S-Pulse 3-0 Gamba Osaka (Emp Cup Semi Final)

Barry writes:

S-Pulse 3-0 Gamba Osaka
Johnsen 19, 61
Hyodo 28

Att. 14179

Line Up

GK K. Yamamoto

DF Ichikawa
DF Iwashita
DF Bosnar
DF Ota

MF Hyodo
MF Honda
MF Ono

FW Okazaki
FW Johnsen
FW Fujimoto

Subs Used

Ito T. on for Ono (69)
Omae on for Johnsen (77)
Yamamoto on for Hyodo (90)

Report

Blimey. Five days ago we hadn't even played our quarter final. Now we're two days away from a cup final day out in Tokyo. When you've spent most of the days in-between drunk and/or bloated on Christmas gorging, it's more than a little surreal. I guess that's the unique magic of the Emperor's Cup!

Kick off

We played with a confidence and verve that surprised even me. We battered Osaka for long periods, and when they did launch attacks of their own, Kaito, who has stepped into the space left by the injured Nishibe, displayed safe hands time and again. Ono was a class above as usual, and the impact of the lack of Endo for the visitors was clearly apparent. Johnsen seems to like Ecopa, and he was on hand again to nod home his second and third goals at the Fukuroi stadium this year.

I'll keep it short because I'm tired, hung over and worn out from all that sambaing. Well, we ran around with a purpose and intent I've not seen for a while. We swept around the field with confidence and always looked like winning. If we can recreate that on Saturday I've no doubt we can win it against the Antlers. We're yet to lose to Kashima this season and owe them for the 2000 final when they did us 3-2 after extra time.

It's our fourth Emperor's Cup final appearance, and nineth cup final in total. From those previous eight, we've won only two. If nothing else, the law of averages is on our side! Losing seven out of nine would be statistically improbable. Therefore, we're going to win. :)

You'd better believe it!

The 90th Emperor's Cup. 2010 Final: Kashima Antlers versus Shimizu S-Pulse. Two of the five ever-presents in J1 face off together for more than the Emperor's Cup title. Also at stake is the fourth and final ACL berth. The game is totally sold out but my ticket is safely stashed under my pillow, so you can be assured of a full report on Sunday (or sometime in February is we lose).

Videos

Soneone's video of Johnsen's opener.



I took a video which happily coincided with Hyodo's bullet strike.



The big fella makes it 3-0 with his second of the day.



Outs

While I'm here, Nagasawa and Hiroi have been loaned out to J2 outfit Roasso Kumamoto for a year, while Takagi has left for Consadole Sapporo.

Shonan 3-6 S-Pulse

Barry writes:

Shonan 3-6 S-Pulse
Emerson 41, 86 ---------Johnsen 4, 26, 51
Nakamura 43--------------Hyodo 10
---------------------------------Okazaki 12
---------------------------------Fujimoto 54

Att. 13316

Line Up

GK Nishibe

DF Ichikawa
DF Iwashita
DF Hiraoka
DF Ota (yellow 48)

MF Hyodo
MF M. Yamamoto
MF Ono

FW Okazaki
FW Johnsen
FW Fujimoto

Subs Used

Ito on for Ono (HT)
Nagai on for Johnsen (57)
Edamura on for Okazaki (79)

Report

Emails exchanged between me and Fuz on Sunday, August 1st 2010.

Barry to Fuz. 11:55am

On the way to football way too early. :( :(

Barry to Fuz. 7:08pm

one nil johnsen

Barry to Fuz. 7:13pm

two nil hyodo

Barry to Fuz. 7:15pm

three nil okachan

Barry to Fuz. 7:30pm

four nil johnsen

Barry to Fuz. 7:52pm

four two h/t

Fuz to Barry. 8:11pm

bloody hell!

Barry to Fuz. 8.12pm

five two johnsen

thank fuck for that

5-2

Barry to Fuz. 8:14pm

six two jungo

party time!

6-2

Fuz to Barry. 8:21pm

(^^)/ (^^)/ (^^)/ (^^)/ (^^)/

Barry to Fuz. 8:45pm

six three

Fuz to Barry. 8:46pm

(>.<)

Barry to Fuz. 8:54pm

six six full time

(>.<)

Fuz to Barry. 8:54pm

bullshit! i hope

Seconds later came an an irate call from Fuz to Barry

:)

Next up, Kashima for a top of the table clash at a sold out 'Daira. Bring it.

