Every Monday and Thursday I play footy with a local team in the village. The Japanese don't understand the word football so sadly I'm forced to refer to the game as soccer. The pitch we play on is sand-based like every other one I've seen in Japan. It's alright to play on but means it gets swamped whenever it rains so we often have to cancel practice. I once burst out laughing when Kim asked me if footballers don't play in the rain but in Japan it actually seems to be the case!

The standard is pretty high although my resistance to the cold weather seems to impress them more than my ability. Half of the guys come dressed as if they're about to embark on an artic expedition! When I arrive wearing shorts and a t-shirt I'm usually met with several cries of "Oh Sugoi!!!!!" Basically meaning "that's amazing!"

The training itself is a good laugh. We usually do drills for about 30 minutes then play lots of short 5 minute matches. The losing side always has to do a set of press-ups or sit-ups. The number you have to do depends how severly your team got thrashed.

Like with decision in Japan, the teams are chosen by playing 'Paper, scissors, stone.' Sometimes there's 10 of us playing at the same time. It confuses the hell out of me but someone usually lets me know what team I'm on once it's all over!

UPDATE

Sadly, as of the middle of April, I'm not sure if I'm going to be able to play football again. At least not for a very long time. I injured myself quite badly on Monday and it's going to be 3 weeks at least until I can walk without crutches. My ankle ligaments in my right foot have been ruptured so I'm not too confident about playing before I leave Japan.

I don't have anywhere near all the photos of the team members but should see all of the lads again before I leave.