-- A voice from AJPS --
ASSOCIATION JAPON DE LA PRESSE SPORTIVE
Toshiba’s Microsoft Cup victory indicates Japan rugby potentials
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By Kumi Kinohara
Sports journalist
If you can see a rugby game with this quality, you would feel like going out to the stadium to watch the game more often. If you can believe in your game so hard, like they did on the day, you would have a better chance to develop your game at international level. The thoughts came up to my mind after watching the dramatic victory of Toshiba Brave Lupus in the Microsoft Cup final on Sunday in Tokyo.
Toshiba rallied past their Top League rivals Suntory Sungoliath 14-13 in the final of the Top League playoff tournament, thanks to a stoppage-time try-conversion produced by Toshiba’s trade-mark driving maul performance.
Trailing 13-7 in the stoppage time, Toshiba had a penalty opportunity and captain Teppei Tomioka opted for a driving maul.
“It is a driving maul which has helped Toshiba become a strong side over the last five years. I had no worries but wanted to pursue our style, a driving maul, even we wouldn’t be able to score a try as a result of that.”
His option, fortunately, turned out right and the efforts of his and his teammates paid off. With Suntory defending hard around their goal-line, Toshiba attacked hard in a driving maul. One time, Toshiba faced a fierce defense and lost the ball. Suntory looked relieved as they kicked the ball for the tough-line, cutting the spree of their fierce attack.
But the game was still on and Toshiba got the ball again and attacked again with a maul play. Then finally, Vatuvei, who had returned from a sin-bin late in the second half, sneaked out of the maul and dived across the line next to the post, beating tackles from two Suntory players. Vatuvei’s try cut the deficit to 13-12 before Hiroki Yoshida made the conversion to wrap up the game 14-13 for Toshiba’s win.
“I thought the game would be decided on a single chance, and our players did understand that," Toshiba head coach Masahiro Kunda praised his players.
As the coach had predicted, the two-time Cup holders faced a tough resistance from Suntory and were forced to commit errors in ball-handling and line-outs only to struggle in the first half. It was Suntory who broke a 7-7 tie early in the second half with Ryan Nicolas’s penalty. The New Zealander helped his team widen the lead to 13-7 with another penalty in the 78th minute.
Tomioka said, “I opted for a driving maul and our teammates did that well. That made me surprised so much as we did it better than I thought we would.”
They believed in their brand of rugby and what they have worked on on their training ground. That’s what Japan head coach John Kirwan is trying to introduce to the Japan national team, too.
Kirwan, who has playing experience in Japan in late 1990s, repeatedly said that the Japanese players have good potentials and what they are missing is a strong belief in their game. The 42-year-old Kiwi, who watched the game in the stands, must be happy with the way Toshiba won the Cup. The Toshiba players on Sunday did show how a strong belief can work for the game.
In the Sunday’s final, Tomioka and his teammates had another thing to feel happy about -- the turn-outs of the day. More than 23,000 crowds turned out to attend the game at Chichibunomiya Rugby Stadium in Tokyo, for a rarity in Japanese rugby games.
“I’ve never seen such a big crowd there before,” said Tomioka. “I hope they can come back to the game not only with us Toshiba but the others in the league. They are good teams as well. We should work hard to bring many fans to the game like today.”
The rugby fans in Japan, unfortunately, might have been frustrated with the performance standard in the domestic competition. No much thrills but lots of errors.
But on Sunday, the two leading teams in the country put up a great entertaining performance. If the fans know they can expect to have a good game, they will come to the game.
The Microsoft Cup final on Sunday proved that the country, who is bidding for the 2015 World Cup hosts, has developed their game over the last few years since the introduction of the Top League, the Japanese professional league, and they have good potentials for the future on and off the pitch.
(END)
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| Date: 2007/02/04 |
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Another side of World Cup -- referee Kamikawa's challenge
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By Kumi Kinohara
Sports journalist
He was a naughty boy and liked doing mischiefs. But he also would often rescue those who were being bullied. That characteristic – a strong sense of justice – has been there with him and guided him to his profession as a professional soccer referee.
He is Toru Kamikawa, who will make his second appearance in the upcoming FIFA World Cup in Germany following the 2002 version.
Kamikawa got through the tough FIFA selection to be named one of the final 22 referees from the 44 nominees to officiate in the world’s biggest single sporting event.
FIFA was initially scheduled to have 30 referees for this World Cup. The football’s world governing body, however, decided to go with 23 (now 21s following the withdrawals of referees due to match-fixing allegation in Italy and injury, respectively) in order to offer high standard service in the quadrennial tournament.