Videos

Full highlights:



And here's what they do in Hiratsuka in lieu of a big screen:



Cute. :)

Yamagata 0-1 S-Pulse

Barry writes:

Yamagata 0-1 S-Pulse
---------------------------------------Johnsen 37

Att. 12270

Report

Our rich vein of form continued against Yamagata with a 1-0 victory up in the mountains. Now unbeaten in eleven, winning seven and drawing four, we climbed up to 2nd, just four points behind the severely faltering Antlers. There are eight games remaining, and as the title race starts to hot up, for the first time in years, we're right up there with a shot.

Our goal came from Johnsen after a pinpoint cross from Hyodo was met by The Big Norwegian. He was able to beat the defender and powered an excellent header into the back of the net which left the keeper no chance. This made up for an achingly close miss by Edamura twenty minutes earlier after an excellently penetrating run down the wing by a resurgent Ichikawa. That itself came not long after Iwashita very nearly added to his four goal tally this season, and it needed an excellent save from the Montedio keeper to deny him.

Yamagata caught us out on more than one occasion and it was far from a walk in the park. The home team have now lost their last four, and are in severe danger of the drop back to J2. Personally I hope they stay up, but they will have to be more decisive in front of goal if they're to manage it. At least twice they should have made more of their chances, and I couldn't help but think against a better team we'd have been punished.

In terms of statistics it was a pretty one-sided match, with 14-3 and 8-3 reflecting shots and corners both heavily in our favour. We face Kobe at home next week, and we'll have to be rather more deadly in front of goal if we want to close the gap on the defending champions further. After that we host Hiroshima, which is shaping up to be a huge game. Our final three games are against pretty tough opposition, so I'm hoping we can take some serious pointage over the next five weeks.

In the big picture this weekend, it was two big surprise results which let us gain ground on the top spot, with both Kashima and Frontale losing in games you would have put money on them winning. Gamba Osaka and Niigata both drew, and on Sunday Hiroshima could only draw with relegation threatened Kashiwa, so we end the weekend two points clear of 3rd with a better goal difference.

In all this chat, let's not forget that Kawasaki have the remaining 16 minutes of their rained off game with Kashima still to play. If they can hold onto their 3-1 lead, Kashima's goal difference will be cut by two, and join S-Pulse on plus 13. The title race is well and truly on!

--------------------

Having just read my own post back, I can't help but notice how measured and calm it all seems. Nothing could be further from the truth - I think the prospect of having a pop at the title is just playing havoc with my nerves! COME ON BOYS - NOW FOR THE FINAL PUSH TOWARDS GLORY!

WE BELIEVE!!!

Line up

GK K. Yamamoto

DF Ichikawa
DF Iwashita
DF Arata
DF Ota

MF Edamura
MF Honda
MF Ito
MF Hyodo

FW Johnsen
FW Okazaki

Subs used

Fujimoto on for Edamura (68)
Paulo on for Okazaki (74)

Videos etc

Full highlights. The yak ends and the action starts at 0:48.



For official club photos, click here (top row). The Rising Sun's review of this, and all other J. League games this weekend, can be found here.

S-Pulse 2-2 Kashima

Barry writes:

S-Pulse 2-2 Kashima
Okazaki 44 ----------------Nozawa 26
Johnsen 56 ----------------Marquinhos 44

Att: 20203

Wow. What an eveing that was! There wasn't a spare seat in the house to witness a roller coaster of a game, and to see S-Pulse extend their unbeaten streak at home beyond the year point.

I can't bloody see!

We should have won this. Iwashita, a player I've got a lot of time for, made two absolutely shocking errors to give the champs a two goal lead. Well at 2-0 down to Kashima it was always going to be an mountain to climb to get back ino the game, but our boys were more than up for it.

Even given the huge knock our confidence took to be 2-0 down when we should still have been level, we rallied and came back fighting. Okazaki connected to a Johnsen cross with a world class header to claw one back right before the break.

Not an empty seat in the house

Ten minutes after the restart, Johnsen also slammed a header home to level and send the packed stands delirious. We went close to a winner on a number of occasions, but it wasn't to be. Kashima equal their own record of 16 games unbeaten, and we fall further off the pace of the ACL spots. Well, given everything, it wasn't a bad evening at all, and for pure entertainment, one of the best games I've seen for a long time.

