People : Hopeful rookies in the soccer club:
Mr. Shingo Hyodo & Mr. Shuto Suzuki

Mr. Shingo Hyodo (Photo left) Hyodo was born in Nagasaki Prefecture in 1985, and graduated from Kunimi High School; while there, he played in the national high school tournament. Now he is a freshman of the School of Sports Science, and he's also a member of the U-19 (under 19 years old) Japan National Football Team wearing uniform number ‘10’. His hobbies are shopping and listening to music. Mr. Shuto Suzuki (Photo right) Suzuki was born in Chiba Prefecture in 1985, and graduated from Funabashi Municipal High School. Like Hyodo, he also played in the Japan high school tournament and is now a freshman of the School of Sports Science. His hobby is listening to music. His father, who loved football, named him “Shuto”-because it sounds similar to ‘Shoot’.

Both Hyodo and Suzuki graduated from high schools which were famous for soccer and which went to the national championship. The interviewer asked them about their first impressions when they met for the first time on the playing ground. Hyodo said that Suzuki “has high ability in all points. He was moving so fast. It really annoyed me.” Suzuki said with a laugh, “I really didn't like him much.” It seems that each of these two players was troubled by his rival's skill, but at the same time they admired each other. Now they are teammates of the football club. Suzuki's “comfortable” room at the university dormitory has become the club's gathering place.

Hyodo and Suzuki were invited to the U-19 Asia tour in May as representatives of Japan. Although it was a great delight for them, they said, “We can never tell what will happen in football tomorrow, so we cannot be lazy. To keep winning, we must keep trying, never feeling satisfied with ourselves." Considering that they are only eighteen, they are cool-minded. Thinking ahead to their lives after they someday quit playing football, they are planning to get qualifications in teaching. But for now, soccer is the center of their lives to that extent that they don't know what to do if they have two days off in a week. They said, “Although our club is in the third division, each member has his own individual style and abilities. Waseda's football style is aggressive: ‘Kick! Run! Fight!’ The club games have good points which are different from those of the national team.”

Suzuki said,“ I wanted to do something that no one else could beat me at.”
My coach at elementary school taught me the joy of playing football,” said Hyodo. They have different reasons for starting to play football. Both of them, however, have experienced the strict relationship between senior and junior students. They also felt great chagrin when they were bench warmers. But their dream of becoming professional players is now more realistic.

During this interview, it was clear that Hyodo and Suzuki work well as a team--they sometimes answered simulaneously, and sometimes finished each other sentences. We can expect that they will continue to work together to will open up a new world for a distinguished football team.