October 24, 2004
Someone Cue the Fat Lady
Nor was the nationally-televised clash at Antlers Stadium the only thrilling drama of the day. Several other contests also had important implications, and the action was intense in every corner of the country. So lets begin by taking a look at the scores of the Saturday matches:
| Date | Home | . | Visitor | Venue |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 23 Oct |  | 1-1 |  | Kashiwa-no-ha Std. |
| 23 Oct |  | 0-2 |  | Mizuho Stadium |
| 23 Oct |  | 2-3 |  | Kashima Stadium |
| 23 Oct |  | 4-0 |  | Tokyo Nat'l Stadium |
| 23 Oct |  | 2-1 |  | Yokohama Int'l |
| 23 Oct |  | 2-2 |  | Kobe Wing Stadium |
| 24 Oct |  | 3-1 |  | "Banpaku" Stadium |
| 24 Oct |  | 3-1 |  | Yamaha (Iwata) St. |
2 - 3 
The highlight match of the day was the conest between the league-leading Urawa Reds and the Kashima Antlers, at Kashima Stadium. The Reds have faced a string of top opponennts over the past three weeks, but as the players themselves indicated prior to the match, this contest was particularly crucial. For one thing, the Reds -- planers and fans alike -- recognised that if they could collect all three points, the stretch run would seem like a joyous downhill cruise, against mainly weak opposition. But if the dropped the match, only two points would separate them between their closest rivals, and they would have to approach the final five matches with extreme caution, to avoid any slip-ups.
2 - 3 But the biggest concern was the team's historical record against the Antlers. Prior to this weekend, the Reds had played eleven times at The House That Zico Built, and ten of those contests had ended in defeat. Certainly, the Reds are a much more competitive team this season, whereas the Antlers have been struggling. But as most J.League opponents will tell you, regardless of where they happen to be in the league table, the Antlers are always a tough opponent to face in a high-profile match. Sure enough, despite going the previous 240 minutes without scoring a goal, the Antlers raised their performance to a very different level in this contest, and the result was a dramatic slugfest between two exciting, top-class teams which may very well go down as the best football match of the 2004 season.
One factor contributing to the drama was the fantastic crowd of 32,000, nearly half of whom had made the long trip down from Saitama to support the Reds. From opening kickof to final whistle, the rafters echoed with the cheers of both fan contingents, and the cacophony of energy and enthusiasm spurred both teams on. Like a slugging match between two rock-jawed boxers, the Reds and Antlers spend the full 90 minutes throwing one offensive punch after another, and no sooner would one team land what seemed like a crushing blow but the other would respond with a sudden flurry of their own.
After an initial flurry by the Reds, Kashima began to establish some ball contol in midfield, using short passes to striker Takayuki Suzuki, around the edge of the penalty area, and cuts into the box by his speedy striker partners Masashi Motoyama and Masaki Fukai. The first truly dangerous chance went to the Antlers, as a pass out of the post, from Suzuki, found Motoyama with a half-step on his defender, at the edge of the box. But Motoyama rushed his shot and the ball whistled past the right post.
In a pattern that would be repeated for the remainder of the match, the Reds immediately responded with an offensive push of their own, and in the 10 minute, they drew first blood. Alex Santos started the push with a slashing run up the left sideline and a cut to the middle, where all three of the Reds strikers were bunched together near the top of the penalty arc. As the defence closed in, Santos dropped the ball to Yuichiro Nagai, who dropped away from goal to receive the ball while his striker partners made their runs. With so many players bunched together in one zone, the Antlers defenders hesitated for just a second in deciding who to pick up, and this allowed Tatsuya Tanaka to slip free of coverage. Nagai one-timed the ball over the pack of players inside the penalty arc, leading Tanaka into the box. The speedy striker dashed through to collect the ball, and fired it into the corner of the net.
