Happy New Year!!! A New Slogan!! New Year!! New Slogan!!

Happy New Year!!!!

It`s been exactly one year since Tokyo Nerdy 1969 re-opened for business following the midseason shutdown in 2009. So what has changed in the last year?? Well this time last year we were on the brink of going out of business recieving special permission to even enter J2. This year we are fired up and ready to go, players have been signed, sponsorship secured, cash in the bank and we`re all good and ready for the magic leap to J1 right??
That of course would be fantastic but let`s consider the circumstances...we finished 5th last season which was a superb achievement considering where we were at the start of the season. However, at the start of the season there was ZERO expectations with Coach Kawakatsu himself saying he didn`t think we had a chance of promotion. And he was right. At no point in the whole year did we occupy a top three spot, we got to 4th with a few games to go but blew it when facing the big boys JEF and Avispa eventually finishing a rather large 11 points and 16 goals  out of 3rd place.
How are we going to do next season? It`s anybodys guess at the moment but looking at who is coming down, Bellmare, Sanga and FC Tokyo....Sanga and Tokyo will be battling to get straight back up though Bellmare will probably come down and stay down after their nightmare of a season. We will be checking the transfers and rosters when they are released and come back with a (probably not very) indepth pre-season report outlining all the runners and riders for J2. For the moment, The Emperors Cup Final is on in a minute so......Happy New Year!! Enjoy the Day!! Enjoy The Year!! And we`ll be back soon!! Still Shit!! Still Here.....Tokyo Nerdy 1969

Two`s Up!!

Welcome back...er...Kohei was it? Sorry yes!! Kohei Kiyama!!

Verdy have really got the bit between the teeth and have signed another forward and another defender. Hopefully bothering the onion bag next season will be Kohei Kiyama (who played 1 game for us back in 2006 (??!!) don`t remember him at all but since leaving us he went to Fagiano and did very well in the JFL bagging 18 goals in 32 games. However once Fagiano were promoted, his stats read a far more sombre 4 in 68 games.......shocking I know. Another "let`s hope he was an attacking midfielder?" Well  I`ll hope he was a defender with 4 in 68....

One for the ladies....Kota Fukatsu!!

Hopefully keeping them out of the Green onion bag will be Kota Fukatsu. Plenty of experience in J2 having served time at Mito and got promotion from the JFL with Gifu. Fukatsu has spent the last two seasons at neighbours Machida FC. Looks like he will be back up for Tsuchiya and Tomisawa. Never seen him in action but looks solid enough as a back up.

Kim Jong Il, Kim Il Sung, Kim Deal, sKIMmed milk, Kimchi...Everyone needs a KIM!!

Kim Tae Yon

And now Verdy have signed one from Fagiano Okayama. Our version is Kim Tae Yon who will be battling for a midfield spot after seeing (a little) playing time at Kobe before settling in to the starting line ups at Ehime, Mito and Fagiano. Looks like Kawakatsu has chosen him to replace Shibasaki and at 22 years old still has plenty of time to prove he can play higher up the league. Welcome aboard!!

Out,Out,Out,Out, In....Good Lord!! Verdy sign a striker!!

Squad guys Koya Shimizu, Ryu Narushi and Hiroki Ebisawa got their marching orders today and Nigerian defender Adebayor went back to Reysol. The four players put in a stirling 40 seconds of first team action all season, this coming in the very last game with Shimizu coming on to replace Goal Machine in second half injury time.

Welcome aboard!!

However, more interestingly Verdy welcome aboard a new striker today Ryuichi Hirashige from Tokushima Vortis. Vortis were decent at times last season though Hirashige`s stats don`t read that well...77 games between Sanfrecce from 2007-09 and Tokushima last season knocking in 10 goals toatal. I will assume that he is more an attacking mid than an out and out striker, let`s hope so as if he`s a forward with those stats, we might have another Inoue on our hands God forbid!!