Kamikawa, who will turn 43 on the day before the start of the World Cup, will team up with his fellow Japanese assistant referee Yoshikazu Hiroshima and South Korean assistant referee Kim Dae Young. The two assistants also made it to the FIFA tournament after surviving in the tough selection race.
Kamikawa said, ``I’m so excited with this opportunity and feel the responsibility of being there as a final 23s.’’
He used to be a player himself, playing for the Japan youth team in 1980 and played for Fujita, predecessor of Bellmare Hiratsuka, in the non-professional Japan Soccer League in late 1980 -- the pre J. League ear.
But his life changed in 1991 with one offer. His club asked him if he would be interested in becoming a referee.
The Japanese Football Association, meanwhile, was looking for hopefuls in the lights of the scheduled launch of the nation’s first professional league, the J. League. Kamikawa was considering to putting an end to his playing career and decided to take the offer for the new challenge.
From his experience as a player, he thought he had known the game well enough to serve as referee. But he soon realized that working as a ref requires him different angles to look at the game. Everything was new to him, which the former Japan youth team defender enjoyed very much, even with a pulled muscle experience in the legs.
The native from Kagoshima then quickly picked up the essence of the refereeing. After qualifying as a JFA first-grade referee in 1994, he became a FIFA referee in 1998?, and turned to professional ``SR’’ in 2002. He was named the J. League Referee of the Year in 2002 and the Best Referee in Asia for 2003 by the Asian Football Confederation.
Kamikawa is known for his stand-firm judging and calmness even when the players rush to him in an attempt to appealing or complaining a call. But refs are not saint and neither he is.
``For a moment, a second thought pops up to my mind, something like `Oh, dear, I’ve done it again, sending one player off. I can even imagine how the match referee inspector would write down his comments on this call afterward.
``But a second later, I tell myself, `Oh, well, but the player committed a foul and I am doing nothing wrong with this,’ ‘’ Kamikawa said. ``I always want to be fair to what happened, and I don’t want to regret myself for not calling a foul.’’
His former boss, former FIFA referee and JFA referee chief instructor Leslie Mottram described his `student’ Kamikawa as ``the man who is not a typical Japanese because of his mental strength in refereeing style.’’
That is definitely one of his strong points and seemingly has paved the way for Kamikawa this far.
Now Kamikawa has become the second Japanese referee to perform in two successive World Cups, following his predecessor Shiziuo Takada (now JFA referee committee chief) did so in the 1986 and 1990 events. His SR colleague Masayoshi Okada also made it to the 1998 World Cup. But none of his predecessors, and Kamikawa himself in the 2002 World Cup, were given an opportunity to officiate in a big game.
Kamikawa has been appointed to officiate in a game on the opening day of the tournament – Poland vs. Ecuador in Gelsenkirchen, but he is hoping to be assigned for a big game in the World Cup, namely the final – the ultimate showcase that everyone in the sport would dream of making their appearance in career.
``The more I’ve got pressure, the more I get motivated,’’ Kamikawa said of himself. ``I know the possibility of officiating in the final is limited. But I’d like to set my dreams high.
``It’s important to keep that positive attitude, and that helps you take a step forward. Then, some day in the future, a Japanese referee will have won a faith from FIFA to be given the opportunity to referee in the final of the future World Cups,’’ he added.
For the Japanese football fans, Zico’s Japan is certainly the one to follow. But Kamikawa and his ``ref team’’ can be another one to keep an eye on during the tournament.
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| Date: 2006/06/04 |
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Good plays, good goals raise expectation for new J. League season
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By Kumi Kinohara
Sports journalist
This is the so-called World Cup year, and from the beginning of this year, many talk about the World Cup, the quadrennial football tournament slated for this summer in Germany. But you may miss some good action in your domestic league if you focus too much on the World Cup.
It is still two rounds so far into the new J. League season. But the first-division games have already brought us good plays and good number of goals.
Talking about scoring, we have a couple of hat tricks in the opening round – by Japan and Kashima Antlers striker Atsushi Yanagisawa and Kawasaki Frontale forward Kazuki Ganaha – and another three in the second round on the weekend of March 11-12.
Ganaha’s Brazilian teammate and forward Juninho struck three time for his team’s 7-2 triumph over Division Two champions Kyoto Purple Sanga, while Gamba Osaka’s Brazilian duo, Fernandinho and Magno Alves, combined on a double hat trick in the J. League champions’ 6-1 success over cross-town rivals Cerezo Osaka.
Ganaha and Juninho played an important role to help their club take the driving seat in the 18-team Division One, for the first time ever since the Kawasaki club returned to the top flight last year.
On top of that, Kawasaki set a new league record by scoring 13 goals from two consecutive matches from the start of the season. The previous high scoring from the first two matches was 10, set by the Yokohama Marinos in 1995.