But no sooner had the Reds finished their celebrations than the Antlers began their comeback. For the next ten minutes, the momentum swung to the opposite end of the pitch, with the Antlers pushing forward in numbers and steadily putting pressure on the Urawa goal. After two or three near misses, they finally produced the equaliser. Motoyama started the sequence with a break into the box from the left side. Although he was hacked down ant the edge of the area, the ball rolled through to Suzuki, and the referee played on. A defender immediately rushed in to clear the ball over the end line, making one wonder whether the term "advantage" should be applied. But despite having to settle for a corner kick, rather than a free kick a step outside the box, the Antlers made the set play opportunity count. Mitsuo Ogasawara placed his kick perfectly, finding defender Daiki Iwamasa directly in front of the net for a powerful header.
Now it was the Reds' turn to step up the pressure and push forward in numbers. Just five minutes after the Antlers' equaliser, the Reds created two comnsecurive freee kick opportunities, on the left sideline. The first was cleared away with no difficulty by the Antlers defence, but Santos sent the second kick off the crossbar, and the rebound fell right to Tanaka, who was hanging out at the far post. With all of the Antlers' defenders still in the defensive wall, Tanaka had a wide open opportunity to head the ball back into the open side of the net.
Sure enough, no sooner had the Reds taken the lead than the Antlers began a surge of their own. They very nearly equalised just minutes later, but despite getting free at the far post, Koji Nakata headed a corner kick narrowly over the bar. With two minutes to go before the break, the pressure finally produced a result. Following a throw-in on the left side, the Antlers moved the ball through nine crisp passes, from one side of the box to the other. The ball movement succeeded in pulling the Reds defence out of their zone, and as the ball moved to the right edge of the area, Ogasawara was able to slip unnoticed into space on the opposite side. Jun Uchida spotted him, and looped the ball with at fine cross-field pass. Ogasawara settled the ball, took one step forward and fired into the opposite side of the net, to knot the score at half time.
Following the wild frenzy of action that characterised the first half, it was no surprise that the pace dropped off slightly in the second. But this was more a reflection of strategy than a lack of effort. Both teams seemed to recognise that the next goal would be crucial, and played with much greater caution, trying to construct their scoring opportunities carefully, while not leaving themselves open for a counterattack.
After twenty minutes of playing one another to a stalemate, Antlers' coach Toninho Cerezo made what would turn out to be a crucial mistake, pulling striker Masaki Fukai and replacing him with defensive midfielder Yasuto Honda. It is difficult to say what Cerezo was hoping to achieve by adopting such a defensive stance. Perhaps he was hoping to draw theReds forward and create chances to counterattack. If so, this was an ill-conceived decision, because the last thing an opponent wants to do against the Reds is to lure them into a running contest. Sure enough, the substitution did nothing but ensure that the Antlers would be defending continuously for the remaining 25 minutes of play. Furthermore, without Fukai up front to help collect the outlet passes, the Antlers never had a chance to even get their countreattacks started. Essentially, the substitution simply handed the initiative to the Reds, and the Antlers never got it back.
For the next twenty minutes, the Reds attack intensified to a barrage, and the barrage grew to an avalanche. YOu could see the final goal coming long before it arrived, and it is a testament to the Antlers' defence that they managed to stave it off as long as they did. Twice, keeper Hitoshi Sogahata managed to snatch the ball literally off the bootlaces of a Reds player, to stave off a goal. But with five minutes to go, the resistance finally collapsed. Following a rare Antlers foray into attack, Makoto Hasebe snatched a loose ball and began a dash towards the opposite goal. All three Reds strikers, along with Santos on the left and Nobuhisa Yamada on the right, put their heads down and sprinted for goal. Faced with this barrage, the defenders could do little but back off and pray. But Hasebe eventually found Emerson just above the top left corner of the box, and the Reds' ace placed a perfect curling shot into the top right corner. The Reds' end of the stadium exploded in celebrations, as their team overcame their last serious obstacle to a second stage title. With five points on their closest rival, and weak opposition over their final five matches, it now looks like the Reds are unstoppable.
Lineups:
Hitoshi Sogahata, Jun Uchida (Seiji Kaneko 79), Daiki Iwamasa, Go Oiwa, Toru Araiba, Fernando, Koji Nakata, Mitsuo Ogasawara, Masashi Motoyama (Yuki Nakashima 77), Takayuki Suzuki, Masaki Fukai (Naoki Honda 66) .
