Japan 2-1 Australia (U23)

"Get the goal, get the goal, Okazaki, get the goal!"

And get the goal he did! A stiflingly hot Thursday evening in Kobe saw the Japanese under 23 Olympic team face off with their Ozzie counterparts in a pre-Beijing friendly. With Kaito and Honda both donning national team colours, and with Okazaki on the bench, it was a great night for the 'Pulse and one they should be proud of. Having gone 1-0 down to the Ozzies just after the half hour, Japan pulled level five minutes later with a goal from Cerezo Osaka teenager Kagawa.

After that it took till the last minute of the game for Japan to snatch their winner, and who should it have come from but our very own super-sub Okachan! Glancing in a header which foxed Ozzie keeper Federici, the goal came too late for any kind of comeback, and when the whistle went, the bloke with the biggest smile was the man who came on in the 74th minute and won Japan the game! Nice one, Shinji - Shizuoka's proud of ya!

S-Pa's Young Lions off to Beijing

With the Beijing Games now only a matter of weeks away, the Japanese Olympic football team has been announced. S-Pa's wealth of young talent has been recognised, with an unmatched three players included in the eighteen man squad.

Goalkeeper Kaito Yamamoto rarely sees first team action all the time Nishibe is around and fit, but on the one or two occasions I've seen him, he's a solid keeper and a great prospect for the future. Honda has stepped up from university to professional football this season with ease and has proved one of our better close-season acquisitions. Okazaki has seen a fair amount of action with Kenta's forward line differing from game to game. He's young, hungry and the Olympics is going to be a great experience for him.

Kaito, Okazaki and Honda - Shizuoka's proud of you, now go get gold!