Frontale manager Takashi Sekizuka, in his third season at the helm, calmly reacted to his team’s success, saying, ``That is just a result of their hard work. All we needed was to gain confidence, and we got that from our first game in the season.’’ Frontale cruised past Albirex Niigata 6-0 at home.
Sekizuka has formed his team around more or less the same players from last season, which the team finished eighth. That has enabled the 45-year-old manager to focus on details to work with this year. New signing Brazilian wing Marcao, formerly of ACL champions Al-Ittihad of Saudi Arabia, has fitted into the team well, which was also a help to Sekizuka.
Meanwhile, Gamba’s scoring rampage by the Brazilian pair could be a positive sign to the champions that they have filled the gaps left behind by departed strikers – J. League MVP and top scorer Araujo of Brazil and Japan international Masashi Oguro. The previous striking team produced a total of 49 goals out of their team’s 82 last year – a key element to their title-winning success.
Having seen the scoring outbreak in the Cerezo match, Gamba manager Akira Nishino must have felt relieved.
``We can play a lot better if we stick to the way we played in the second half against Cerezo,’’ Nishino commented. The crucial tie-breaker and further goals for Gamba all came in that second half.
Talking of good plays, two of the promoted teams – Avispa Fukuoka and Ventforet Kofu – have impressed the fans with their aggressive game.
Avispa, returning to the top division for the first time in five years, held three-time J. League champions Jubilo Iwata to a 1-1 draw in the season’s opener and battled hard against visiting Omiya Ardija before drawing 1-1 at home. Omiya earlier stunned JEF United Chiba 4-2 in their first match of the season.
Ventforet, meanwhile, failed to celebrate their Division One debut on March 5 after losing to Shimizu S-Pulse 2-0 at home. But Kofu then held JEF United to a 2-2 draw in the following game in a rematch of their Emperor’s Cup encounter last year, which Chiba barely won 3-2 after extra time.
Chiba manager Ivica Osim praised Kofu’s game, saying ``They play with tactics that requires lots of courage. You don’t often see that from other Division One teams. It’s interesting and it’s good to football.’’
Title contenders Urawa Reds also showed that their off-season efforts were worth making. The arrivals of former Brazil striker Washington and Japan midfielder Shinji Ono have added the depth to their attacking game. The Reds held hosts Gamba to a 1-1 draw in the season’s opener and went on to beat Jubilo 3-1 at home a week later.
The Yokohama F. Marinos, who won the league in 1995, 2003 and 2004, seem to have regained their form. Japan striker Tatsuhiko Kubo retuned to the team after recovering from his nagging injuries, and Brazilian midfielder Magrao have found better combination with his teammates in his second season at Yokohama.
With Division One action running through to December 2 with the World Cup break between May 11 and July 11, many things could have on the course of the competition. But it is nice to have something positive, and that’s a good thing about the new season. That also reminds us football is not just all about the World Cup.
(END)
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| Date: 2006/03/16 |
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Passion for the game
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Passion for the game
By Kumi Kinohara
Former Japan striker Kazu Miura moved from a J. League first division club Vissel Kobe to a second division outfit Yokohama FC this summer. That was a new challenge to the player.
Kazu scored 134 goals in 285 matches by the end of last season. But this season, after the league resumed on July 2 following a six-week break and manager changed, the 38-year-old saw himself being sidelined. There’s no place like being on the pitch. The striker moved.
But the environment at Yokohama cannot be said ideal for a professional player. He needs to be more patient on and off the pitch.
Off the pitch, while Kobe have sufficient training facilities as a professional club, Yokohama don’t have their own training ground or a club house. The team often has to travel around from one place to another for their daily training sessions. At one place, the players use a coin-operated shower after their sessions in a public changing room next to the ground.
On the pitch, the players are varied in terms of their skills. The ball doesn’t get to him as much as he wants, and he sometimes has to tell his teammates how to fight during the game.
It may not a place for a player like him, who has capped 91 times scoring 51 goals for Japan and also has good playing experience at Santos in Brazil and at Genoa in Italy.
So, his move seemed to stun the Japanese soccer world. But Kazu often had said before that he would go wherever he would be needed, and he just followed his faith. He wants to play the game he loves.
After the arrival, Kazu has so far played in 10 matches, scoring three goals, helping his team collect seven wins against 12 draws and 14 losses by the end of September.
The team is still ranked in 11th place in the 12-team division table - the same position when Kazu joined in July - but they are 39 points behind leader Kyoto Purple Sanga and 25 points behind second-placed Avispa Fukuoka and 17 points behind third-placed Montedio Yamagata after matches on September 24.
