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Tokiwagi Gakuen High School LSC

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Tokiwagi Gakuen High School LSC
Nickname(s)Tokiwagi Gakuen
Founded1995
GroundMiyagi Grand Stadium, Rifu, Miyagi, Japan
Capacity6,700
ManagerYoshiharu Abe (since 1995)
LeagueTōhoku Women's Football League

Tokiwagi Gakuen High School LSC (常盤木学園高等学校サッカー部) is a Japanese women's football team that plays in the regional fourth-division Tōhoku Women's Football League. It notably competed as a high school club of youth players in semi-professional senior Japan women's football leagues from 2010 to 2019, most recently in the third-tier Nadeshiko League Division 2, and won the third-tier Challenge League in 2015. In high-school competition, the club has also won five national All Japan High School Women's Soccer Tournament championships, most recently in 2012.

History

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Founding

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Tokiwagi Gakuen High School in 2015.

The club was founded in 1995 by Yoshiharu Abe as part of the private residential high school's sports program. In 2002, the club won its first All Japan championship, raising its profile among youth players and attracting remote prospects in order to become professionals or be selected for the Japan women's national football team.[1] In 2010, Abe applied for the club to enter the second-tier Challenge League EAST and was accepted. The resulting change required Abe to fund the team and its housing himself because the league competition was outside of the high school athletic federation's jurisdiction. As of 2011, the school had more than 40 resident players.[2]

Part of Abe's founding philosophy was the abolition of traditional age- or school year-based hierarchical relationships within the team, allowing younger players to speak and work freely with older players. Based on struggles he experienced as a boys' youth coach, Abe believed this autonomy and equality among teammates fostered better teamwork than deference by age, and that it was more encouraging for developing the technical skills of beginners and leadership skills of veterans within the team.[2][3]

2011 Fukushima nuclear disaster

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The 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami and ensuing Fukushima nuclear disaster forced Tokiwagi Gakuen to play its 2011 Challenge League home opener in Iwata, Shizuoka.[4]

On 15 April 2012, Tokiwagi Gakuen faced Vegalta Sendai, a team composed of former top-division TEPCO Mareeze players displaced by the disaster, in Vegalta Sendai's initial second-division Challenge League home match. In front of a capacity 6,500-attendance crowd, Tokiwagi Gakuen drew Vegalta Sendai 1–1.[5]

Competitions

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High school

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The club competes in Japanese inter-high school competitions, including the national All Japan High School Women's Soccer Tournament, which the club won in 2002, 2008, 2009, 2011, and 2012.[2][3]

National leagues

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From 2010 until its relegation to regional leagues in 2019,[6] Tokiwagi Gakuen also competed in senior division of Japanese club football against dedicated academies, universities, and senior club teams. As of 2014, it was the only high school to compete in the second tier of Japanese club football.[3]

Behind top scorer and most valuable player Rikako Kobayashi, Tokiwagi Gakuen achieved its best result in league play by winning the third-tier Challenge League in 2015. As a high-school club, the team was ineligible to compete for promotion to the second-tier Nadeshiko League Division 2.[7][8] Kobayashi also won the 2015 AFC young player of the year award.[9]

Regional leagues

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After its relegation from the Challenge League in 2019, Tokiwagi Gakuen began competing in the fourth-division regional Tōhoku Women's Football League division 1 upon the league's establishment in 2021. The league comprises clubs in Aomori, Iwate, Miyagi, Akita, Yamagata, and Fukushima prefectures. Tokiwagi Gakuen won the league in 2021 over Sendai University and qualified for the Empress's Cup as a result, but did not win promotion to third-tier Nadeshiko League Division 2.[10]

Empress's Cup

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Main article: Empress's Cup

The club also competes in the national senior Empress's Cup competition,[11] with its best result as semifinalists in 2010 after defeating 2010 Nadeshiko League and 2009 Empress's Cup champions Nippon TV Beleza in a quarterfinal penalty shoot-out upset.[12]

Results

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International competition

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Tokiwagi Gakuen also competes in overseas international youth football tournaments, such as the annual USA Cup in the United States.[1][14][15]

Notable former players

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Aya Sameshima, 2003–2005[16][17]
More than 100 caps for top-division professional clubs in Japan, the United States, and France, 2011 FIFA Women's World Cup champion, 2012 Summer Olympics silver medalist
Asuna Tanaka, 2004–2006[5]
More than 100 caps for top-division professional clubs in Japan, South Korea, and Germany, two league and five cup championships across five competitions, 2011 FIFA Women's World Cup champion
Saki Kumagai, 2006–2008[14][5]
More than 100 caps for top-division Olympique Lyon, eight league titles across two leagues, six Coupe de France championships, five UEFA Women's Champions League championships, 2011 FIFA Women's World Cup champion
Miki Ito, 2011–2013[3]
More than 100 caps for top-division INAC Kobe Leonessa, 2015 and 2016 Emperess's Cup champion, 2021-22 WE League champion, 2021–22 WE League outstanding player award
Nana Ichise[14]
Rikako Kobayashi[14][8]
Mai Kyokawa[2]

