As a fairly casual Kashiwa Reysol fan I think this is the first time I’ve seen the same teams play each other twice in the same season. Back at the end of February, the two teams played a fairly lacklustre 1-1 draw in the rain in Kashiwa. It was a fairly miserable afternoon yet somehow still ranked quite high in my top ten matchday experiences compilation post!! For the record, it was placed high due to what happened around the actual match.

The idea of going to this match was a fairly late one as I knew I had a couple of days to myself whilst my wife worked. Subsequently I booked a very cheap flight to Kansai  International Airport which would allow me to see and do a few things in Osaka, Hyogo and Kyoto before and after the match. This was actually my first flight since January 2020 when I returned to Japan from the UK just before the coronavirus pandemic began to spread. I can’t say I’ve missed it at all!

My company has their own holiday for a week or so at the end of June each year which is nice in one aspect as it is not a national one meaning that prices are reasonable, and it is not as busy as the Golden Week or Obon holidays. However, it is also often right in the middle of the rainy season in Japan which can be a frustrating time for such tourism. Thankfully it was a nice, comfortable day weather-wise and I was able to arrive at the stadium an hour earlier than expected, and 90 minutes before the 7:00 pm kick off.

The nearest station is Kameoka (which has been decorated appropriately) on the Sagano Line which lies about 20 kilometres west of Kyoto city. The ground is just a stone’s throw away and was the newest top flight stadium until Sanfrecce Hiroshima moved into their new home at the start of this season. This one was completed in early 2020 to be ready for the ill-fated season which was heavily affected by Covid_19.

With time on my hands on I was able to go for a leisurely walk round the stadium and take it all in.

The away fans were based on the backside of the stadium and at that time of the evening it was all fairly quiet. There was one particular interesting photo opp of note en-route to the main stand side.

It had been a very long, tiring day for me by this point and I was starting to feel tired so wanted to relax outside rather than go in and start singing and chanting as part of the pre-match build-up.

Luckily, there was a very nice grassy park area to chill for a bit as well as a food truck section offering a vast range of delights. The British guy in me just couldn’t turn down the chance of having a meat pie as such a delicacy is a rare thing in Japan. It was very tasty with an ample filling of meat but a bit on the small side.

Kyoto has been in the news a lot recently about over-tourism but there were very few western tourists in this region which is only 20 kilometers west of the ever-popular bamboo forest in Arashiyama. The lack of tourists can be the only reason my friend and fellow Reysol fan Benny spotted each other by chance outside the stadium amidst the crowds! He goes to the majority of all Reysol games so it wasn’t a surprise to see him there but I just assumed it would only be inside.

The Sanga mascot. Not to be confused with my friend Benny!

With about 20 minutes till kick off I made my way inside and my first thoughts were not about the stadium itself (which is very nice) but how empty it was but that can sometimes be the case for midweek matches in a country where people often just can’t get away from work in time. Sadly, it was less than a third full which was a shame as I’d have loved to see it filled close to its 21,600 capacity. What was naturally impressive was that it’s a football-only stadium without a running track round it which is fairly common.

Reysol went into this match on the back of four straight defeats in the league and really needed to get something from this game to avoid being sucked into the danger zone at the bottom of the table. Creating chances doesn’t seem to have been much of a problem but actually putting them away has.

One thing I noticed in this new, modern stadium was a lot of flies which may be due to its  location in a valley. I wasn’t expecting to get bitten in such a place and they did become a little irritating.

A brilliant free-kick (below) by Yuto Misao put Sanga into the lead but Reysol fought back about five minutes later with a fine finish by Mao Hosoya.

He’s gonna flick one… 

A cruel deflection saw the home side regain the lead early in the second half. When Reysol squandered a few good chances (particularly one in the 74th minute) in the last twenty minutes or so I really did think it was just one of those days.

As the match went deep into injury time and all seemed lost, Brazilian midfielder Matheus Savio saved Reysol and I reckon I celebrated that goal more than I’ve ever done for any other goal in Japan. All those flies that had been bugging me were forgotten about and it was revenge for Sanga’s late equaliser in the opening match of the season.

Final Score: Kyoto Sanga 2-2 Kashiwa Reysol

Click here to read ‘TF Top 10……Football Match Day Experiences So Far In 2024 (Part 1)’

Click here to read ‘Dining Out: Black Curry Ramen & Japan’s Most Secret Toilet Guarded By A Life-Size Star Wars Character!’

Click here to read ‘Kashiwa Reysol Pay The Penalty At The 103rd Emperor’s Cup Final’ 

Click here to read ‘The Alternative Tour Of Kyoto’