Introducing the New Staff of the 2024 Academy School Tsukuba Area Coaches

Hinata Ueto Junior Youth Coach / Rio Kimishima School Coach / Shinichiro Otake School Coach

Every day, coaches at the Antlers Academy share the wonders of football with children. What football journeys have they walked, and what thoughts do they hold in their hearts as they face the game? In this fifth installment, we introduce three coaches who joined the Tsukuba Area coaching staff in 2024: Coach Ueto, Coach Otake, and Coach Kimishima, who is dedicated to promoting football among girls and organizing events in the Tsukuba Area.

The “Bonds” That Led Them to Antlers

It happened after Coach Ueto went to the Antlers Club House in Kashima City to introduce himself as a new staff member.

“They really play with everything they’ve got!”

Coach Hinata Ueto, who began coaching the Tsukuba Junior Youth this year, soon experienced firsthand what “Antlers tradition” truly means.

“I was shocked when I participated in a “staff game” with the coaching staff. Everyone is so skilled, and they really fight for every ball. It was truly intimidating… But I realized that this is simply how things are done at Antlers. Their tenacity, mentality, and strength of heart. I get the impression that everyone, including the fans and supporters, has an incredibly strong spirit, and after actually becoming a coach for the Tsukuba Junior Youth, I saw that this is required not only of the top team but also of the younger players. That’s why, just as they demand it of the players, the coaching staff also gives it their all. I can feel that this is the Antlers tradition and the club’s strong commitment to how they compete.”

Born and raised in Nagasaki Prefecture, Ueto devoted himself to football in highly competitive environments from his student days through university. At his elementary school club team, he played alongside Japan national team defender Seiya Maikuma (AZ Alkmaar / Netherlands), who was one grade below him. He then attended Nagasaki Nanzan Junior and Senior High School, a prestigious school known for its integrated junior and senior high school education. He was such a football-obsessed boy that he says, “When I was in elementary, junior high, and high school, I was crazy about football. I was completely absorbed in trying to become a professional player,” and adds that at the time, “I never considered becoming a coach at all.”

The turning point came during his university years. He attended Tokai Gakuen University in Aichi Prefecture, which has produced many professional players, including Antlers top team member Hirotsugu Kajikawa, and Ueto himself aimed to become a professional player. However, watching teammates around him receive offers from professional clubs, he began to think during his junior year of university, “At my level, becoming a professional might be a bit difficult.” He was forced to reconsider the career path he had envisioned. It was then that his longtime mentor became a “new goal.”

“I wanted to become a coach who could devote himself to the players, like Manager (Shigetai) Yasuhara, who took care of me during my university years. Manager Yasuhara also had a wonderful personality and supported the students in their job hunting, so I wanted to become someone who could also lend a helping hand to the players.”

When Ueto shared this intention with Mr. Yasuhara, he was first introduced to V-Varen Nagasaki in Ueto’s hometown. There, he served as a coach for the school and junior youth teams for three years, beginning his career as a coach. After completing his tenure at V-Varen Nagasaki, he consulted Mr. Yasuhara again, and this time the conversation turned to FC Gifu. Waiting for Ueto at the club that welcomed him was Manager Mitsunori Yamao, who currently oversees the Tsukuba Junior Youth.

“At FC Gifu, I initially served as a youth coach, but later Manager Yamao called me to the junior youth, and I served as his assistant coach. Manager Yamao pursues interesting football and is very meticulous in his coaching. Watching his practices, he points out things to the players that I myself cannot see, and it feels as though he has an endless range of training options. I think he is a truly amazing coach.”

Thanks to the introduction from his university mentor, Ueto met another “person I deeply respect as a coach.” Manager Yamao later moved to Antlers Tsukuba, but Ueto reunited with him one year later.

“At first, I intended to continue coaching at FC Gifu this year too, but Manager Yamao contacted me, and I decided to join Antlers without hesitation, thinking, “If I can work with Manager Yamao again.” Of course, the appeal of Antlers as a club was also a factor.”

At the Tsukuba Academy Center, Coach Ueto once again stands on the coaching field with Manager Yamao.

“Compared to my time at FC Gifu, when we practiced every day on a dirt pitch, the environment at the Tsukuba Junior Youth is completely different, and the players’ passion for their matches is also entirely different. I have been inspired by many people, and I want to continue growing by taking on challenges here. I also believe that in order to help the children grow, I must first grow myself as a coach.”

Coach Ueto’s “bonds” led him to Antlers Tsukuba. As he himself says, “I have met nothing but wonderful people. It is because of those connections that I am here today.”

Coach Ueto, who gained experience at FC Gifu and other clubs, now teams up again with Manager Yamao at the Tsukuba Junior Youth

Promoting the appeal of not only football but sports in general

Coach Shinichiro Otake, who will begin working as a school coach in the Tsukuba Area this year, gained experience in the Kashima Area last year.

