We would like to express our deepest condolences and offer our heartfelt prayers for the repose of the soul of Kunishige Kamamoto, who made a great contribution to Japanese soccer.

In order to preserve for future generations the achievements of this rare striker, and his relationship with Urawa Reds, we have asked soccer journalist Yoshiyuki Osumi, who has been covering the club since its days in the JSL, to contribute an article.

"Kumamoto Kunishige and Urawa Reds "

Kumamoto Kunishige, a one-of-a-kind striker born in the world of Japanese soccer, passed away on August 10th. He was 81 years old.

Many fans will remember that Urawa Reds' memorable first J.League Trial on May 16, 1993, was against Gamba Osaka, and that the manager was Kamamoto. The Reds manager at the time was Takayoshi Mori, who, coincidentally, was a classmate of Kamamoto's at Waseda University.
Both were members of the 1964 Tokyo Olympic team during their university years, and in 1967, Mori joined Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, while Kamamoto joined Yanmar Diesel, each playing for a team in the Japan Soccer League (JSL). They would go on to face each other in the JSL as both were favourites to win the championship. Of course, Yanmar is now Cerezo Osaka, and Mitsubishi is the predecessor of Urawa Reds.

In the 1975 JSL, the two teams faced off in the 18th and final round, with the championship at stake. At a time when the average attendance per Trial was less than 3,000, Tokyo's National Stadium was filled with an unprecedented crowd of 35,000.
Mitsubishi took the lead with a brilliant volley from Ochiai Hiroshi (current captain of Urawa Reds Heart-full Club), but Yanmar quickly equalized, and in the 27th minute of the first half, a foul on Kamamoto earned them a penalty kick. Kamamoto normally doesn't take penalty kicks, but this time he set the ball up himself and carefully kicked it into the right corner, giving Yanmar the winning goal. Yanmar quickly followed up with a third goal, and early in the second half, Kamamoto dribbled in and scored, sealing their third championship.

Mitsubishi hosted 15 JSL home Trial against Yanmar in which Kamamoto played, with a total attendance of 256,000, an average of 17,067 Trial. The "Mitsubishi vs. Yanmar" match was truly the JSL's "golden match."
Incidentally, Kamamoto has played a total of 32 Trial against Mitsubishi in the JSL, scoring 15 goals. The player next to Kamamoto in this period is Mitsubishi's Ochiai, who has scored 7 goals.
Furthermore, the results of those 32 matches were almost even, with Mitsubishi winning 9, drawing 15, and losing 8, scoring 38 goals and conceding 36. While Mitsubishi has had many players representing Japan throughout the years, the only other Yanmar player who was a regular at the national team level, other than Kamamoto, was Yoshimura Taishiro (Nelson), a second-generation Japanese who had changed his nationality from Brazil to Japan. When you consider this, it becomes clear that the combination of "Mitsubishi x Yanmar" was ultimately "Mitsubishi x Kamamoto."
In these 32 Trial, Kamamoto took a total of 143 shots. In today's soccer, it is not uncommon for strikers to not take (or be able to take) even one shot per Trial, but Kamamoto took an average of 4.47 shots Trial Trial against a strong opponent like Mitsubishi.
In November 1968, shortly after the Mexico City Olympics, 40,000 people gathered at the National Stadium for a match against Mitsubishi. After Mitsubishi took the lead in the first half with a shot from Shimizu Yasuo, Kamamoto launched a fierce attack in the second half, smashing in the equalizer 15 minutes into the second half. In the 90 minutes of the Trial, Kamamoto alone took an astonishing 11 shots.
Naturally, successive Mitsubishi managers worked hard to "mark Kamamoto" and chose the "ace defensive player" of the time. Starting with Tadao Onishi, Hiroshi Katayama, Kuniya Ohni, Hiroshi Ochiai, Kazuo Saito... For these people, "marking Kamamoto" must have been a major honor in their playing days.

However, Kamamoto could have become a Mitsubishi player along with Mori Takayoshi, as his father worked for Mitsubishi Heavy Industries.
However, those involved in the sport persuaded Kamamoto, saying, "We must not let the flame of soccer in Kansai die out," and so he decided to join Yanmar, a completely new team that was considered a "burden" even in the JSL, but which had a strong desire to strengthen its soccer team as a company. After Kamamoto joined in 1967, Yanmar rapidly grew in strength, becoming a powerhouse that would tie Mitsubishi in the JSL championship with four times.

On March 29, 1992, 25 years after Kamamoto made his debut with Yanmar, the JSL reached its final match. Trial that day marked the end of the amateur JSL, and Japan's top league became the professional J.League. One of the final matches was between Mitsubishi and Matsushita Electric at Nishigaoka Soccer Stadium in Tokyo. Matsushita was the team that would later become Gamba Osaka. Kamamoto was the manager. Mitsubishi won Trial 2-0, led by diminutive Argentine forward Osvaldo Escudero.
"No matter what the result, both teams should greet the fans together after Trial." Mitsubishi had proposed this to Matsushita before Trial. True to their promise, when referee Mitsuyoshi Kikuchi blew the final whistle, the 22 players from both teams formed a circle on the center circle and waved to the fans in the stands. In the chilly weather of the "rapeseed rainy season," only 1,000 fans came to Nishigaoka. However, those 1,000 gave a warm round of applause, filled with hopes for the "professional era."
By chance, I was standing right next to Kamamoto-san, who was watching this small "ceremony" from the aisle under the stands, and I heard him mutter:
"That's right. That's what a professional should be like."
Unfortunately, Kamamoto was not successful as a J.League manager. However, I was deeply struck by the fact that, despite being a "goal-scoring demon" who spent his playing career solely focused on scoring goals and thereby leading his team to victory, he also had a firm philosophy that "professional soccer is meaningless if it doesn't connect with the fans."

Kamamoto's relationship with the Reds, which began with the Mitsubishi vs. Yanmar match in 1967, has always been a fierce rivalry. However, I believe that Kamamoto and the Reds were deeply connected by their shared belief that "the fans are valued above all else."

Text by Yoshiyuki Osumi (football journalist)


1969年JSLベスト11(報知新聞年間優秀選手)表彰式
後列左から釜本邦茂選手、落合 弘選手(三菱)、横山謙三選手(三菱)、菊川凱夫選手(三菱)、小城得達選手
前列左から山口芳忠選手代理、鎌田光夫選手、宮本輝紀選手、森 孝慈選手(三菱)、片山 洋選手(三菱)、杉山隆一選手(三菱)


Kamamoto Kunishige takes a shot at Nishikyogoku Stadium in Kyoto on November 18, 1973, in the 16th round of the JSL. On the left is Daini Kuniya (Mitsubishi).


March 29, 1992: After the final Trial the JSL season, Mitsubishi and Matsushita Electric formed a circle together and greeted the fans in the stands.