Now we're in Cameroon and staying at Eboｌawa city, which is about 2 hours away from the capital Younde.
We came here to see one of our friends Shihoto, who is a member of Japan Overseas Cooperation Volunteers (JOCV). He is also one of the greatest soccer fan among JOCV.
In the evening, a lot of people come together in the park to play soccer. Neighbors, workers, students... many many people there.
Some of them are 10's, others are 20's.
The guy standing third to the left is Shihoto.
Three of us all wearing Japanese blue jersey.
We split into two teams having 9 players in each and the half are naked.
The field is about half of the regular size.
Look at their six-pack stomachs !
African are so tough guys.
After about one hour, the game ended in draw 0-0.
Then, when it's dawn, the people stop playing and beginning to go home.
Anyway, you know what. There is a reason for the scoreless game.
The length of the goal is maybe less than 1 meter.
I saw this tiny goal everywhere in Africa. Some of them are normal size goals made up with trunks.
But, generally speaking, they are all tiny.
Even if they don't have anything to build up with, they make a goal by putting together some stuffs. I don't know why they make it so small.
What if a person is lying down in front of the goal?
Don't worry. No ones are willing to do so.
Of course, it's unfair to have a goalkeeper.
Look, if you play sluggish, you'll be enclosed like below.
We couldn't score today.
But, according to Shioto, they normally get golas even with this small goals.
I guess they are sharpshooting.
I wonder how they manage normal size game if you get used to this, though.
I doubt they hit long distance shot. Oh yes, I remember they shot wide as I saw a local soccer game last time.
My guess is that African soccer players are not good at long distance shots.
Somehow I think all African people play in the same way.
That is, they like passing each other! Their passing skill is so great.
They don't care if the field is rough or not.
Their ball controlling technique is just fantastic !!
They play like FC Barcelona!!
If they are stack in short passing, they posses the ball and sometimes make a great switching pass!!
Sometimes, the ball are over the wall.
It's natural that the trained players have good passing skills.
They might have a coach who puts an emphasis on passing skills.
But how could these untrained people become so skillful enough to do short accurate passings instead of making wild kicks.
Everyone plays fantastically like Ronaldinho or Christiano Ronaldo !!
Who could help them to do so? This is middle of nowhere!
My first impression about African soccer was that African players are physically tough and have individual skills. They emphasize a individual tactics rather than team operation.
But it has been changed.
I guess Samuel Etho, who was playing for FC Barcelona, had a big influence on Cameroon.
Young people seem to copy FC Barcelona's style.
It's nonsense to generalize it just based on my sole experience, but, somehow I can tell the African soccer is on the rise.
Most of all, African grass-root level of soccer is definitely on the right track, although the infrastructure needs further improvement, I mean "soccer field".
If they are improved in terms of good coach, good facilities, African soccer has a great potential.]
I wonder if you see it in 2010 FIFA World Cup.
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