The 101st All Japan High School Soccer Tournament is about to kick-off on Wednesday 28 December. How did the players who made it to the big stage spend their high school years? Here we bring you the high school stories of Mr. HIRAYAMA Sota (current coach of University of Tsukuba), who played in the tournament three times and won the title twice as a member of Kunimi High School.

○This interview was conducted online on 14 December 2022.

Leaving home for a football powerhouse

The record of 17 goals scored in the competition stands out brilliantly in the history of the All Japan High School Soccer Tournament, which celebrates its 101st edition this year. HIRAYAMA Sota, who was known as a “monster” at Kunimi High School(Nagasaki), currently holds this record, which cannot be attained unless the team consistently qualifies for and advances far in the tournament, while the player plays and scores goals throughout the three years of high school.

Hirayama was 190 cm tall, had good foot skills, and scored many goals with his large-scale play, but surprisingly, he was not expected to play the role of a striker. Hirayama himself claimed that he was just playing with the conviction to fulfil his duty as a member of the team.

Born in Kitakyushu, Fukuoka, Hirayama became fascinated with the All Japan High School Soccer Tournament after watching the “snowy final” between his hometown team Higashi Fukuoka High School and Teikyo High School (Tokyo) in the 76th tournament in 1997. While training at various high schools, including Higashi Fukuoka High School, he was impressed by the philosophy of then head coach KOMINE Tadatoshi, who guided his players not only as footballers but also as human beings, and decided to go to Kunimi High School.

At the time, Kunimi High School was known for its extreme training regime, which is unthinkable nowadays. Though Hirayama decided to enter Kunimi with a strong sense of determination, what awaited him were endurance trainings that exceeded his imagination. The drill in particular, which a time was set and required the whole group, including senior students, to start over from the beginning if any of the players failed to beat the time, was particularly distressing for Hirayama. Despite his size, the first-year student's level of fitness was significantly lower than that of the upperclassmen. He mentioned that he was mentally affected in situations where he was the only player who could not finish on time, forcing the senior students to start over again.

On the other hand, when it came to game performance, he showed his full potential from the start. He has been a member of the A-team since the beginning of the school year, partly because he scored a lot of goals at the Kagoshima training camp held before his official enrolment. As he consistently produced results, he was included in the squad for the 80th All Japan High School Soccer Tournament in 2001 from his first year in high school.

As he recalls, “It was like the seniors took me to the tournament, so I didn't really think much about it,” Hirayama at that time was not a mainstay, but just one of the registered players. In fact, he was used as a late substitute in the second round against Matsusho Gakuen High School (4-1) and the third round against Seiryo High School (4-1), while he did not play at all against Ozu High School (2-1) at the quarterfinals.

Winning the national title as a freshman

In the semi-final, Hirayama's name was on the starting line-up against Kagoshima Jitsugyo High School at Japan National Stadium. “I am sure it was something Mr. Komine wasn’t planning on doing,” said Hirayama, as he shared his take on the selection, “It was a match against Kagoshima Jitsugyo, another team from Kyushu, so I think the strategy was to catch the opponents by surprise.”

This strategy was paid off when Hirayama, wearing his trademark number 14 jersey, responded to the pass of KATAYAMA Shosuke to score the opening goal in the 22nd minute. “I was not particularly nervous at the national stage, and I was able to play as I always do. When I scored the goal, I was able to calmly assess the movements of the opposing defenders and goalkeeper before taking my shot,” said Hirayama on the goal that marked the start of the “legend of Hirayama” in the All Japan High School Soccer Tournament.

Despite his heroics in Kunimi’s 4-1 victory over Kagoshima Jitsugyo, Hirayama was not on the pitch for the final, in which he recalls, “I saw it coming, so I wasn’t disappointed at all,” and even after the team won the title with a 3-1 victory over Gifu Technical High School, he mentioned, “I remember how the seniors were celebrating.” On the other hand, seeing them “made me realise that high school players put their heart and soul into this tournament, and I was reminded of the significance of the All Japan High School Soccer Tournament.”

In his second year, Hirayama's presence as the mainstay of the front line became even stronger. However, he was not an egoistic scorer, but rather consistently carried out the duties demanded by the team's long-ball and all-court press strategies. Kunimi regularly placed high in the All Japan High School Soccer Tournament, but their strength was backed up by their meticulous preparation as a team, as they analysed their opponents using video footage from the first match of the Nagasaki Prefectural Qualifier. The fact that each individual fulfilled their own role within the team was the reason for its unparalleled achievements.

In the 81st tournament, Hirayama scored a hat-trick in the second round against Maruoka High School (5-0), and then went on to score goals in every match up to the semi-finals. Hard training was the norm in Kunimi, but “the emphasis prior to the tournament was on conditioning,” which enabled all the players to be in perfect condition. The fact that everyone was ready for the task could be said to have led to the mass production of Hirayama's goals.

Kunimi showcased their strengths to reach the final where they faced another tournament favourites Funabashi Municipal High School, who consisted of many future J.Leaguers. This match became an unforgettable one for Hirayama, who had been unstoppable up to that point.

Continue reading Vol.2

The 101st All Japan High School Soccer Tournament

Tournament Dates: Wed. 28 December 2022 - Mon. 9 January 2023

Tournament Information