Merry Christmas From All at Tokyo Nerdy 1969

Arses to "Winter Holiday Season".....Hope all readers of Tokyo Nerdy 1969 eat too much, drink too much, row with the family over cherades and enjoy drowning their unwanted fluffy puppies on Boxing Day. We at Tokyo Nerdy will be doing all of the above though not necessarily in the same order. First pint is for you Jesus!! Cheers!!

The Kids Were Alright

Till they got knocked out 2-0 and it is now Marinos yoof team who will be all lezzy with FC Tokyo yoof in the Final innit, y`get me??

The Kids Are Alright

Tokyo Verdy Youth U-18s are into the semi`s of the J-Youth Cup after disposing of Vissel Kobe in the Quarter Finals with a 3-2 win. This is the same team that got to the first round proper of the Emperors Cup earlier in the season so the future of the club is looking bright!! There they face Yokohama F. Marinos with the winner going on to play either Kyoto Sanga or FC Tokyo in the final. Semi is 23rd of December with the Final on December 26th. Go On The Boys!!!!

S-L-O-W......N-E-W-S.....W-E-E-K...

Dressed Up Tits!!

A Gruesome Tit!!

The World`s Biggest Tit

Lars Ulrich......bloody tit that you are.....

3rd choice goalie Tomoyuki Suzuki has signed for SC Tochigi. Can`t remember him ever playing a game....Verdy also slightly changed the club badge dropping FC Nippon and replacing it with Football Club. Anybody care?? Nope thought not. Here`s some pictures of some tits to liven things up......

Verdy Raped!! Nostra-f@@kin-damus Tokyo Nerdy 1969....

Well bugger me it`s started.......Toshiyuki Takagi has signed for S-Pulse!! Motherf@@kers!! Again, what can you say though?? Another upper mid level (kind of ish) team comes in so off he goes.  In his goodbye speech he said "he`d like to come back one day". Well Toshiyuki you can go an do one!!..GUTTED as he is gonna be a winner but it`s not gonna be in Green.

First Come First Served

Verdy have sorted their first piece of incoming business for this winter with ex-Verdy Kawasaki, Frontale defender Yusuke Mori. Mori has 10 years J League experience and after starting out with a handful of appearances in Green went to Sendai and Kyoto Sanga before becoming a mainstay in the Frontale side from 2006 going on to appear 29 times last season. Mori can line up as right full back or as a defensive midfielder, which is possibly the view for next season with the departure of Shibasaki, if so that`ll do. Loads of experience in a decent side and seemingly loves a scrap.

Mori in his Sendai AGGRO days....

Mori was the defender who got fired by Sendai back in 2002 for continual red cards. Something like 3 in a row it was though I can`t remember exactly. Hopefully he`s still got a bit of toenail left in him for next season. Welcome aboard!!

Barack Obama`s Soup Spoon Attack Gloves

Masaki Iida

Kento Tsurumaki

Squad players Masaki Iida and Kento Tsurumaki have been fully transfered to JFL outfit Matsumoto Yamaga FC. Both players spent time on loan there in 2010 and seemingly did enough to be offered full terms for 2011. Matsumoto also wear Green so it`s possible they got in because they already have their own Green T-shirts. Apparently Iida took his own ball as well and that`s what swung the deal.  Good luck Boys!!

Cherry Picking??

Kosei  Shibasaki has signed for Kawasaki Fontale.......Bollocks!!! Can`t blame him for a second as they are top (ish) end of J1. Thanks for a couple of superb strikes (and a couple more toe pokes), some superb general defensive mopping up and distribution, immaculately tied up hair in a league of SHIT hair and the absolute best of luck in the future!! Always a quiet unassuming pleasure, though wish you could have stayed.

Boerd,Boared,Bored,Bored,Beard...

17 weekends to go....JESUS CHRIST I`M BORED SHITLESS ALREADY!! Have we bought a striker?? No. Taira Inoue been sold?? No. So it`s goodnight from me and it`s goodnight from him. Goodnight.

2010 and 2011 Wrap Up, Prediction, Summary, Nummary, Dumbary. Bummary.