Ryota Tsuzuki, Alpay Ozalan (Satoshi Horinouchi 45), Marcus Tulio Tanaka, Hideki Uchidate, Takuya Yamada, Makoto Hasebe (Tomoyuki Sakai 89), Keita Suzuki, Alex Santos, Tatsuya Tanaka, Yuichiro Nagai, Emerson.
2 - 1 
On the opposite edge ofthe Tokyo metropolitan sprawl, a similar battle was brewing, which might have provided drama nearly equal to the Reds-Antlers match, if not for some extremely questionable officiating. The climax of the contest between the Yokohama Marinos and FC Tokyo will surely feature in our "fray of the day" column, later this week. But this match was another fierce head-to-head battle which deserves to be reported in its entirety, and not just reduced to its farcical final chapter.
2 - 1 FC Tokyo are gradually emerging as one of the top contenders in the J.League, as shown by their progress to the Nabisco Cup final. The team still suffers from some "rookie" mistakes, and has not yet fully come together as a team, but considering the extreme youth of the Tokyo lineup (if we exclude veteran midfielder Fumitake Miura, who usually is substituted at half time, the starting lineup has an average age of just 23), they are certain to grow even stronger as time goes by. Their opponent, the Yokohama Marinos, have struggled a bit in the second stage, but with the first-stage title under their belts, and some young players like Daisuke Sakata and Hayuma Tanaka gradually working their way into the lineup, they are clearly a force to be reckoned with as well.
The Marinos forged an early lead in this contest, as Dutra launched a long ball into the box and Yoo Sang-Chul made a brilliant trap, dropping the ball softly into the path of Daisuke Oku, at the enge of the box. Oku had a wide-open look at goal, and drilled his shot into the low left corner.
Thant advantage held until half time, but just moments after the restart, FC Tokyo won a corner kick on the left side, and Jean Carlo Witte headed home the cross to put the two teams level. The second half swung back and forth as both teams poushed for the winner, but stern defending on both ends turned the chances away one after another. Then, with the final moments of regular time ticking away, Ahn Jung-Hwan made a blatant dive in the box, and to everyon's shock, the referee, Mr. Nishimura, pointed to the pemnalty spot. Replays leave little doubt that Ahn went down on his own, and in fact, it was such a clumsy dive that the only explanation for the PK decision is that Mr. Nishimura was confused, thinking it impossible that Ahn could look so awkward if he were deliberately faking a foul.
In any event, Oku drilled the PK to brin a rather disappointing anticlimax to what was otherwise a very exciting and hard-fought contest.
Lineups:
Tatsuya Enomoto, Yuji Nakazawa, Naoki Matsuda,Ryuji Kawai, Hayuma Tanaka, Yoo Sang-Chul (Norihisa Shimizu 74), , Daisuke Nasu, Dutra (Yukihiko Sato 43) (Yuzo Kurihara 89), Daisuke Oku , Ahn Jung-Hwan, Daisuke Sakata.
Yoichi Doi, Akira Kaji, Teruaki Moniwa, Jean Carlo Witte, Jo Kanazawa (Yoshiro Abe 79), Yasuyuki Konno, Fumitake Miura (Masashi Miyazawa 70), Clesley "Kelly" Guimares, , Naohiro Ishikawa, Yuta Baba (Norio Suzuki 40), Lucas Severino .
1 - 1 
Though neither team may be in the running for a championship, this season, the matchup between Kashiwa Reysol and Cerezo Osaka attracted a great deal of interest, and was one of the most fiercely contested battles of the afternoon, since it is likely to have a strong bearing on which team faces possible relegation at the end of the season. Coming into the match, Reysol had a three-point edge on Cerezo in the full-year's standings, so a victory for Reysol would put them in a strong position to ensure themselves a spot in the J1 next season. Cerezo, on the other hand, could draw level on points with a victory.