During the “staff games” that left even the aforementioned Coach Ueto saying he was “shocked,” Otake says, “Playing almost every day with amazing people I had previously only seen on television, such as Mitsuo Ogasawara (Technical Advisor) and Koji Nakata, expanded my own football repertoire.” He feels a sense of fulfillment, saying, “I have also become able to apply what I learned there to my coaching. I can truly feel that I have been able to pass on the technical skills I absorbed from them to the children.”

That is why his affection for the students in the Kashima Area school is all the greater.

“When I was transferred from the Kashima Area, I was so happy that the children came to say goodbye. They told me, “It will be sad if Coach Take (Coach Otake’s nickname) is gone.” Hearing those words from the children made me feel that it was truly worth doing this for the past year.”

After graduating from the Japan Institute of Physical Education and leaving his hometown of Kanagawa Prefecture, Otake began his life in Kashima City in 2023, his first year in the workforce. He opens up about his struggles, saying, “During my first time living alone, I didn’t have much leeway in my daily life, and there were times when I suffered physically and felt mental pressure as a working adult.” However, that experience made Otake grow immensely. Under the guidance of School Director Shinsuke Masu, he became aware that “It is precisely because I wear this emblem that I am able to do my job today,” and took a new step forward based at the Tsukuba Academy Center.

“Unlike the Kashima Area, in the Tsukuba Area, we also work at baseball outfield fences and other non-football-specific grounds, such as multipurpose grounds. Also, because Tsukuba is not that far from places like Kashiwa, Omiya, and Tokyo, I can feel the presence of other J clubs more closely. In that environment, I must do my best so that many children will choose Antlers first. I want them to know more about Antlers and like it even more. I want Antlers to become a part of everyone’s lives.”

Because he originally aspired to be a physical education teacher at a school, Otake is not only focused on football but also works with the promotion of “sports” in general in mind, so that he can “convey the joy of exercise to children.” Last year, he held a dodgeball event at the Kashima Area school, and this year, he has already held a “Running Class” at the Tsukuba Area school. Being able to convey the joy of moving one’s body to children through activities other than football is one of Coach Otake’s strengths.

“I want the children to continue playing sports in the future. Even if they are not focused on competition, I want to continue approaching them so that they can experience the joy of football and develop an enjoyment of exercise. Especially for children who do not exercise much in their daily lives, I want to work to help them like sports even more.”

Not only as a football coach but also as a sports instructor, he will continue to convey the appeal of sports to the children in the Tsukuba Area.

Coach Otake, who gained experience at the Kashima Area school, now conveys the joy of moving one’s body at the Tsukuba Area school

The First Step in the History of the Girls’ Course

The school is also focusing on promoting football among girls. In the Tsukuba Area especially, their numbers are increasing. “At first, there were few girls in the Tsukuba Area school’s girls’ course, but now there are more than ten, and we are even able to hold matches,” says Coach Rio Kimishima with a smile. She is in her second year as a Tsukuba Area school coach after serving as a Norte Area school coach.

“In the Tsukuba Area, girls’ course activities have become very popular. Children actively participate in the girls’ course activities, and although it is still just one class within the school, it has become a group that feels joy together, almost like a team.”

Coach Kimishima herself was passionate about girls’ football during her student days. “It makes me happy when I score a goal or win a match, and it makes me frustrated when I lose, so I will work hard so I can win next time.” She chased the ball driven by the pure emotions that football brings. After becoming an Antlers school coach, she spends fulfilling days seeing “how girls and boys alike face football with energy,” and this year, she is also working hard as a staff member in charge of events such as the “NIKE ANTLERS CUP” and “Legend Festa -LEGEND FESTA-.”

“The NIKE ANTLERS CUP is a tournament with decades of tradition, and my younger brother also participated when he was a school student. As the main person in charge, I want to prepare to the fullest and do my best to run the tournament. Legend Festa is an event that simply cannot be held without Antlers. People come from far away to participate, and because it is a parent-child football event, not only the children but also the parents are very happy and satisfied. Since Giko Club Advisor and other club legends can also participate, we are preparing thoroughly as staff so that everyone can have a wonderful time.”

This summer, they had also planned to participate in a tournament in Yamanashi Prefecture with players from the girls’ courses in the Tsukuba and Norte Areas. “I wanted to live and eat together through matches and away games, deepen the bonds among the girls even more, and encourage each of their independence and growth,” but contrary to Coach Kimishima’s wishes, it had to be canceled due to the effects of Typhoon No. 10. However, it was the first time that girls would travel outside the prefecture on their own and participate in an external tournament carrying the “Antlers” club name.

In the near future, the time will come again to open a new door for girls’ football at Antlers. This Tsukuba Academy Center is the stage for the further challenges of Coach Kimishima, who has overflowing affection not only for boys but also for girls’ school students, as well as Coach Ueto and Coach Otake.

Although this summer’s tournament participation was canceled, the girls’ course activities will continue under Coach Kimishima