My manservants on the south lawn at Nerdy HQ

2010 was great and the icing on the cake is that we will be around for 2011. To be able to simply go to or watch the game on TV next season is worth more than any Cup win, any promotion or any glamour tie. So Verdy didn`t get promoted, went out of the Cup again to non league opposition at the first hurdle, lost to the Worst Professional Team in The History Of Japanese Football, couldn`t score goals for the first half of the season and still play in a giant empty stadium. But so what??
 Verdy will be alive in 2011 thanks to the mentalists at Xebio Sports who rescued the Greens in early November just 8 games before we were due to play our final game. 25,000 people turned up to the Save Our Verdy game which was more than anybody in their right mind would have ever guessed. To sit there in that atmosphere, with all those supporters all shouting for Verdy was a memory I will take to my grave. Football grounds should be full of passion, noise, and most importantly they should be FULL. I can only imagine what Ajinomoto feels or looks like when it is actually full of Verdy supporters. Sadly, the only sold out Verdy game I have ever seen was against Real Madrid but probably 80 per cent of the people were there to support Beckham, Zidane etc.
The young players have been the talk of Tokyo Verdy this season and unfortunately will be on the radar of some (probably lower end) J1 teams. Youngsters like the Takagi brothers simply MUST NOT be sold. Hopefully with Xebio on board the club will be able to hold on to their hottest properties. Yoshiaki Takagi at 17 has been an absolute revelation and currently injured Toshiyuki Takagi also hit the heights with some absolutely stonking goals. Pure Roy of the Rovers football at times. Two brothers playing up front together and scoring 3 each in 2 games. The youth team also put up a great fight in getting to the first round proper of the Emperors Cup coming a gnats chuff away from facing FC Tokyo. (The youth team also topped their group in the current J Youth Cup currently being played). The future of the club is burning bright with the stars of tomorrow currently getting plenty of playing time and not only that but performing very well. Top scorer Kazuki Hiramoto has played his socks off this season, working, working, working. 10 goals isn`t great for a striker but he was nice to me and my son on the train so he has to stay in the team. Hopefully with an on fire Toshiyuki Takagi next season and a new Deputy Goal Machine. Taira Inoue started as our number one striker and I`m sure he`s a very nice guy in real life but on the football pitch frankly he`s awful. The first thing Kawakatsu needs for next season if not a brand new expensive super striker, then a decent back up for what we`ve got as what we`ve got simply isn`t enough to get to 3rd place next season.
The Verdy back line has been unusually solid this year finishing the season as the joint 2nd best defence behind Reysol along with also promoted Fukuoka and nowhere near promoted Ehime. The words "good defence" and Verdy have never gone hand in hand, the tactics of old being to outscore allcomers. Pre-season I wrote on these pages that Tomisawa was shit and Tsuchiya was getting on a bit. However, I`m happy to say I was wrong in the end. Tomisawa emerged from his early season nightmare to form one of the best Verdy partnerships ever with Tsuchiya. Both also contributed memorable goals this season with a flying header from Tsuchiya against Giravanz and Tomisawa running the length of the field and volleying home the winner against Tosu(?) Venforet(?) can`t remember but it was a cracker...Doi has had an excellent year after replacing the dropped Shibasaki after the first couple of games. He should be back for 2011 and so will  Tokyo Nerdy 1969.

See you next year!!!

It`s been an absolute rollercoaster ride as always on the good ship Green and I`d like to thank all readers of Tokyo Nerdy 1969 both near and far for chipping in with comments and hope you check in next season. 2011 promises to be a cracker with Verdy looking to get in the top three. We`ve got the return of The Tokyo Derby thanks to FC Tokyo somehow managing to get relegated yesterday, dropping into the bottom three for the first time all season on the final day......can anyone think of any other team from Tokyo who did that? FC Tokyo thinking they are great by getting relegated in such dramatic fashion? Meh!! Verdy were getting relegated like that when FC Tokyo were in short trousers. Muppets!! Have to think of a new slogan for next season too now the bankruptcy has been sorted.......