Iwashita came over after the game for a personal apology, and we all appreciated it, but don't dwell on it, fella. We're all human, and you've more than made up for any mistakes this season already with some excellent performances!

Onwards and upwards - JEF away next week and three points is a must!

Line Up

GK K. Yamamoto

DF Ichikawa
DF Iwashita
DF Arata
DF Ota

MF Ito
MF Honda
MF Hyodo
MF Edamura

FW Okazaki
FW Johnsen

Subs used

Fujimoto on for Hyodo (65)
Aoyama on for Ota (74)
Hara on for Honda (79)

Videos

Full highlights:

FC Tokyo 2-1 S-Pulse

Barry writes:

FC Tokyo 2-1 S-Pulse
Kajiyama (7) ------------Johnsen (58)
Ishikawa (62)

Att. 28987

As always when we lose, the absolute last thing in the world I want to do it write a report about it. So I'm not going to. This decision was also facilitated by the fact I didn't go to the game, nor did I watch it on the box. Alas to say, we blew our chance to move into the top five and open up some space between us and the many teams on or around 20 points in midtable.

Good to see Johnsen on the score sheet again, but our fourth defeat this season is still a bitter pill to take, especially after our recent good run. It is only our fourth loss this year, mind you. Only four other teams have lost less, and they're in the top four positions, so let's keep things in perspective.

Next up is Kyoto on S-Pulse's official birthday - July 4th. 17 years ago to the day we played our first ever game (away to Gamba Osaka), and if we can avoid defeat next week, that'll be a year unbeaten at home in the league. It's surprising to think we've not fallen to defeat at home since Kobe turned us over last summer, but it's true, and should we overcome Sanga, 16 home league games unbeaten is something worth celebrating.

Our run in full: W D W W W W W W D W D D D W W

Come on then boys, let's make it a round 16, and a full year!

Line Up

GK K. Yamamoto

DF Ichikawa
DF Aoyama
DF Kodama
DF Ota

MF Okazaki
MF Edamura
MF Ito
MF Hyodo

FW Johnsen
FW Hara

Subs used:

Paulo on for Edamura (42)
Fujimoto on for Hyodo (73)
Tsujio on for Ichikawa (83)

Videos etc

Highlights to come as soon as I find them online. Click here for some official club photos from the game (top row).

S-Pulse 4-1 Montedio Yamagata

Barry writes:

S-Pulse 4-1 Yamagata

Hara (5) -----------Hirose (46)
Own Goal (9)
Okazaki (51)
Johnsen (60)

Att. 17865

Report

What a glorious day to be an S-Pulse fan!

The sun was out down at Daira

Within ten minutes of the start, Yamagata's hardy travelling contingent must have been wondering why they bothered. 2-0 down to two admittedly slightly fortunate goals, they must have realised by then that it wasn't going to be their day.

Not that there were many, but most the empty seats were in the away area

Our first came from Hara who made no mistake in dispatching the ball into the net after a poor defensive error from the Montedio number three, Leonard. The lead was doubled just four minutes later when a half cleared ball fell to the recalled Ichikawa. He slammed it back in to the area. Was it a cross? Was it a shot? Who knows! All history will recall is that it took not one, but two deflections on it's was goalward, and ended up in the back of the net. Not surprisingly, it went down as an own goal.

For the rest of the first half we looked the more threatening team, but didn't really look like extending our lead. The next goal came within a minute of the restart, when Montedio burst down the left wing, floated a perfect ball to the far post, and due to the lack of defensive positioning, was slammed home by the blue and white attacker.

A banner urging us to sing up. "Silence is Prohibited"

At 2-1 with half the game to go, it could have swung either way. Lucky for us, we have a striker in some of the best form in the country. Fresh off the back of firing Japan to next year's World Cup, Okazaki was back in Shimizu and he didn't let us down. Five minutes after the Montedio goal, he took down a long ball from Iwashita on his chest, and it was with a classic Okachan finish that he smashed it home to make it 3-1 and push the game beyond the visitor's reach.

We kept surging forward and looked increasingly dangerous and growing in confidence as the game went on. Ten minutes later, an unstoppable Hara run down the wing and an inch perfect cross into the danger area was met by Johnsen for another priceless goal from the big man. They're rarely pretty, but they all count, and we love him for it!