1 - 1 Though their performance in the first stage was truly abominable, Reysol have begun to play more competitive football in recent weeks, and it showed in the early stages of play. Reysol dominated possession, and created a number of good scoring opportunities over the first 20 minutes. However, in the 25 minute, fans had a chance to see the one and only reason why Cerezo still have an outside chance of remaining in the tip-flight division, next year. Though the opportunity came out of nowhere, this play and another which followed, about five minutes later, stand out as clear demonstrations of why Yoshito Okubo deserves to be on a much better football team.
The play developed on a counterattack by Cerezo, which was launched quickly via an outlet pass from the back line to a href="../../jleague/cerezo/okubo.html"> Yoshito Okubo, but Reysol had numbers back, and the play seemed on the verge of stalling out. But a href="../../jleague/cerezo/nunobe.html"> Takanori Nunobe fired a long, pinpoint pass to Akinori Nishizawa, about ten meters beyond the top of the penalty arc, and Nishizawa touched it on to Okubo, ctting from right to left. Colombian international defender Ever Palacios was in a position to snuff out the play well outside the box, but Okubo waded right through his tackle without even a change of pace. That left two defenders between Okubo and goal. As he has done countless times in the past, Okubo faked to his left, which was in fact the more open side of the penalty area. Okubo is well known for his weak left boot, and surely by now, every defender in the league knows better than to go for the fake left. Over the course of his career, he has probably faked to the left foot 5,000 times, and 4,999 he has come back to the right foot in order to beat his man. But even knowing this fact in advance, Okubo is so good at selling the move that he can always find some sucker to buy it. Sure enough, both defenders leaned left, and with an abrupt shift of balance, Okubo reversed field and drilled a screaming shot into the low right corner.
But Unfortunately for Cerezo, even a player as good as Okubo cannot carry the entire team, and apart from two or three other individual efforts by Okubo, this match was dominated by Reysol. Cerezo found themselves defending desperately, and by the middle of the second half, it was clear that it was only a mater of time before Reysol got the equaliser. It finally came just after the oune-hour mark, on a nice cut across the box and line-drive shot by midfielder Tomokazu Myojin.
But try as they might, Reysol could not add to that tally despite outshooting Cerezo 14 to 5. The draw leaves Cerezo just three points back of Reysol, and with still a chance to avoid the relegation playoff. But given the team's consistently poor management and coaching, and the apparent lack of enthusiasm they have shown this season, one almost hopes that the team gets relegated, if only because that would give Okubo a chance to move to a better team.
Lineups:
Yuta Minami, Yasuhiro Hato, Ever Palacios, Mitsuru Nagata, Naoya Kondo (Yuzo Kobayashi 72), Hidekazu Otani, Tomokazu Myojin, Takehito Shigehara (Tatsuya Tanizawa 45), Harutaka Ono, Toshiaki Haji (Yoshiteru Yamashita 45), Keiji Tamada, .
Tomohiko Ito, Ivan Radelic, Hiroshige Yanagimoto, Takahito Chiba, Takanori Nunobe, Kiyokazu Kudo, Noriyuki Sakemoto (Hiroaki Morishima 63), Tatsuya Furuhashi, Takuya Kokeguchi, Akinori Nishizawa (Miodrag "Miki" Andjelkovic 80), Yoshito Okubo (Ryu Saito 88) .
0 - 2 
After battling to a stalemate over the first 45 minutes, JEF United used swift counterattacking and set plays to score twice in the second half, with goals from Shinji Murai and Yuki Abe. Sozo Yuki, a second-half substitute, picked up two yellow cards in a period of 20 minutes and earned a ticket to the showers with ten minutes to play, but despite intense pressure and a bundle of scoring opportunities down the stretch, the Grampus players simply couldnt find the net on this particular day.
0 - 2 JEF held on for the victory, and thus remained within five points of the league-leading Reds. But JEF have a daunting schedule down the stretch, and another loss will basically end their hopes. Consequently, next weekend's contest with Gamba Osaka will decide which of these two teams drops out of contention.
