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November 1, 2005
JFL Hopefuls Prepare for Battle

The competition to determine JFL promotion carries the unweildy title of "The 28th Annual Nationwide Regional League Championship Tournament". In past years, this was not viewed as a particularly important event. It mainly involved teams of company workers who played football in the evenings after work, and the competition was as "amateurish" as the teams themselves.

But this year is a different story indeed. A number of clubs are eagerly pursuing a spot in the JFL as the first step on their road to the J.Leauge. The participants include the winners of the Regional League competitions in each of nine regions, and the runners-up from four regions. This produces a relatively unweildy number -- 13 teams, though this inequity has been addressed by grouping two teams with no prospect of advancing beyond the JFL in the same group.

This year can probably be considered the "inaugural season" for the tournament in terms of its relationship to the J.League. Even last season, only two of the teams taking part in the battle for promotion to the JFL were organised as independent corporations, with an expressed intention of eventually earning admission to the J.League. This year, nine of the 13 teams have either declared openly their goal of J.League admission, or have taken steps to create a team structure which would qualify them for eventual J.League admission.

The tournament will be played in two round-robin stages. The first stage groups the 13 teams into four pools, and the winner of each pool advances to the second stage. Following the second round-robin of four teams, the top two will earn immediate promotion to the JFL for next season. There have been some rumours that an existing JFL team may withdraw, and if that is the case, we suspect that the top three teams in the second stage will advance.

The first stage format is as follows:

Perhaps the most interesting thing to note is that the tournament is being held entirely at stadiums in Kyushu and Shikoku. This is more than just a coincidence. Though many who follow the J.League will have the impression that football is most popular in the northern and easter half of Japan, with interest dropping off in the Kansai area, this stereotyle is no longer accurate. Football fever has infected all of Japan's "smaller islands" (not only Shikoku and Kyushu, but also Hokkaido and the islands of Okinawa). The cities and towns of these regions have been at the forefront of the boom in small amateur clubs seeking a spot in the J.League. Indeed, as we reported last week, it now appears likely that FC Ehime (located in Matsuyama, Shikoku) will join its neighbour Tokushima Vortis in the J2 next year, and the other two major towns on the island -- Kochi and Takamatsu -- may not be far behind. Kochi prefecture will host the first-round matches for pools C and D, and the local club Nangoku Kochi FC will be hoping to use the home field advantage to earn a spot in the JFL. The finals will be held in Okayama's "Momotaro" Stadium, which should provide a big boost to Fagiano Okayama, should they make their way through to the final round.

Below is the tournament schedule:

POOL A

FC Ryukyu

Team Insignia: Team Logo: Team Name: FC Ryukyu Home Town: Ginowan City, Okinawa Prefecture Founded: 1946 Current Status: Kyushu Regional League Home Stadium Kitaya Athletic Stadium

This year, the torch-carrier for Okinawan football, FC Ryukyu, has at least an outside chance of bringing Okinawa into the "big time" of Japanese football -- well, at least by moving into the JFL. They were extremely fortunate in the draw for the first round, getting grouped with a relatively unknown and untested team from Saitama, and a company club from the Sagawa Kyubin group. Though the going will get tougher in the second round, at least FC Ryukyu has a good chance to make it to the final four. If the team does manage to earn promotion to the JFL, it will become the first Okinawan club to do so.

FC Ryukyu finished second, this year, in the Kyushu regional league, but was far more fortunate than the first-place finisher, Rosso Kumamoto, who were drawn into the "group of death. FC Ryukyu has set itself the goal of J.League promotion before 2010. Though this may seem highly ambitious, that seems to be a good match for the club's character. FC Ryukyu certainly has a lot of "flash". The club's crest, alone, is worthy of a spot in the top-flight division, with its Okinawan lion-dogs, red eyes ablaze, and the boastful inscription "since 2003" (it may sound a bit like irony now, but come back in a hundred years or so . . . ).