Moments after the big Norwegian made it 4-1

Even after our fourth we weren't done, and were unlucky on a couple of occasions not to have grabbed a fifth. However, when we replaced Okazaki with Jungo and Johnsen with gangly youngster Nagasawa (why not Genki, Kenta?) our threat up from was gone at a stroke, and we just ran the clock down. But let's not be greedy; it was our third league win on the spin and was a great confidence building exercise in front of excellent home crowd. We're up to fifth and a whisker away from the ACL positions.

The defeat for the visitors, their heaviest since joining J1, leaves them without a win in six and drops them down to 15th. After their early season heroics, the reality of a long hard season seems to have arrived, and unless they can string a couple of results together, they'll be staring down the barrel of a relegation battle.

As for us, top work everyone, now bring on Tokyo next week! Before I sign off, I was wondering if it's even worth mentioning that Jubilo lost again today? Is it necessary to point out that when they played Yamagata at home they lost 6-2 and there were nearly 6000 less people in attendance? Not really, but I may as well. :)

Line Up

GK K. Yamamoto

DF Ichikawa
DF Iwashita
DF Kodama
DF Ota

MF Okazaki
MF Edamura
MF Ito
MF Hyodo

FW Johnsen
FW Hara

Subs used:

Fujimoto on for Okazaki (75)
Paulo on for Hyodo (78)
Nagasawa on for Johnsen (82)

Videos

Full highlights. Check out Okazaki's control on our third:



Loco Loco celebrations! First, the players:



Next, us lot:



Links

Official Pictures here. Read The Rising Sun's report on this, and all the other J1 matches this weekend, here. Includes full league table.

S-Pulse 3-1 Oita Trinita

Barry writes:

Well, I'd have preferred this scoreline last November, but beggars can't be choosers!

The players line up

It was a vastly changed starting 11 from Kenta as he continues to search for the best combination. Nishibe was out, and replaced by the safe hands of Kaito. He showed time and again how he can come out with confidence and stamp his authority all over the penalty area. He can also do something Nishibe can't seem able to manage, and that's catch the thing. See Jubilo's opener on Black Sunday for a perfect example of the sort of mistake you don't see Kaito making.

In the back saw Ota making his first start, and while he made one or two sloppy errors in judgement, for his début he looked eager and hard working. He was harassing the Oita midfield with steaming runs up the wing, and I'm looking forward to more from him. Okazaki started in midfield along with Edamura, Hyodo and Yamamoto, with Hara and Johnsen up front.

Despite the threat of rain, S-Pulse fans were out in force

It was defender and secret weapon from corners, Iwashita who opened the scoring on 14 minutes, and the lead was doubled when the long legs of Johnsen brilliantly controlled a ball which he then despatched under the helpless Nishizawa. Oita gave their travelling tens some hope on 37 when they pulled one back, but in the second half, while it took until the 73rd minute, we always looked like extending our lead. It came from Johnsen, but a wicked deflection off a defender was needed to steer his shot into the gaping net. That said, he did really well to win the ball and create space for himself, so top work there, fella.

2-0! Goals make us happy :)

An improvement on recent weeks, but Oita, who had lost eight in a row and have most their team out injured or otherwise unavailable, were never going to a the biggest of challenges. We have a few winnable games coming up, so hopefully we'll be climbing the table as the summer heats up. What I wrote previously regarding Kenta's future at the club still holds true, so despite the win, nothing has changed on that front. Away at high-flying Albirex Niigata on Saturday will be more of a measure of where we stand.

A pitiful away support (and the drizzle) kept the crowd below 14000

Next up is Yamagata in the league cup this Wednesday. Not to be underestimated - Jubilo 2-6 Yamagata anyone? :-D - we should have what it takes to claim all three points and take a huge step towards qualification to the next round. With such a hectic schedule of late, we can expect to see the likes of Jungo, Nagai, Paulo and perhaps even Tsujio start, all of who were rested against Oita.

