January 14, 2014
92nd All Japan High School Soccer Tournament Champions: Toyama Daiichi
Monday 13th January saw the final of the 92nd All Japan High School Soccer Tournament take place at the Japan National Stadium, and crowned it's new champions, Toyama Daiichi High School.
The tournament, also known as the "Fuyuu no Kokuritsu" (winter nationals), is one of the largest scale amateur sport events in Japan, so entering the competition is a sign of being in the elite. Seiritsu narrowly missed out on taking part in this year's event, having narrowly lost to Shutoku High School in the Tokyo 'A' representative finals in December.
This is the first time Toyama Daiichi have held the title, and won the title dramatically as they came back from a 2-0 disadvantage against Seiriyo High School (also in their first finals), in the last minutes of the 2nd half, forcing overtime. The deciding goal was scored late into the second period of additional time.
Congratulations to Toyama Daiichi- we hope to see you there next year!