Lineups:
Seigo Narazaki, Masayuki Omori, Keiji Kaimoto, Masahiro Koga, Makoto Kakuda, Kojiro Kaimoto, Keiji Yoshimura, Claiton, Yusuke Nakatani (Kiyohiro Hirabayashi 59), Naoshi Nakamura (Tetsuya Okayama 78), Ueslei, Marques .
Ryo Kushino, Daisuke Saito (Koki Mizuno 31), Zeljko Milinovic, Takayuki Chano, Masataka Sakamoto, Yuki Abe, Yuto Sato, (Takenori Hayashi 45), Shinji Murai, Naotake Hanyu (Koji Nakashima 89), Kohei Kudo, Seiichiro Maki, Sandro Cardoza (Sozo Yuki 45) .
3 - 1 
Full report will be added later
3 - 1
Lineups:
Naoki Matsuyo, Satoru Yamaguchi, Sidiclei, Noritada Saneyoshi, Hideo Hashimoto, Yasuhito Endo, Shigeru Morioka (Satoshi Nakayama 55), Takahiro Futagawa, Fernandinho (Masanobu Matsunami 87), Akihiro Ienaga (Tsuneyasu Miyamoto 55), Masashi Oguro .
Hayato Okanaka, Koji Yoshimura, Sandro Chavez Rosa, Patrick Zwaanswijk, Koji Arimura, Takashi Umeda, Taku Harada, Tomoaki Komorida, Takayuki Yoshida (Shota Matsuhashi 89), Daiki Takamatsu (Takashi Miki 84), Ryosuke Kijima (Teppei Nishiyama 70) .
3 - 1 
In the wake of the killer earthquake in Niigata prefecture, Jubilo and Albirex began this match with a moment of silence for the 15 dead and the many more who have been forced into public shelters due to earthquake damage. Unfortunately for Niigata, they were treated to a similar shaking at the hands of Jubilo Iwata, who have shown signs over the past two weeks of starting to put the team back on an even keel. It could be quite some time before Jubilo return to the reanks of contenders, but the most positive sign that emerged from this match was the fact that some of the younger players are beginning to assert themselves, and take over the creative tasks on both offence and defence.
3 - 1 Striker Ryoichi Maeda ewas involved in two of the three goals, midfielder Yoshiaki Ota scored his first J.League goal in only the second league start of his career, and Takahiro Kawamura, another relative youngster, added a goal of his own and performed the key transitional work between offence and defence. Later in the match, other youngsters such as playmaker Sho Naruoka and strikers Robert Cullen and Yasumasa Nishino also saw action.
Of course, Jubilo still have some problems, and those mainly relate to some of the old warhorses. In the back line, particularly, both Makoto Tanaka and Hideto Suzuki were caught committing blatant professional fouls, after being beaten by the speedy Albirex forwards, and though they each escaped with just a yellow card, a stricter referee might easily have decided to send both of them to the showers. Later in the contest, a flagrant bit of deliberate ankle-kicking by Rodrigo Gral did earn a red card, though by that point Jubilo were ahead by three goals. Niigata managed to get one back on a late strike by Oseas, but Jubilo hung on for the victory, only their second of the stage.
Lineups:
Fumiya Iwamaru, Hideto Suzuki, Makoto Tanaka, Takahiro Yamanishi, Yoshiaki Ota (Robert Cullen 73), Takahiro Kawamura, (Naoya Kikuchi 61), Toshihiro Hattori, Hiroshi Nanami, Toshiya Fujita (Sho Naruoka 66), , Ryoichi Maeda (Yasumasa Nishino 82), Rodrigo Gral .
Koichi Kidera, Yoshiaki Maruyama, Yasushi Kita, Naoki Takahashi (Yusaku Ueno 70), Hiroyoshi Kuwahara, Motohiro Yamaguchi (An Yeon-Ha 63), Yoshito Terakawa (Osamu Umeyama 63), Shingo Suzuki, Edmilson, Oseas, Fabinho .
