Yasutoshi Okuno, the father of the Kwansei Gakuin University quarterback who was illegally hit from behind by a Nihon University defensive end during their exhibition game on May 6 in Tokyo, hopes the defender can begin playing football again.
¡°I have kept saying this from the beginning, but I hope to see him playing against my son again on the field, of course fairly next time,¡± Okuno, an Osaka City council member, said during an exclusive interview with The Japan Times on Monday at the Fuji Television Network, Inc. office in Tokyo. ¡°He received enough of a public reprimand after he held a news conference and apologized. He said he didn¡¯t have the right to resume playing football, but he will want to play again if he still loves football.
¡°But to make it happen, (Nihon University president Hidetoshi) Tanaka should publicly take accountability, not through a statement on the school¡¯s website, but by making an appearance in public,¡± Okuno said.
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