Luminoso Sayama

Team Name: Lumonoso Sayama Home Town: Sayama City, Saitama Prefecture Founded: 1946 Current Status: Kanto Regional League Home Stadium Kumagaya Stadium Team Logo:

POOL B

Grulla Morioka

Team Name: Grulla Morioka Team Insignia: Home Town: Morioka City, Miyagi Prefecture Founded: 1953 Regional League: Tohoku Home Stadium Morioka Minami Park Stadium Seats 7,000 Team Logo: Team Flag:

Grulla Morioka will be a formidable candidate for promotion to the JFL. In January 2004, local boy Shinichi Muto took early retirement from J.League club JEF United in order to return home and take the spot as Grulla's player-coach. Muto probably could have played another two or three years at the J.League level, if he wanted to, so this represented a big investment on his part, in the new team. Muto forms one corner of a formidable midfield triangle which should match up well against any opponent. At the attacking point of the triangle is 18-year-old Cameroon national, Didier Coaccam, while the third spot is filled by another local boy, Yosuke Nishi, who Muto met while at Vegalta Sendai. After taking up the head coach position at Grulla, Muto convinced Nishi to trade a spot in the Vegalta reserves for a starting position with Grulla. Just a year after the team was formed, Grulla won promotion to the Tohoku regional league, and a victory in this tournament would boost the local fans' J.League ambitions even further. Unfortunately, the team got drawn into the "group of death", alongside Rosso Kumamoto and Fagiano Okayama, who both have J.League ambitions of their own. The one advangtage, though, is that Group B promises to be the most competitive of the tournament, and whoever makes it through to the second round should be able to coast into the JFL next season.

Rosso Kumamoto

Team Name: Rosso Kumamoto Team Insignia: Home Town: Kumamoto City, Kumamoto Prefecture Founded: 1953 Regional League: Kyushu Home Stadium KK Wing Stadium Seats 18,500 Team Logo: Team Flag:

Beginning in 2005, the team established a new, independent corporation named Rosso Kumamoto. If one considers their strong corporate backing and beautiful home stadium, they should have no trouble meeting the criteria for J.League promotion once they achieve the necessary results out on the pitch. The team's first step towards succeess in that area was to hire former Kashiwa Reysol boss Tomoyoshi Ikeya as their head coach. Ikeya was not particularly successful in the J.League, but he does have good coaching and organizational abilities, and equally important, has strong contacts with J.League teams and players. Coach Ikeya brought with him veteran defender Shin Asahina, who had played under Ikeya at Cerezo Osaka and was nearing the end of his career. He also picked up two players from the Reysol youth squad who had reached "graduation" age but were not in line for promotion to the Reysol reserves. Rosso probably has more players with J.League experience than any other club in the tournament, and they bolstered the squad further just last month with the signing of striker Daisuke Yoneyama, from Cerezo Osaka.

As we noted in our comments on Grulla Morioka, Rosso has the misfortune of being in the "group of death, but should they progress to the second round, a JFL spot should be in their grasp.

Fagiano Okayama

Team Name: Fagiano Okayama Team Insignia: Home Town: Okayama City, Okayama Prefecture Founded: 2003 Regional League: Chugoku Home Stadium "Momotaro" Stadium Seats 16,500 Team Logo: Team Flag:

However, what Fagiano may possess in enthusiasm is not matched in experience. Only a two players have even the slightest J.League experience, and most are under 25 years old. Their participation in this tournament is sure to give them useful experience, but rather than holding out hopes of advancement this year, Fagiano is likely to content themselve to be the "spoiler" in this group of death.

POOL C

Nagano Elsa

Team Insignia: Team Logo: Team Name: Nagano Elsa Home Town: Nagano City, Nagano Prefecture Founded: 1990 Current Status: Hokushinetsu Regional League Home Stadium Matsumoto "Arwin" Stadium

Since then, several teams (including some that have been around for years) have emerged as prospective candidates for the role of "Nagano's Team", and there is little question that whichever one is first to win a spot in the J.League will inherit a huge and enthusiastic fan base. The only question is who will get there first. The prize for the victor is more than just first place in the hearts of local residents. Included in the "package" will be the right to claim Matsumoto's "Arwin" Stadium as home. As anyone who has visited the stadium knows, Arwin is one of the nicest football-only facilities in all of Japan, and though it seasts "only" 25,000, when Arwin fills up it can be a truly magnificent venue for a football match.

Nagano Elsa has the inside track to be the first team from Nagano to reach the JFL. Although the team was founded just 15 years ago, it has a strong record of performance over the past decade, representing Nagano Prefecture in the Emperor's Cup on numerous occasions and winning the Nagano Prefectural title every year but one, between 1996 and 2000. In addition, Nagano has a sister-city relationship with Munich, Germany, and Elsa has hosted of several training visits by coaches from 1860 Munich, which has ties to the club. The team has been drawn into a very "demanding" group, since pool C is the only one with four team, and each member of this pool will therefore have to play one extra match. Nevertheless, this is a pool that Elsa should be able to win.