Elsewhere
Tokyo Verdy rolled over Shimizu S-Pulse in a crushing 4-0 victory that was even more lop-sided than the final score indicates. Verdy outshot S-Pulse 32 to 5. Defender Ryuzo Morioka was sent off for a second yellow card, just before the end of the first half, and by midway through the second period, the match began to resemble a Monday afternoon shooting practice for the Verdy players. goals were scored by Claudio Ubeda, Naoto Sakurai, Takeshi Hirano and Hugo.Finally, Sanfrecce Hiroshima and Vissel Kobe battled to a 2-2 draw in the Western Honshu derby.
With five matches to play, the Urawa Reds now stand five points clear of their nearest rival, and the four weakest teams in the league are all on their dance card in the final month of the season It might seem that the second stage title has been wrapped up a bit early, this year, but nobody can claim that it wasnt a thrilling run
| . | Team | Pts | GP | W | D | L | GF | GA | G.Dif |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Urawa Reds | 25 | 10 | 8 | 1 | 1 | 30 | 12 | +18 |
| 2 | Gamba Osaka | 20 | 10 | 6 | 2 | 2 | 27 | 15 | +12 |
| 3 | JEF United | 20 | 10 | 6 | 2 | 2 | 14 | 13 | +1 |
| 4 | Albirex Niigata | 17 | 10 | 5 | 2 | 3 | 20 | 19 | +1 |
| 5 | Yokohama Marinos | 16 | 10 | 4 | 4 | 2 | 15 | 11 | +4 |
| 6 | Tokyo Verdy | 15 | 10 | 5 | 0 | 5 | 18 | 19 | -1 |
| 7 | Vissel Kobe | 12 | 10 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 21 | 20 | +1 |
| 8 | Nagoya Grampus | 12 | 9 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 14 | 14 | +0 |
| 9 | FC Tokyo | 12 | 10 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 12 | 12 | +0 |
| 10 | Kashima Antlers | 12 | 10 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 13 | 14 | -1 |
| 11 | Sanfrecce Hiroshima | 11 | 10 | 2 | 5 | 3 | 16 | 17 | -1 |
| 12 | Jubilo Iwata | 10 | 10 | 2 | 4 | 4 | 15 | 18 | -3 |
| 13 | Shimizu S-Pulse | 10 | 10 | 3 | 1 | 6 | 11 | 16 | -5 |
| 14 | Kashiwa Reysol | 9 | 10 | 1 | 6 | 3 | 9 | 16 | -7 |
| 15 | Cerezo Osaka | 8 | 10 | 2 | 2 | 6 | 18 | 27 | -9 |
| 16 | Oita Trinita | 7 | 9 | 2 | 1 | 6 | 9 | 19 | -10 |
J2 Promotion Race Nearly Over
While the J1 second stage championship race fairly clear-cut, this year, the title race in the J2 was over almost before it began. Kawasaki Frontale clinched first place with more than ten matches left to play, leaving the question of J1 promotion as the only issue left to be decided. With four matches left to play in the J2 season, most of the suspense is already gone. With a victory over Sagan Tosu, this weekend, Omiya Ardija effectively need just four points from their final four matches to be assured of second place, and an automatic berth in the J1 next season. A single point would ensure that they will finish no lower than third place, which carries with it the opportunity to play off against the weakest J1 team in a promotion-relegation series. Thus, it currently seems almost certain that the Mighty Squirrels of Southern Saitama will be joining their next-door neighbors, the Urawa Reds, in the J.League next season. This promises to create what would certainly be the most dynamic and heavily-supported derby match in the J.League, since Omiya fans are only slightly less numerous and devoted as their Urawa cousins.The only real element of suspense, therefore, lies in the race for third place. Montedio Yamagata have a five-point edge on Avispa Fukuoka with four matches left to play, and as luck would have it, the two teams meet head-to-head in the final match of the season. Avispa will need to hope for a bit of help from one of Montedio's other opponents, and they also face the challenge of collecting three points from Kawasaki Frontale, next weekend. If they lose that contest, their hopes of a playoff spot will be all but gone. However, if they do clear the hurdle, and defeat Frontale, it looks like third place will be decided on the final day of the season.
