Japan National Stadium was filled with excitement for the victory of the Tama River Clasico, the first since the 2018 season. After the game, the Tokyo players, wearing blue t-shirts, reported their victory to their fellow blue and red comrades who filled the stands.
Hotaka Everyone is waiting You’ll never walk alone
The message there was for Hotaka NAKAMURA, who suffered a major injury of a ruptured right Achilles tendon in the closing moments of the 10th round match against Albirex Niigata, forcing him to be out for about 6 months.
'We are fighting with Hidaka.'
The message was sent out, and it was a player's clever arrangement, the team's feelings, and the team manager's efforts to create a flow that would support Nakamura player with the involvement of fans and supporters.
T-shirt filled with feelings confirmed in about 3 hours
It was May 2nd.
On the way to the away game against Avispa Fukuoka the next day, one player suddenly spoke to Chief Manager Jean Tomoaki during the expedition.
"Is there anything we can do to encourage Hidaka?"
The one who spoke was Teruhito NAKAGAWA, who also had experience of a long-term absence due to a major injury.
"When I was playing for Yokohama F.Marinos, there was a player who suffered a major injury during the season. In order to convey our thoughts to him and show that we were fighting together as a "family", we wore a special jersey with a message for him on the front and his number on the back during warm-ups. Based on that experience, I proposed it to Chief Manager Ban."
Nakagawa's strong feelings of wanting to overcome various difficulties with his teammates, based on his own experience and witnessing his teammates' serious injuries. This can be said to be Nakagawa's idea, as he values "family" and "unity" above all else, which he felt during his time at Yokohama FM where he won the league title twice.
To respond to those feelings, Manager Jean also quickly starts moving.
"First of all, I was very worried about what kind of item to make. If I try to add a message to the current uniform, I won't have enough time to complete it. There were also ideas such as printing a message on the player's t-shirt or wearing Nakamura's goods, but thanks to the quick action of the merchandising department, we were able to come up with a solution by printing the message on a blue t-shirt, the club's color."
The merchandising department, along with each department, worked tirelessly to turn their feelings towards Nakamura into reality and deliver those feelings to him.
"At the same time as deciding on the items, I wanted to decide what kind of message to print, so I created a LINE group chat for all players except for Nakamura. It was around 3pm on the 2nd, I believe." The chat screen quickly filled up with each player's passionate thoughts.
"I'm waiting for you, Hotaka" and other passionate messages from players waiting for his return, captain Masato MORISHIGE posted the club's motto "You'll never walk alone". This message was unanimously decided by all members, expressing their strong desire for Nakamura's return.
"From Nakagawa's idea to the creation of the T-shirt message and the completion of the design, everyone in the department worked together. The business department coordinated with sponsors, and the operations department coordinated with the J-League and others. We are grateful to everyone involved for their support, and thanks to that, we were able to deliver the T-shirts on the day before the Kawasaki Frontale match. Some people suggested wearing the T-shirts and walking around the stadium, win or lose, but I confidently declared that we would win (laughs). It was great to win the game and deliver the message to Nakamura."
Chief Manager Ban spoke with a smile, reminding us of that day.
"I want to welcome him at an exciting timing."
"When I was a member of Yokohama FM, I was impressed by the idea of encouraging injured players with this kind of message T-shirt. I believe that it is important to incorporate each club's colors and flavor, regardless of which club it is. This time, I proposed the idea of creating a message uniform as a "flavoring" for the club. This is also because of my feelings towards Nakamura and our relationship as teammates on the same side. I can also understand the pain of suffering a major injury. When I thought about what actions would be encouraging and happy for Nakamura, the idea of wearing a T-shirt came to mind. I'm sure Nakamura is also happy about it."
Player Nakagawa, the initiator, looked back. And finally, when asked about player Nakamura's return, he concluded the conversation like this.
"Not just me, but all of my teammates are hoping for his speedy return, and we have been moved by Nakamura's fighting spirit and passionate passion. It is natural to feel sad when such a player is absent, but I think he is also working hard on rehabilitation for his return. We also have the feeling of "For Hotaka Nakamura" and made T-shirts for everyone to wear, and we believe it is important to aim for "victory" once again. We want to continue winning while carrying Nakamura's feelings in each game, and we also want to welcome him at exciting times such as the battle for the championship. It is necessary for Tokyo to have the attitude of fighting for someone, and I want to continue playing with the feeling of "Wait for Hotaka". "
After the Kawasaki match, a message from player Nakamura was sent to the LINE talk group that players and staff are participating in, saying "Thank you very much for the (message T-shirt). I will believe in everyone and work hard on rehabilitation. I will definitely overcome it and come back stronger. Nice victory!! Thank you for your hard work!!"
Everyone's passionate feelings were definitely conveyed through the screen.
You'll never walk alone. You are never alone.
"Wait for the sail to rise."
