In October of this year, Baseball NSW had the privilege of sending a roster of female players including one coach, to Fukuoka, Japan.
This initial tour solidified the first steps in the relationship with ourselves and Japan. A major element of this partnership is a strong focus on female athletes, with an objective to promote the sharing of players and coaching expertise across the two organisations.
Baseball NSW are now preparing for the Japanese tour to Sydney in the coming weeks, to finish off the year on a high note with the prefecture. The team will join us at our facilities, and players from the Orio Aima High School will train and play with our NSW representatives, both male and female.
From the 20th to the 23rd of December, we will host the high school athletes at Blacktown International Sportspark, as they partake in joint practices and three days of games against our High-Performance teams (Women’s and Under 16’s Boys). We are extremely privileged to be able to host strong junior talent from Fukuoka.
The Prefecture’s team, the SoftBank Hawks and Kyūshū Honeys are among the premier baseball teams in Japan and through the Memorandum Of Understanding that we hold, are committed to sharing players, coaches, and these touring teams with us, in order to further develop and strengthen our local players.
Baseball NSW CEO, Mark Marino, said “It’s great to have a local high school from Fukuoka coming to Australia, as part of the reciprocating agreement we have with the prefecture. It’s a great chance for our female athletes to see how they compare to international talent. We look forward to many more opportunities in the future.”
We can’t wait for the high school touring team to arrive!