Looking at the prospects for a promotion-relegation series, where the opponent will probably be either Cerezo Osaka or Kashiwa Reysol, Avispa actually has a better chance of progressing to the J1 than Montedio. Although the mountain kings of Yamagata have put together a very impressive string this season, they are in third place mainly on the strength of their consistency and ability to pick up points from close matches. Avispa are muh less consistent, but they probably would have a better chance of turning in big performances in a home-and-away series. Montedio, though more consistent, lack the firepower to score many goals, and despite the excellent team spirit that they have demonstrated this season, it would be difficult for them to prevail in a two-match series, particularly against a high-scoring team like Cerezo.
While the J2 race has not provided as much excitement this season as it has in years past, the Montedio-Avispa clash on the final day, as well as the promotion-relegation series, should offer a good opportunity for fans to see the best that the J2 has to offer. Below are the current standings in the J2:
| . | Team | Pts | GP | W | D | L | GF | GA | G.Dif |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kawasaki Frontale | 96 | 39 | 31 | 3 | 5 | 93 | 32 | +61 |
| 2 | Omiya Ardija | 72 | 39 | 21 | 9 | 9 | 54 | 36 | +18 |
| 3 | Montedio Yamagata | 66 | 39 | 18 | 12 | 9 | 52 | 43 | +9 |
| 4 | Avispa Fukuoka | 61 | 39 | 18 | 7 | 14 | 46 | 38 | +8 |
| 5 | Kyoto Purple Sanga | 57 | 39 | 15 | 12 | 12 | 58 | 50 | +8 |
| 6 | Ventforet Kofu | 54 | 39 | 14 | 12 | 13 | 48 | 40 | +8 |
| 7 | Vegalta Sendai | 51 | 39 | 13 | 12 | 14 | 55 | 61 | -6 |
| 8 | Yokohama FC | 45 | 39 | 8 | 21 | 10 | 37 | 44 | -7 |
| 9 | Mito Hollyhock | 36 | 39 | 6 | 18 | 15 | 29 | 49 | -20 |
| 10 | Sagan Tosu | 34 | 39 | 8 | 10 | 21 | 30 | 57 | -27 |
| 11 | Shonan Bellmare | 32 | 39 | 6 | 14 | 19 | 34 | 57 | -23 |
| 12 | Consadole Sapporo | 27 | 39 | 5 | 12 | 22 | 28 | 57 | -29 |
Rumours and Rumblings
The Vortex of Football in Shikoku
Of Japan's four major islands, only one -- Shikoku -- has no representative team in the J.League. That is about to change, as two clubs from the region are making aggressive efforts to join the League. As part of its "100-year plan", the J.League has begun to work more closely with Japan's amateur football leagues, with the aim of bringing new members into the J2, and hopefully adding a third division (J3) at some point in the next decade. The first step in this ambitious plan involves expanding the J1 from 16 teams to 18; a step that will be taken in January 2005. The next step, which is currently in progress, will be to add teams to the J2, by accepting top clubs from the amateur ranks which have the interest and wherewithal to transform themselves into a professional club. Once the J2 expands to an acceptable size (though the League is evasive about what "acceptable" means, most comments suggest that the J2 will eventually consist of 16 teams), the third step will involve creating a division three, with slightly less exacting financial and organizational requirements for entry, again drawing on teams from the current JFL.Although the League's plans for expansion are quite ambitious, it is encouraging to note that they are not taking a haphazard approach to expansion. Noting the chaos that resulted in 1999, following the collapse of the Yokohama Flugels, as well as the current proplems faced by Japan"s professional baseball league, the J.League laid down some fairly stringent guidelines for J.League entry. Teams must meet certain regulations for the size of their home stadium the amount of financial capital, the number of players on the roster and total salary base (for all players and coaches), the number and financial stability of official sponsors, and so on. Consequently, while many teams have expressed interest in advancing to the J2, when official submissions were accepted by the J.League this summer, only three teams from the current JFL were able to meet all of the financial and organizational requirements. Interstingly enough, two of the candidates are located in Shikoku, which up to now has lacked a J.League team: Ehime FC and Otsuka Pharmaceutical FC (Tokushima Vortis).