Line Up:

GK K. Yamamoto

DF Takaki
DF Aoyama
DF Iwashita
DF Ota

MF Okazaki
MF M. Yamamoto
MF Edamura
MF Hyodo

FW Johnsen
FW Hara

Subs used

Hiraoka on for Iwashita (63)
Ito on for Hara (77)
Paulo on for Hyodo (91)

Videos:

Iwashita's opener on 14 minutes:



Johnsen's first. 17 minutes:



Oita pull one back on 37 minutes:



Johnsen's second on 74 minutes:



Loco Loco celebrations after the whistle.



Links:

Read The Rising Sun's report here, and click here for Mike Tuckerman's take on events which, I'm sad to report, will be his last from Nihondaira for the foreseeable future. Good luck fella, and if you're ever back in town, drop me a line!

Antlers 2- 1 S-Pa (Fuz)

Fuz writes:

Not got a lot to say. Yet again wondered at team selection, substitutions were made far too late and for the wrong players. Hyodo missed a ball near the goal because he found it preferable to fiddle with his shorts than pay attention to the game. Johnsen is still too slow and clumsy. Nishibe apparently chooses to go to clown training instead of football practice.

And judging by the reactions around me down Dream House, I'm not the only one who thinks so.

Basically, Mr Hasegawa should get himself down to Hello Work, because I don't see him having a job after this season, if he survives that long.

Man of the Match? The one and only Paulo.

Fuz writes:

Well, for me, that would very easily be Paulo. What a difference one man can make. I felt at the end of last season that Paulo's presence on the park changed the way the team worked, and it certainly did so today. Marcos "Glue" Paulo - holds the team together and the ball sticks to him! He worked so hard yesterday creating chances and getting the ball forward, it was a pleasure to watch and I found myself thinking, yes, we can win this after all. Before a ball was even kicked it was clear Paulo was up for it, high fiving each and every player and raising spirits - and after half time, he was so keen to be back out he was almost at the half-way line before the rest of our team appeared.

Ok, so he can't shoot - well neither can Johnsen apparently and he's actually a forward. Although, without being too harsh on Johnsen he looked more full of fight than before and is certainly trying harder, so we'll see.

I like the way Nagai looks, and would like to see him on the park a bit more - Johnsen's going to have to do something soon to keep his first team place out of Nagai and Hara's clutches, who both look ready for the fight.

Yesterday was a great day, good weather, good crowd, the S-Pa fans were out in force and the changes in the team proved to be vital. Let's see some more football like this and start winning some games - it's still early days in J1 and we can still finish up top.

Oh and in other news - Nishibe, despite letting in two yesterday, wasn't particularly to blame and appears to have learned how to catch the ball. That was a great big relief to the UK Ultras (minus one, who loves Yohei regardless of how many mistakes he makes, such undying loyalty has to be admired).

So, the season is young, Marcos proved himself yesterday and if he doesn't start / make more appearances now then Kenta either has a personal vendetta or an eye problem. We have a fit bunch of strikers raring to go and the defence was on the ball yesterday - literally. Paulo was my man of the match yesterday, but Iwashita would be a second - he was so quick on it yesterday and more than once got the ball cleared and out past midfield to create opportunities.

The Future's Bright. The Future's Orange.

S-Pulse vs Kashiwa - at least we didn't lose....

I didn't get to the game today as there is a potential future S-Pulse player growing inside me and I didn't want to get sick from the weather and therefore endanger any possibility of having a UK Ultra in the team one day, but I did manage to watch it on T.V.

Despite saying only a win would be acceptable I find myself relieved with the draw - yet again we went down a goal early on in the second half - yet again more or less due to Nishibe. Why that man seems to be unable to catch the ball instead of batting it away all the time I will never know. We were very lucky it wasn't two when he did exactly the same thing just a little later on, to my sheer disbelief.

Still not entirely convinced with what Kenta is up to... was surprised to see Nishibe in the starting line up after last week, although happy that Johnsen was dropped. When he did come on he looked a bit more ready to fight than before so perhaps that was the kick up the backside he needed - and he was integral to Oka-Chan's goal. The goal was a massive relief and was a nice piece of work between Okazaki, Johnsen and even Hara getting in on the action.

I really want to see Paulo on the park - he's not getting on even as a sub and I really believe given the chance he could be a fantastic addition to the team.

Let's see how Wednesday goes for now, but there is still a long way to go before Kenta and the boys redeem themselves for Black Sunday.