Some might fancy JEF United Amateur -- a club with ties to J1 club JEF United. However, there are rumours that both the JFL and J.League (which have separate bureaucratic structures and sometimes get involved in minor disagreements over "turf") are less than thrilled with the idea of having a J.League "taxi squad" in the JFL. It is impossible to be certain, but we think JEF Amateur may send a very young and inexperienced team to this tournament. That leaves two top competitors with J.League aspirations and one company team. Nagano Elsa does not have the sort of talent or depth of teams like Grulla Morioka or Rosso Kumamoto, but they are probably on a par with their main competition in this group -- Nobiritz Hokkaido. Whichever one makes it through to the second round will have a decent chance of moving on into the JFL.

Norbritz Hokkaido

Team Name: Norbritz Hokkaido Football Club Team Insignia: Home Town: Ebetsu City, Hokkaido Prefecture Founded: 1985 Current Status: Hokkaido Regional League (since 1989) Team Logo & Mascot: Home Stadium Ebetsu Stadium / Muroran Stadium Team Flag:

As noted above, Nobiritz Hokkaido is likely to be the main challenger to Nagano Elsa in pool C.. The Hokkaido league has been gaining strength in recent years, and the team that has dominated regional football in Hokkaido for years is Norbritz Hokkaido. The team was founded in 1985, as the company team of Hokkaido Electric Power Company. Its progress was rapid, and it advanced from the Sapporo League to the Hokkaido Regional League in just four years. In 1992, Norbritz won the regional title for the first time, and since then it has finished atop the division nine times, and never finished lower than second place. Last year, Nobiritz set up a separate corporation in order to make itself eligible for J.League entry, though the team still receives strong support from Hokkaido Electric Power.

Norbritz boasts a fairly good fan base, and though its location, very close to Sapporo (in the city of Ebetsu) forces it to compete with Consadole for fans, the area of southwest Hokkaido boasts several good stadiums, which could easily allow two teams to co-exist. Norbritz has played a few of its home matches at Muroran stadium. If the team moved permanently to the southern half of the broad plain that, including Sapporo, accomodates the majority of Hokkaido's population, it might create a local rivalry that would stimulate the growth of the sport even more. Like Consadole, the team adopted a local animal (the arctic fox) as a mascot, which has helped to emphasize the local character even more. Though some might think that the region is too sparsely populated to support two separate clubs, we think that Hokkaido could benefit greatly from having a second J.League club. The derby opportunitie alone would boost interest in the region. Therefore, Norbritz is a good candidate for the JFL, and hopefully for J.League promotion as well, several years down the line.

POOL D

Shizuoka FC

Team Insignia: Team Logo: Team Name: Shizuoka Football Club Home Town: Shizuoka City, Shizuoka Prefecture Founded: 2001 Current Status: Tokai Regional League

Shizuoka FC is a farily recent creation, having just been formed in 2001. Although it has adopted an independent organizational structure in order to qualify for J.League entry, it seems unlikely that Shizuoka prefecture can support yet ANOTHER club (though in a three-division league, who knows?) Nevertheless, it is hard to avoid developing a sense of admiration for this team, if only because Shizuoka FC boasts what is almost certainly the coolest official team logo of any football team in Japan. The understated black-and white transposition, coupled with the brilliantly rendered samurai helmet icon, is the sort of thing that most fan clubs would kill for. Can you imagine the feeling that you would get, standing in the front row of a stadium and waving a huge black flag with this logo dead centre?

The team not only boasts a number of players with J.League experience, but it is coached and led by the very able Yoshika Matsubara, who was a member of Japan's Olympic team in Atlanta, and played for many years in the J.League at BOTH Shizuoka-based teams, Jubilo Iwata and Shimizu S-Pulse. Matsubara, who has 35 youth NT caps and 13 goals, may be slowing down a bit, but as the player-coach of this team he is a fine leader who should have his team charged up for the competition. Several other players have substantial J.League experience, and we think that Shizuoka FC will probabluy vie with whoever emerges from Pool B to be the tournament champion.

Shizuoka FC has the added fortune of being drawn into the weakest of the four pools. Though Nangoku Kochi may put up a good fight, playing all of its matches on home turf in the pool round, we think the level of skill at Shizuoka FC will carry the day.

In a year when two Osaka-area teams are chasing the J1 title, it would be nice to think that football was beginning to catch on in Kansai. Unfortunately, we get the sense that the performances of Cerezo and Gamba Osaka are coming DESPITE the local support (or lack thereof), rather than because of it. AThen again, who knows. Perhaps Banditonce Kobe will surprise us, and win promotion to the JFL . . . . then again, the way things are going in Kobe, they may soon be joined there by their cross-town rivals, Vissel.

