Fumiko Otake has only been playing rugby for less than a year, but she is already making waves as one of the bright new talents in Japanese women’s rugby.
The 19-year-old, born to a Nigerian father and Japanese mother, made her Sakura Sevens debut in Sydney in late January and will be hoping to shine on home soil at the HSBC Kitakyushu Sevens this weekend.
Otake has quickly fallen under rugby’s spell, admitting with a smile on her face that “it’s so fun, I should have started much sooner”, although her introduction to the sport was somewhat unplanned.
She was playing basketball in a physical education class at Tokyo High School, but the game was very stop-start and in a pique of frustration Otake suddenly grabbed the ball and just ran across the court to the basket.
“You are supposed to dribble because it’s basketball but for some reason I ran!” said Otake, who was perhaps inevitably asked by the teacher to meet him after class.
Markers for improvement
She reluctantly did, expecting to be reprimanded but instead the teacher asked her why she wasn’t playing rugby seriously. Having initially turned down the offer to give rugby a try, Otake did eventually find her way to the sport.
Having competed in track and field at the Inter High School Championship and enjoyed some good results to feel a sense of accomplishment that her hard work had paid off, she began to look for a new sport and remembered her teacher’s suggestion.
The decision made to try rugby, the transition wasn’t smooth due to injuries suffered after joining the Nippon Sports Science University rugby club. But she used the time wisely, watching videos of rugby matches, a factor that has helped her development.
The learning curve has been steep, but seeing how world’s leading teams and players up close on the series has given her the chance to see what she can achieve with hard work and the areas to improve.
“I got nervous there [in Sydney] but at the same time felt it was so much fun and I got the feeling that I can play against the world’s powerhouses,” she explained. “I was able to check where I am standing with my game and have a better and wider view on the game.
Inspired by series stars
“One of my roles is to go forward for our team, but I couldn’t score even I was able to do that. I know I have to be a player who can do that and score. I want to be a player who is definitely unstoppable in a one-on-one situation and make our opposition be afraid of playing.”
Otake will get a chance to face one of the players she admires with Japan drawn alongside world champions New Zealand in Pool B, the teenager describing Portia Woodman as “a player who can reassure you when she has the ball”.
Having made the transition from track and field to rugby, she inevitably admires the likes of USA flyers Perry Baker and Carlin Isles, although South Africa’s Rosko Specman is a player “I wish I could play as much as he does”.
“I know I first have to be more competitive,” she acknowledges of her hopes of enjoying some of the success of these players. “I didn’t have room in my mind in Sydney, but I think I can show my better rugby when I get a playing opportunity next time.”
That chance could come this weekend at the Mikuni World Stadium in Kitakyushu.