On a side note - WHAT THE HELL were the mid-game adverts all about? I've never been more pissed off by a commercial in my life - football should not be interrupted by anything, least of all people trying to sell me their junk. That's what half time is for, along with running to the loo and for those able to drink, stocking up on 2nd half booze.

Supporters Thanks Day 2009

In how many other countries do fans get the opportunity to, once a year, head to a huge event hall and watch their heroes dressed up as women performing song and dance routines? In the past I always gave the annual Thanks Day a miss, but I'm glad I was encouraged by Takumi to get off my backside and go this year.

Think a small-scale festival of all things S-Pulse, where everyone is there to have a bit of fun and you can get your photo taken surrounded by the short-skirted beauties of the Orange Wave cheer leader troop. According to Nikkan Sports, around 5800 fans turned out to make it our most popular Thanks Day yet. After getting to see Nagahata in a red dress singing the theme to Ponyo, I doubt anyone went home disappointed!

With food and beer on sale, I could have stayed there all day. Along with the forthcoming SDT Cup, it's another nice little way to spend a Saturday afternoon while we wait for the new season.

Time for a few pics!

Yours truly and Hyodo. We had a short chat, and a thoroughly nice bloke he was too.
The chiselled good looks of new signing Nagai. A massive hit with the ladies, and he'll bring a few extra through the gate this year, I don't doubt!
Johnsen was also a hit with the womenfolk, getting a rousing reception during the opening ceremony.
Omae Genki looking relaxed. A little later he was in a sparkly dress singing up on stage. :)
Someone we're all looking forward to seeing back in action this season; Jungo Fujimoto.
It had to be done. :)
That new shirt collar design up close. I'm a fan.
A small section of the huge numbers who turned out for a thoroughly enjoyable afternoon. I'll be there next year for sure, and with beer available from 10am, probably a lot earlier than this year!

Right, enough from me, I'm off up Fuz's place for a Burns Supper. Have a good weekend!

Squad Numbers and New Player's Comments

On a busy day of news, not only was our new kit revealed and updated club slogan announced, squad numbers for 2009 were also made public. The full list can be found here, but for the sake of brevity, here are our new signings:

Ota 4
Nagai 9
Yamamoto 17
Johnsen 18
Kijima 19

Wonderboy Hara moves to number 11. Of the comments made by our newcomers today, here is what I can pick out from the two big names with my not especially good translating skills:

Johnsen

"I'm delighted to be be joining such a friendly club as S-Pulse. Even as an opponent, I could tell S-Pulse were a great club, so I'm grateful to join that. I will endeavour to play to my full potential at S-Pulse."

Nagai

"I'm truly happy to be joining S-Pulse. I'm getting accustomed to life here already, and creating such a good relationship with my team mates so quickly will only help us when it comes to getting results. I can't wait to get on the pitch!"

And if I got anything wrong, which I probably did, players say pretty much the same thing whenever they join a club, so I doubt I've strayed too far from the general gist. :)

Roll on pre-season friendly with Jubilo!

Johnsen Transfer Official & S-Pulse at the J. League Awards

A very likeable city, earlier today

Is Yokohama the most likeable city in Japan? If you ask me, for a nice little day trip out of Shiz, it simply can't be beat! It's got heaps of coastline and related nautical attractions, tons of parks around said coastline, endless shopping to keep the girls happy, years of history and foreign influence to give the city a unique multicultural atmosphere, and awesome architecture from all over the world.

Add to that the ease of transport to, from and within the city, the more than ample dining options all around, the brilliantly colourful Chinatown, the Landmark Tower for ridiculously fast elevators and views right over to Mt. Fuji and beyond, the Ferris Wheel and various other fun and games on the waterfront, and you have an all round great place to hang out of a winter national holiday afternoon.

And all this is before you even get started on the sport! As if having the baseball stadium and Nissan Stadium both in the heart of the city wasn't enough, the huge Marinos Town sits just minutes away from all the downtown action. A football town to the core, after the unfortunate and messy Yokohama Flügels affair, the locals got together and formed another team to replace the one snatched from them. Respect for that alone. If I ever had to leave Shizuoka behind, Yokohama would be way up on my list of places to make home!

Anyway, where was I? Yeah, that's it - while I was off enjoying The 'Hama today, the long-talked about transfer of Frode Johnsen was finally announced. I can only presume we had been waiting until either us or Nagoya were knocked out the cup before making the news official. Most S-Pulse fans have known for weeks the 6 foot 2 Norwegian was on his way to 'Daira. Well, it's a done deal, and the height, presence and proven goal scoring record of the ex international will hopefully be the difference between our 5th place finish this year and an ACL spot next season.