Cracker Crumbs

0 - 0 PK 5-4

Well, as Joe Cocker used to say, I guess it just didnt work out that way.

For the second year in a row, the Nabisco Cup title match ended in a scoreless draw, and was decided on penalty kicks. That much information alone might give the reader an impression of what sort of match this was, and although both teams did play a fairly interesting and offence-oriented match, rather than simply trying to defend relentlessly, that cant change the general impression that one gets from a scoreless draw. Offence-oriented, they might have been, but neither team really took the sort of chances that were required to actually score. When you stubbornly refuse to send more than five players forward into attack, you should not be surprised when you are unable to break down a top-class defence.

Of the two teams, JEF United deserve far more credit for keeping the contest positive. Gamba, on the other hand, displayed none of the attacking flair and offensive momentum that they became famous for, earlier in the season. Perhaps it is no coincidence, then, that they have lost their last three matches. Since Gasmba took over the top stot in the league championship race, there has been some legitimate criticism of coach Nishino's game plan and the fact that they have allowed an unusually large number of goals this season. However, a championship title match (even in a cup tournament) is no time to start getting conservative.

As we noted in our preview to this report, JEF United actually won this match 1-0, on a goal in the final few minutes of regulation time. A nice overlap move by Koki Mizuno allowed him to get to the end line and cross the ball in front of net. The keeper rushed for the near post but the ball was headed on by Takenori Hayashi, and it bounded on, in front of a wide-open net. Seiichiro Maki and a Gamba defender both threw themselves at the ball, with the defender a half step ahead. However, he was off balance and the ball bounded off his shoulder and into his own net.

The JEF United fans behind the goal went wild, and Maki spend almost a full minute celebrating before he noticed that the referee, Mr. Matsumura, was waving off the goal. Replays showed some incidental contact between the two players, but both were clearly going for the ball, and it was certainly NOT the sort of contact that would merit a foul call under such circumstances (match on the line with seconds left in the contest, the ball is bounding lose in front of the net, and the striker is trying to reach the ball to knock it into the net). It will be interesting to see whether the mainstream press discuss this play, since it was a blatantly mised call (in fairness to Mr. Matsumura, it looked like he did not make the call himself, but responded to his linesman's waving flag). However, the linesman was extremely fortunate in that JEF eventually did win the match. If they had lost, you can be sure that coach Osim would have had something to say about it. The big Croatian is usually has about the quietest and most unemotional sideline presence of anyone in the league, but following this particular play he was livid, and had to be restrained by his translator and assistant coaches.

After being let off the hook by such a fortunate officiating call, you might have expected Gamba to respond with an emotional surge. But on the contrary, it was JEF who dominated the extra time periods, and Gamba often seemed to be just hanging on and waiting for the final whistle. In the end, neither team was able to produce a goal that would satisfy the referees, and the match went to a PK shootout. Thed very first kicker, Yasuhito Endo, tried to read the keeper's first move, but JEF goaltender Ryo Kushino held his nerve and did not budge until Endo actually struck the ball. Because he had halted his run-up to watch for the keeper's move, Endo had no momentum on the ball, and Jushino was able to swat it away. All of the other shooters hit the target, and as a result JEF United claimed the title.

The beauty of this tournament has always been based on its unpredictability and in particular, on the breakneck pace of the knockout round which has traditionally taken place over the month of December, culminating in the Cup Final in Tokyo's National Stadium, on New Year's Day. Because the nationwide phase of the competition was played in a very short period, in a single-elimination format, the potential for rank outsiders to spring surprises on much more "famous" opponents gave this tournament an air of romanticism. The "Cinderella Story" of the tournament was always the most enjoyable theme. Even after the J.League was formed, and professional teams began to dominate the latter stages of the tournament, there was still plenty of opportunity for upsets, and this was what gave the tournament its charm.

But the J.League has at last succeeded in driving out every vestige of romance and beauty from the Emperor's Cup, and turned it into just a dull competition among J.League powers. The J.League bureaucrats have been poisoning the tournament, in stages, over the past several years, fighting a battle with the JFA (who administer the tournament) in order to water down the "unpredictability" factor as much as possible. First they insisted that J1 teams allowed a bye until the fourth round of the competition, in order to ensure that the top J.League teams would rarely if ever have to suffer the embarassment of losing to a rank outsider. When fired-up amateur teams continued to perform well, they demanded that that schedule be revised with early rounds played months in advance, thereby preventing smaller teams from developing momentum and "enthusiasm" while allowing the J.League clubs ample time to prepare for each early-round opponent. This rescheduling has essentially destroyed the tournament. For one thing, the early rounds -- where the colour of local stadiums and small clubs is most apparent -- are totally ignored by the media. In addition, by bringing in JFL and J2 clubs two rounds earlier than the J1 clubs, by the time the "real show" begins almost all of the potential Cinderellas have already been eliminated.

