The news came just after the New Year's Day match between the SAMURAI BLUE (Japan National Team) and Thailand National Team. It was an breaking news of an earthquake in the Noto region of Ishikawa Prefecture, and I remember that the main quake came a few minutes after this first news. At that time, the quake was felt in the press room of the Japan National Stadium in Tokyo.

Various media reported on how people in the affected areas were suffering from the extreme cold, the tsunami, the fires, the isolation of the community, and the power and water outages that followed the earthquake. In the midst of all this, a near catastrophic accident occurred at Tokyo's Haneda airport, more than 300 kilometres from Ishikawa. On the evening of 2 January, a small Japan Coast Guard aircraft heading to the disaster-stricken area collided with a Japan Airlines plane on the runway.

Five of the six people on board the small coastguard plane were killed, and one seriously injured. But it was a miracle that all 379 passengers and crew on board were able to eject safely from the Japan Airlines plane, which quickly burst into flames. It is said that this was due to the airline's daily drills and the discipline of the passengers, who followed the crew's instructions without panicking.

Whenever I hear about a plane accident like this, I am reminded of the tragedies that befell two football clubs. One was the tragedy that struck Torino, an invincible club in Italy at the time, in May 1949, and the other was the tragedy that struck Manchester United of England in February 1958.

In the case of Torino, the plane carrying the team back from a friendly in Lisbon, Portugal, crashed into a hill on the outskirts of the city as it was preparing to land at Torino airport, killing 30 people, including 18 players. And in the case of Manchester United, it happened on their return from a European Cup (now UEFA Champions League) match in Belgrade, Yugoslavia (now Serbia). After refuelling in Munich, Germany, the plane failed to take off and crashed, killing 23 of the 44 passengers and crew on board, including eight members of the team, and seriously injuring seven others. Both Torino and Manchester United virtually lost their top teams in an instant.

But a tragedy can also bring out the spirit of respect in those around the people who are affected by it.

At the time of the accident, there were just four matches left in the Italian Serie A season and Torino were leading the table and on course for a fifth successive title. However, second-placed Internazionale of Milan were also closing in, and with Torino having to play their remaining matches with youth players, it seemed inevitable that Internazionale would come from behind to claim the title.

From that point on, however, the four Serie A clubs they faced all sent out their youth teams, allowing Torino to end the season on a four-match winning streak and dedicate their fifth successive league title to the victims of the plane crash.

Manchester United were also forced to play the rest of the season with a squad built around their youth players, and although they managed to win three straight FA Cup matches from the fifth round to reach the final, it was a different story in the Football League with 14 matches remaining.

After losing most of their key players, several clubs offered to loan players to Manchester United. On the other hand, some argued that United would never want to weaken their opponents just to help their own club.

In the end, the oppositional clubs sent their best squad to face Manchester United in each of the 14 matches. As a result, Manchester United dropped to ninth in the final standings, having won just one of their remaining matches, while drawing five and losing eight.

It is very interesting to see the contrasting reactions of clubs in Italy and England to similar situations. But that does not mean either is right or wrong.

The spirit of respect and fair play lives in each culture, so it is only natural that the two culturally different societies express respect in different ways. And while the clubs in the two countries reacted in very different ways, both were admirable expressions of respect.

Written by OSUMI Yoshiyuki (Football Journalist)

*This article was originally posted on the Japan Football Association Newsletter, “JFAnews,” February 2024 edition.

Japan Football Association Newsletter “JFAnews”

The Japan Football Association Newsletter “JFAnews” contains all the information on the Japan National Team, events hosted by JFA, tournament results, and team information throughout the nation. The official monthly magazine is a must read for coaches, referees, and all members of the football family.

For information on the newest edition (Japanese website)