In other news, last night the annual J. League awards ceremony took place. Sadly Hara missed out on the young player of the year award to Nagoya's Ogawa, but it was far from a bad night for the Pulse! Who walked off with the award for best pitch in the league? Shimizu S-Pulse. Who picked up the special fair play award across both J1 and J2? Shimizu S-Pulse. And this season's player of the year, Marquinhos, used to play for which team before he moved to Kashima? You guessed it!

OK, maybe I'm scraping the barrel with the last one! But the first two, especially the fair play award, is something we can be rightly proud off. The credit for that has to go to Kenta who clearly instils a fair play ethic into his players. You're building a team we can be proud of, and playing the game the way it should be played - thank you Kenta!

Takagi and Aoyama off? Hara Rookie of the Year?

The league season is over, and as such transfer news is flying around, increasing in number by the day. Recent bad tidings to take the edge off the good news of Johnsen's impending arrival include rumours of Aoyama to Urawa, and more solid stories of Takagi to Gamba. Given our progress these last few months (not least the fact we were the best team in the country in the second half of the season) potentially losing players to domestic rivals is a bitter pill. The stark reality is, both teams in question have been champions in the last four years, and Reds especially are swimming in money. These potential losses, added to the old news of Yajima probably heading off to Europe, leaves a couple of gaping holes in our first choice starting members.

Our back line may take some drastic restructuring, but up front we'd be pretty much set. With international Okazaki, breakthrough hero Hara, and Nagoya's goal machine Johnsen leading the charge, we should have the finishing touch which in it's absence cost us so dear the first half of this season. Hara has just been nominated as one of the best three youngsters of the 2008 season. If he wins the Rookie of the Year award, it will mean S-Pulse players would have won the title twice as many times as the nearest other team. Results announced December, Monday 22nd. Any confirmed transfers will be reported on here as soon humanely possible.

Urawa Reds 1-2 S-Pa

Beating last year's champions and 2nd place team in the space of a week - a nice pick me up after the league cup and derby disappointments! Having a wedding to attend the previous day meant neither me or Fuz were in any fit state to be waking up at 5am Sunday as per last season. We followed the game from Shizuoka with stinking hangovers, but these were helped considerably by our first ever three points at the Saitama Stadium.

Urawa were going for the league title. We were playing for pride. We came away with all three points and were utterly deserved winners. Both teams had 14 shots on goal, and the fact both teams also had 15 goal kicks also speaks for the many chances created.

Edamura's opening goal was an absolute peach, and one of those you can just watch again and again. Tulio smashed it home in the second half to level, and S-Pulse got away with a goal line clearance a little later, but a lovely move which ended in a perfectly place shot by substitute Yajima won the game for S-Pa.

We now sit five points off an ACL spot with only two games left, so our only realistic route into continental football next season is via the Emperor's Cup. Going into the quarter final with FC Tokyo, I'm pretty confident.

Our squad this year has matured and evolved with each game, and having dispensed with last year's top two placed teams (not to mention the recent defeats of Gamba and Kawasaki) we are clearly a different prospect to the stuttering outfit which spent the first third of the season hovering around the drop zone. With rumours of Nagoya's proven goal scorer Johnsen set to join us, his experience, no to mention 13ish goals a season, would help wonders in the continued development of some of our young guns like Okazaki, Hara and Yajima.

Well, with the season starting to draw to an end, it's hard to look past Kashima as champions yet again. They only need three points against relegation threatened Jubilo this Saturday to wrap up their sixth championship. Sixth out of only sixteen seasons, bare in mind! An amazing record, but one not quite secured yet. If previous years have shown anything, it's that the championship is very rarely a simple matter! Jubilo are fighting for their lives, and Nagoya and Kawasaki are waiting in the wings to step back to first place should Antlers slip up!

I've said it time and again, but there really are few leagues which can match the J. League for drama - bring on the final two weeks!

Highlights:



The final few seconds. The silence that engulfs the stadium at the whistle is soon filled by our travelling thousands. Listen and look out for Loco Loco at around 4 minutes!



Good stuff. :)