EVERETT – Having arrived from Japan just six hours earlier, the first priority for the All-Japan Samurai Warriors was to try to regain their land legs.
“We got here at 7 a.m. today and left Japan at 3 p.m. today,” coach Shinzo Yamada said at a Thursday press conference where several Warriors were introduced in the lead-up to their exhibition game against the Everett Hawks Sunday at 2 p.m. at the Everett Events Center.
“It’s been a very long day,” Yamada laughed. “But, we’ll shake it out and get our bodies acclimated (at practice) this afternoon.”
The Warriors are among the top players from Japan’s semi-professional X League. The league, which is the highest level of football played in Japan, is made up of 18 corporate-sponsored teams.
The Warriors, who play on a regulation-sized field in Japan, previously traveled to the United States and participated in highly-competitive exhibitions against arenafootball2 teams in 2004 (Louisville) and 2005 (San Diego).
The annual exhibition is the only opportunity for the Warriors to play on the smaller, indoor field. In recent weeks the team has tried to simulate the experience by putting up a makeshift net around a 50-yard field.
“That’s why we need to practice tonight,” Yamada laughed. “But it’s just good for the players to have this kind of experience. To play against a professional team helps the players develop a lot.”
Hawks coach Rickey Foggie, is pleased to be hosting the Warriors.
“We’re all excited about it,” said Foggie, who is busily making preparations for the March 30 regular season opener at home against the Bakersfield Blitz. “We want guys to go out, compete, play hard and not get hurt.”
Football has grown steadily in Japan for nearly 60 years. In addition to semi-professional leagues, there are full-blown programs at the high school and collegiate level.
The X League plays two seasons during the year. There is a short, tournament-style season in the spring.
The more rigorous schedule is played in the fall. The campaign culminates in January when the X League champion plays the collegiate champion in the Rice Bowl.
“We’re pretty much in pre-season mode right now,” Yamada said. “But I think we can compete.”
At age 32, Yamada is a former X League Most Valuable Player. The ex-linebacker also played professionally in the United States and Europe.
In addition to stints in the XFL, AFL and NFL Europe, Yamada played briefly in the pre-season in the NFL (Tampa Bay, 2003).
The Warriors roster includes veterans such as defensive back Yuichi Watanabe who on Jan. 3 helped the X League champion Obic Seagulls defeat the collegiate champion Hosei University Tomahawks 47-17 in front of more than 28,000 fans at the Tokyo Dome.
Like his coach, Watanabe has played in the United States. In 2005 he was a teammate of Hawks’ defensive coordinator Matt Steeple on the AFL’s New York Dragons.
Warriors quarterback Hayato Arima, 28, said he benefited mightily from the experience gained in last year’s exhibition game.
“This is very good for learning the techniques of the quarterback,” Arima said. “I learned how to drop the ball in over the receiver’s shoulders and to be more effective in the red zone.”
One Everett player is very familiar with the Warriors.
Kohei Satomi, a native of Japan who previously played with or against many of the Warriors in the X League, is one of two international players on the Hawks’ roster.
“This is not an exhibition for me,” Satomi said. “This is a real game.”
Through Yamada, Haruhisa Hiramoto, the Warriors’ 264-pound lineman, indicated that getting a look at some of his Everett counterparts had made him ready to play.
“After he saw some of their big guys his motivation went up,” Yamada said with a laugh.
Talk to us
> Give us your news tips.
> Send us a letter to the editor.
> More Herald contact information.