Though the club is hoping the Division One promotion at the end of the season and Kazu and his teammates are fighting hard for it, it looks hard for them to reach the top two spots to win an automatic promotion to the first division. To make a third-place finish and book a spot in the promotion playoffs with a 16th-finisher of the first division may not be so realistic either.
But Kazu’s presence has helped to draw a big attention from the fans and the media. Yokohama FC have improved their per-game attendance average, --- about 5,100 to 7409 ---, which obviously creates good atmosphere in the stands. Fans are cheering their star. They may feel a shiver of expectations whenever Kazu gets the ball.
They may have to leave the stadium without seeing Kazu score a goal or their team win the game. Even so, they may well go home with some good feelings. How many players can do that? He must have a special talent not only with soccer skills but also to relay his passion to the others.
Lately, Kazu has received an on-loan offer from Sydney FC in the Australian League. Guided by former German international and JEF United Ichihara (now called JEF United Chiba) player and former Yokohama FC manager Pierre Littbarski, the Australian club is after Kazu in their quest for a success in the FIFA Club World Championship campaign, slated for December 11-18 in Japan.
Yokohama FC and their fans may find it disappointing as their star will be away from them. But for Kazu, it seems a good and could be the last opportunity to take part in a major FIFA tournament after some bitter experience with the previous World Cups. He was a member of the World Cup qualifying team both in 1994 and 1998. But Japan failed in their campaign in 1994. When they made it in the 1998 edition, however, Kazu was omitted from the World Cup squad at the last moment.
I personally want to watch him play in the tournament -- a showcase of the game that he loves. He would show his passion for the game there like he always does so, and that would make us feel happy.
(END)
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| Date: 2005/09/26 |
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Power of Crowds
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By Kumi Kinohara
Sports journalist
When you play at home, your crowds would offer you their full support, which could be pressure to the visitors. If their support goes too far and go too wild, however, they could turn a negative factor not only to the visitors but also to you.
On April 29, the FIFA disciplinary committee decided to impose sanctions on the DPR Korea Football Association following the crowd riot incidents occurred in the World Cup qualifying matches held in Pyongyang, against Bahrain on March 25 and Iran on March 30. The sanctions read that DPR Korea will have to play their next home game against Japan, slated for June 8, on a neutral ground behind closed doors. The DPR Korea F. A. has also been fined CHF 20,000.
That is a severe punishment.
What FIFA matters, I assume, is whether security and safety are well guaranteed for teams and officials including referees. The world governing body has a strong policy of acting severely on violence and racism, and their decisions on the violence-involving case this time showed no exceptions. Two other associations, Iran and Georgia, have also been sanctioned as a result of their crowd violence problems in their World Cup qualifiers.
The game of soccer is made of three elements – teams, referees and spectators. If one of them is missing, the pleasure of the game would obviously be decreased.
That’s why Japan coach Zico lamented over the part of the sanctions – playing behind closed doors with no spectators. The team is always enthusiastically and strongly supported by their fans – at home and away. The Brazilian coach suggested that the Japanese fans shouldn’t have been affected and the match could be open at least to them.
But Saburo Kawabuchi, president of the Japan Football Association, said, ``If we play on a neutral ground with spectators in the stands, the majority of them would be Japanese. That would make what it was initially an away game to a home game to us. If you think it over, you would realize it is adequate.’'
The Japanese players may feel it strange when they play the game without any spectators. Some voiced concerns that they may feel hard to focus on the game and get motivated.
But they are professionals and have a mission of qualifying to the finals in Germany. That should be enough for them to set their focus on the game.
A more serious concern could be that if DPR Korea appeals to FIFA against the decision and it could take long before finalizing the case, the match may not take place as currently scheduled. That, if happens, would create a serious scheduling problem to competition-packed Japan.
Now you can see that not only the DPR Korea F. A. but we all have suffered in the end as a result of the stupid behavior by a certain number of people.
Unfortunately, crowd violence problem could happen at anywhere. Even in Japan, a recent J. League match saw a serious problem – for the first time ever in its 12-year professional league history.
Some of the Kashiwa Reysol supporters attacked their counterparts from Nagoya Grampus after their team’s loss at home. The attack resulted in injuries to some of the Nagoya fans, who were taken to the hospital. Reysol is expected to be penalized by the J. League, and the sentence will be given after the league’s governing body will hold a meeting on May 13.
So, think and study from the cases. We should remember the Tragedy of Heysel Stadium, which involved so many casualties. While teams and referees have responsibility of showing their best performance on the pitch, crowds should not lose their control. They can make the game look good and bad.
A good thing of human-beings is that they have emotions and the ability of controlling their emotions. But if you cannot use that ability only to damage the others and the sport, you are not qualified to come to the game. Soccer does not need any of them. (END)
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| Date: 2005/05/02 |
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