Chairmans Letter 2018

Members of TGRFC,

I would like to thank you all for the past year.  This year has had its up and its downs, but I was expecting that, especially in my first year as Chairman.  At the beginning of the year, We emphasised on creating a club more than just a team, growing to the times and such.   I feel we have done so to a certain extent, however, I still feel there is much more that can be done.  

This year, we have been successful and also on several occasions outdone ourselves in our on-field goals and I would like to highlight them.

Cup Winner’s Cup:

This year we retained the CWC for a consecutive two years.  It was very hard fought, possibly our toughest and closest match this year against local rivals Tokyo Crusaders.  As I was watching from the sidelines, I grew more wrinkles over the last 10 minutes than I have in my entire life.  Even so, we won valiantly and brought it home and I could not be more proud of the boys to do so.

Manilla 10’s:

In what will be our last Manilla 10’s, we managed to bring home what silverware they had left.  We played with great gusto and in return brought home the Shield, which considering the competition we faced, was a great result for us and also gave us a good headstart on the Shuto league which was only months away.  

Saigon 10’s:

Our inaugural year at Saigon was mind-blowing.  We were surprised by the hospitality given by the tournament committee for the cost. It gave us a great way to cool our heads before the second leg of the Shuto League and also solidify our team structure in quick succession games.  On top of that, we were able to bring back another piece of silverware which is a great feat for an inaugural tournament.  Big thank you to Tomo, our captain for arranging the tours the past year and I hope for more this year.

Shuto League:

So far in the league, we won the first group stages without losing a single game and are now heading into the end of the final group stage, one win away from winning it all.  Our team has shown great compassion and offensive pressure in coming this far undefeated.  However, we are not done until we have defeated Koryo to take back the crown which we crave after Cru took it from us last year.

In terms of off-field agendas, I would like to highlight these particular events:

Sponsorship:

This year we have grown massively in sponsors from one to three and still growing.  Without these sponsors, we would not be where we are and I would like to thank them especially for their support: Tesoro International School, Nasnos, and Black Rat Cider.

Social Media:

Our social media presence has grown greatly.  With the help of Alex, we have been able to revamp our website and social media marketing. I am hoping to continue our growth of our social media outlets like Facebook, Twitter and others in 2018.

There is much more for us to work on this coming year and we hope to improve the club and the team culture greatly.  I personally want to thank the management crew, Sato-san and Natsu for helping managing the team on and off the pitch; Joffa for make sure we have money in the bank; Gorka, Sota and Paddy for organizing the events for the lads; Alex for keeping our website and other social media up-to-date; Captains of the team, Tomo, Gorka and Alex; finally of course, the players for tirelessly being there for the team.

I wish everyone a Happy New Year and I hope that we all can go forward in making TGRFC a better place for us and for many years to come.

Go on you good thing!!!

Tomofumi “Tommy” Nasuno

TGRFC Chairman 2017-2018