Furthermore, whereas the tournament used to take place over a period of just six weeks, the rescheduling breaks up the tournament so much that any vestige of continuity -- the "story line" which provided much of the tournament's romance in past years -- is totally destroyed. For example, the last round of the competition was played nearly a month ago, back on October 9. Following this week's matches, the tournament breaks for another month, and the round of 16 will not be played until December 10. Another two weeks elapses before the quarterfinals an only then does the pace pick up, with the final two rounds played over the next ten days. How can anyone maintain focus on the "story" behind the Emperor's Cup when they have to wait a month or more for the next chapter?

Last year, we already sensed that the magic was dying, though a true Cinderella story -- the valiant run by Thespa Kusatsu, who beat two J.League teams including an extra-time win over the Yokohama Marinos even after they had been reduced to nine men -- prevented people from noticing that the tournament was just a shadow of what it used to be. This year, the Emperor's Cup has been destroyed completely. Just three days into November, every single non-J.League club has already been eliminated, and even most of the J2 clubs have bowed out. What we have left is just another J.League Cup. Big Deal! The only real story of any interest, on a day when J1 teams (playing at their home stadiums no less) notched a shutout against J2 and JFL opposition, was the fact that last year's champions Tokyo Verdy were knocked out of the competition in their first match. But then, they were playing another J1 team -- Oita Trinita -- so that hardly qualifies as an "upset".

Once upon a time, Japan had a truly innocent and unspoiled tournament, contested by teams from every corner of the country and played with an air of chivalrous combat in small stadiums throughout the land. Every region had its local champion, carrying the dreams and aspirations of the townsfolk into battle, for the glory of victory and the pride of merely having taken part. Once upon a time . . . .

But like all fairy tales, this one has been extinguished in the harsh, sterile light of our modern age. There is no white knight waiting to ride to the rescue, and there will be no happily ever after.The Emperor's Cup is dead. Long Live Leviathan!

Here are the scores of Thursday's matches. Both JEF United and Gamba Osaka -- who meet in the Nabisco Cup final on Saturday -- will play their fourth-round matches on Wednesday.

Date	Home	.	Away	Venue
Nov 3	Kashima Antlers (J1)	7-0	Honda Lock (JFL)	Kashima Stadium
Nov 3	Oita Trinita (J1)	3-2	Tokyo Verdy (J1)	Oita "Big Eye Std
Nov 3	Alo's Hokuriku (JFL)	0-1	Nagoya Grampus (J1)	Toyama Stadium
Nov 3	Omiya Ardija (J1)	1-0	Kyoto Purple Sanga (J2)	Omiya Stadium
Nov 3	Urawa Reds (J1)	2-1	Montedio Yamagata (J2)	Komaba Stadium
Nov 3	FC Tokyo (J1)	2-0	Avispa Fukuoka (J2)	Ajinomoto Stadium
Nov 3	Yokohama Marinos (J1)	4-0	Vegalta Sendai (J2)	Mitsuzawa Stadium
Nov 3	Kasawaki Frontale (J1)	5-1	Sagawa Kyubin (JFL)	Todoroki Stadium
Nov 3	Kashiwa Reysol (J1)	2-2 PK 3-1	Vissel Kobe (J1)	Kashiwa Stadium
Nov 3	Cerezo Osaka (J1)	1-1 PK 4-1	Honda FC (JFL)	Nagai Stadium
Nov 3	Jubilo Iwata (J1)	4-0	Sagan Tosu (J2)	Iwata Stadium
Nov 3	Albirex Niigata(J1)	1-0	Thespa Kusatsu (J2)	Niigata "Big Swan"
Nov 3	Sanfrecce Hiroshima (J1)	3-1	Mito Hollyhock (J2)	Hiroshima "Big Arch"
Nov 3	Shimizu S-Pulse (J1)	5-0	Tokushima Vortis (J2)	Nihondaira Stadium
Nov 10	Gamba Osaka (J1)	vs	Yokohama FC (J2)	"Banpaku" Stadium
Nov 10	JEF United (J1)	vs	Ventforet Kofu (J2)	Ichihara Seaside Std