Otsuka Pharmaceutical FC provides a fine example of how, in the world of Japanese football, grassroots support has overcome the vagaries of corporate bureaucracy. This is one of the characteristics that makes Japan's football culture slightly different from the money-driven leagues of Europe. In 1994, in response to the JFA's request to try to give teams a "local character", the team changed its name to "Vortis Tokushima". But in 1999, when the JFL was reorganised, the team officials inexplicably changed the name back to "Otsuka Pharmaceutical FC". This may reflect the fact that the company sponsor, Otsuka Pharmaceutical, felt that it could generate more publicity for itself by having the team named after the company. Though the fans seemed to prefer the name "Vortis", the big corporate sponsor ignored the wishes of fans and from the 1999 season, participated in the JFL as "Otsuka Pharmaceutical".
But while Otsuka Pharmaceutical may have had the "power" to choose a name for its team, it soon discovered that this power was only nominal. The company was wholly unprepared to address the campaign of "nonviolent resistance" organised by the team's fans. Though they never openly clashed with the sponsors, fans of the team continued to show up at the stadium each week with huge banners reading "Vortis Tokushima". Fan sites on the Internet invariably use the name "Vortis", as do the names of all the local fan clubs. Though the official scores printed in newspapers may have used the name "Otsuka Pharmaceutical", in every other respect, the team continued to be known as "Vortis".
Fortunately, the corporate sponsor eventually realised which side of the bread had butter on it. By the start of the 2001 season, the team began selling official goods which used the name "Vortis Tokushima" in small letters, in addition to the "Otsuka FC" logomark. With their application for J2 entry, the name Otsuka FC finally died an unlamented death. In accord with the J.League's rules against the use of corporate names, the team petitioned for entry as "Tokushima Vortis". Apparently, the back-office apparatchiks must have felt that reversing the order of the name would demonstrate that they still had SOME power. But in the end, it is the grassroots fan base that has triumphed.
Last week, a Vortis victory ensured that the team will finish no lower than second place, thus meeting the last of the requirements for J2 entry. In 2005, a new era will dawn for football in Shikoku, as Tokushiuma Vortis joins the J.League. Hopefully, there will be many more teams to follow, in the years to come.
Football Fans in Tokyo Urged to "Go Orange"
Last week's Niigata-Chuetsu earthquake has disrupted the lives of thousands who live along Japan's northern coast, and as the region sets about rebuilding their homes and their lives, many people throughout Japan have respondes with help, both in terms of financial donations and messages of encouragement. Naturally, the members of Albirex Niigata have been in the forefront of the effort to organise support for the local people, hoping to repay, in some small way, the tremendous support that the people of Niigata have shown the team over the past decade.Though the team has not even been a member of the top-flight division for a full year, the Albirex faithful have already earned a reputation as some of the most faithful and enthusiastic supporters in the entire league. In the wake of the devastation caused by the earthquake, this weekend's home match between Albirex and Kashiwa Reysol. All things considered, it is hardly a surprise that the management and players of both teams, as well as the J.League and the JFA wanted to find an appropriate way to show their support for the people of Niigata prefecture.
And so, the J.League has rescheduled the Niigata-Kashiwa match for November 11, and moved the venue to National Stadium in Tokyo. Damage to the Niigata Shinkansen may make it more difficult for local fans from Niigata to get to the match, but knowing the tremendous loyalty and pride of the Albirex supporters, they will find SOME way to get there. With the decision to relocate the venue, the J.League has provided football fans in Tokyo with a wonderful opportunity to show their support for the people of Niigata prefecture, as well as for the Albirex team and its wonderful fans.
So if you happen to be in the Tokyo area next Wednesday, pull that old orange sweatshirt out of the closet and get on down to National Stadium. The stadium should be packed, and considering the sort of football that Albirex have been playing this season, it will surely be great entertainment. This is your opportunity to help out, even if it is only by lending your voice to the cheers for Niigata's home team. Proceeds from the match, as well as donations collected inside the stadium, will be used in the earthquake relief efforts. Dont miss this opportunity to join the orange army. Go orange.
Go Albirex!
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