Scottish accent although he has lived in the U.S. for many years. He was (and is) a Chelsea legend for die-hard soccer fans.  Its nice for the boys to get coached by a ex-soccer player of his stature (and he can still move pretty quickly for a 67 year old).
Noah and Ethan with Charlie Cooke.

Afterwards he and Alf were very accommodating of people that wanted balls, caps, jerseys, etc signed.

After training, the tournament started.  The guys are now familiar with the concept and starting to understand how quickly the game is played.  They start with a convincing win and then followed by a loss but win again later on.   They now only lose by 1 goal when they lose or win narrowly in a hard-dought contest.  
Noah plays goalkeeper to save a shot...

They are able to compete against these teamd and be convincing in their display and they have only been here a week.  In some ways it would be nicer if this could be a regular thing – to play in these tournaments and at this pace. They have learned so much in such a small time.

They are treated like rock-stars and the Japanese are genuinely excited by our presence and all want photos with our kids.

This tour has been many things to players and parents alike.  It has been a wonderful cultural and learning experience in so many ways.  It has been an eye-opener for many players and parents.  The quality of the football here is of a very high standard (due to many reasons of course).  I can see Japan being more likely to produce players that are capable of winning a World Cup more than Australia can.  Their facilites, geography, population, professional league and attitude are more suited to producing a team of players that can play and win at that level in the near future.

I think it is more likely and more logical that our future national players ply their trade in the developing Asian region (Japan and China).  Whilst the Chinese league may still be developing the J-League is much more technical and better than our own in so many ways.

For us it comes down to what we have always relied upon and that is our fitness, grit and spirit.

Tomorrow is our last day.  Some shopping in the morning and then our to the airport for our flight home.  I never had an interest in travelling to Japan and if it wasn’t for Noah, we would have never visited here.  I must admit I find this country fascinating and brilliant in so many ways.   I don’t think I’ve ever visited a country where the people are so welcoming, polite, respectful and helpful.  Not because they want something – they are not poor.  Just because they are like that…  Where you can walk around and fell totally safe – a rare thing when you are overseas visitor.   You can leave your bag with cameras, etc on the floor with hundreds of others and know that it will all still be there when you get back...

We can only wish that we had infrastructure and organisation like this in our cities.
Thanks Japan. Thanks for the memories, the education, and the experience.
One day who knows... we may be back..

October 1 – Shopping at Gotemba and glimpse of Mt Fuji

Slept in until 7:00am which has been a luxury so far… Bought a Barcelona soccer ball (not very Japanese but can’t find a real local soccer ball.  The Japanese shops love foreign stuff more than their own which is a bit of a shame really… Looked at getting a Honda (the player) soccer jersey but it was too expensive…

Went to Gotemba premium outlet on bus which is about 90 minutes from our hotel and we actually got glimpses of rice fields and village type life albeit from bus…

Most foreign brands have a presence here as Japanese love buying the latest styles and are very fashion conscious. Of course we visited all the important shops such as Adidas, Nike, Reebok and Puma and bought some boots.  Boots here are way cheaper than at home especially if you go for last years stuff.  We got 2 pairs of soccer boots, each costing $15.20  Stock and range was a bit limited.  Also Nike/Adidas t-shirts about $11.00.

Left shopping outlet for an early dinner at some country retreat (where Coerver hold their Summer soccer camps).  Brilliant facilities again where there are 2 full-length synthetic soccer pitches alongside a hotel/function centre building.  We can only wish for stuff like this back home... Wish the guys would have had time for a kick around
Buffet type of meals with many types and varities of sushi, miso, beef, etc.  These was also a chocolate fountain…. kids loved this... Mmmmm.

Halloween stuff is everywhere in Japan - they really do love everything foreign...  Here is a shot of Nicholas and Noah together in front of typical Halloween celebration...

Highlight was a row of push-button beer taps (all-inclusive).  Many parents enjoyed this part immensely.

Left at late dusk and because the sky had finally began to clear we finally got a glimpse of Mt Fuji above the clouds!  Couldn’t take a decent picture but at least we did see the icon of Japan…

Boys are as usual at the back of the bus playing soccer on their DS lites, PSPs, etc.  If they're not playing the real thing then they're playing the next best thing... Maybe they can invent double-decker buses with synthetic pitch on top level for touring groups... I'm sure the Japanese have thought of this...

Need to figure out a way of fitting in 3 more pairs of soccer boots into luggage now….

Training session with Alf Galustian and Charlie Cooke both founders of Coerver tomorrow.  Very rare and special treat for the guys... Then its their last tournament.  Where does time go?