Honors

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See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b Mehta, Kalika (11 March 2023). "Saki Kumagai: Women's football fading in Japan". DW.
  2. ^ a b c d Kawasaki, Sanko (November 21, 2011). "＜女子サッカーの未来を探る＞ 転換期を迎えるなでしこ育成事情。" [Exploring the future of women's soccer: Nadeshiko training circumstances at a turning point] (in Japanese). Archived from the original on 21 November 2011. Retrieved April 24, 2023.
  3. ^ a b c d Tanabe, Risa (8 January 2014). "上下関係の撤廃で強豪に" [Abolishing hierarchical relationships to become a powerhouse]. Yomiuri Shimbun (in Japanese). Archived from the original on 2 August 2014. Retrieved 25 April 2023.
  4. ^ Yoshiyuki, Osumi (7 December 2021). ""History of the Nadeshiko League" 18. The Great East Japan Earthquake and Nadeshiko Japan's Spectacular Success". Nadeshiko League. Retrieved 25 April 2023.
  5. ^ a b c Tabata, Hiroshi (27 April 2012). "History in the making". Womens Soccer United. Retrieved 25 April 2023.
  6. ^ "常盤木学園高等学校" [Tokiwagi Gakuen High School] (in Japanese). Retrieved 25 April 2023.
  7. ^ "順位" [Table]. Archived from the original on 10 November 2015. Retrieved 25 April 2023.
  8. ^ a b "[なでしこ]なでしこL1部MVPは阪口が初受賞!ベストイレブンには優勝した日テレから7人" [(Nadeshiko) Sakaguchi wins Nadeshiko L1 division MVP for the first time! Seven people from Nippon Television who won the best eleven]. Web Gekisaka (in Japanese). 10 November 2015. Retrieved 25 April 2023.
  9. ^ "日本勢は7部門で受賞…AFC年間表彰、最優秀ユースプレーヤーに小林里歌子" [Japanese team wins in 7 divisions…AFC Annual Award, Best Youth Player Rikako Kobayashi]. Web Gekisaka (in Japanese). 30 November 2015. Retrieved 25 April 2023.
  10. ^ a b "東北女子サッカーリーグ TOPリーグ 2021" [Tohoku Women's Football League TOP League 2021] (in Japanese). Retrieved 25 April 2023.
  11. ^ "Tokiwagi Gakuen and Waseda University advance through first round of the Empress's Cup JFA 44th Japan Women's Football Championship" (Press release). Japan Football Association. 28 November 2022. Retrieved 25 April 2023.
  12. ^ a b Imai, Keita (20 December 2010). "宮城常盤木学園が女王日テレＰＫで下す" [Miyagi Tokiwagi Gakuen defeats Nippon TV Beleza in PK]. Nikkan Sports (in Japanese). Retrieved 25 April 2023.
  13. ^ "常盤木学園高が大阪高槻を撃破 皇后杯全日本女子選手権" [Tokiwagi Gakuen High School defeats Osaka Takatsuki at the Empress's Cup All Japan Women's Championship]. Sponichi Annex (in Japanese). 8 December 2014. Retrieved 25 April 2023.
  14. ^ a b c d Tafolla, Grace (July 13, 2019). "Tokiwagi- following in the footsteps of greatness". Beyond the Bench. National Sports Center. Retrieved April 25, 2023.
  15. ^ Tafolla, Grace (July 20, 2019). "Tokiwagi from Japan and Futbol Consultants from Costa Rica capture MNUFC tournament titles". Beyond the Kick. National Sports Center. Retrieved April 25, 2023.
  16. ^ Nishimori, Akira (6 August 2012). "鮫島彩 ストーリー「震災、移籍、W杯優勝、再び移籍……波乱万丈の1年を過ごして情熱を再確認」" [Aya Sameshima Story "Earthquake, transfer, World Cup win, transfer again... After a year of ups and downs, reaffirm my passion"]. Soccer King (in Japanese). Retrieved 25 April 2023.
  17. ^ Tolar, Alicia (February 17, 2014). "Know Your Dash- Aya Sameshima". Dynamo Theory. Retrieved April 25, 2023.
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