Done and Dusted.... Verdy 3-1 Mito

Goal Machine and a Lucky Dwarf "manhug". It`s ok, it`s sport and they are just friends...I think.

Well the 2010 J League season is finished and what better way to end it all than with an easy win over Mito Hollyhock. The game was only five minutes old when Goal Machine got his 10th and final goal of 2010. Mito seemingly forgot who tore them to pieces in the reverse fixture as Hiroki Kawano collected a loose ball just outside his own box, dribbled the length of the field before firing a cross over for Hiramoto to smash home on a first time volley. Number two came from a corner with Kawano firing the ball in for the unmarked Iio to stear home for his 5th of the season. Two became three just after the half hour mark with ex-Mito man Kikuoka beating the keeper at his near post after being released by Fukuda. 3-0 at half time and it could have 8 or 9 by full time. But for good work by the Mito keeper, Verdy would have run up a cricket score. The Greens finished the season in a confident manner and we can all look forward to next season with more hope than this season. So 5th place in the end and two places higher than last season so a step in the right direction. Which takes us to next season.....

Mummys `s gonna tell me off....

Oh dear...FC Tokyo 0- 2 Kyoto...Urawa 0 - 4 Kobe. Couldn`t have written it better myself :)!! It`s official, the whole of Tokyo is ABSOLUTELY SHIT at football!!!!!!!!!

Tokyo Nerdy`s Black and White Army!!! Can`t be doing with crimson.....

Verdy had a bye this week so we`ve had a little look at the bottom of J1 and it`s going to the last week and if  Vissel Kobe can win and FC Tokyo draw or lose then FC Tokyo are down. Ho, ho, ho!! Merry Christmas!!  On paper FC Tokyo have the easier game away to already relegated Kyoto as Kobe have to go to Urawa. However, Urawa have been absolutely average this year and Kobe have picked up a few results recently including beating S-Pulse yesterday. I predict that FC Tokyo will be more nervous than Kobe as they`ll be "expected" to win. Pressure is all on them and I will piss my pants and look forward to some great derbys next season if they go down!! The Tokyo Derby is a quality ocassion and we need a marquee game to get excited about!!

(Sch)Mick Jagger`s Big Balls....Verdy 1 - 0 Ehime

Mick Jagger all round annoying twat.....interestingly has massive balls but tiny cock according to bandmate Keith Richards. Jagger`ll` ve thanked him for putting that in his autobiography I`m sure.

Can`t be doing with the Rolling Stones. OK they made some great records 45 years ago but does anybody give a toss about any "new" album they`ve done in the last 30 years?? No didn`t think so....the early stuff of almost any band your care to mention is the best. They then get tired, stale, run out of ideas, dropped by the record label, become alcoholics and spend the rest of their days playing hits from their one or (maximum) two hit albums at wedding parties or Butlins remembering the goood old days. Seemingly what is good for shit old bands is also good for Tokyo Verdy.........
25,000 turned out to watch the game against JEF the other week and how many were at Ehime?? 2,500!! As I came to the JEF game I noticed a number of fans leaving before the game even kicked off, people who had obviously come to see the old farts trotting about with the "comedians" as pre match "entertainment. These guys seemingly revel in the old days of the club but fail to connect the old with the new.  FOOTBALL IS NOT MUSIC!! Just because the team is shit now doesn`t mean they can`t be great again. Tokyo Verdy may have been initially decent and shit now. But that doesn`t mean to say they will ALWAYS be shit and if people support then they have more of a chance of being less shit.
Hats off to the 2,500 other people who bothered but where were the other 9 out of 10? OK it was a BIT cold being an evening kick off, that would be enough to turn away some families with little kids. Ehime is miles away on a work night so that would count for a good deal of the away fans. But what about the rest?? If Mr. Xebio was licking is lips with the Dollar signs in his eyes against JEF then he will be have been sorely dissapointed on Tuesday night. Oh well, hopefully the cash is in the bank already.
On to the game, we played for 89 minutes against Ehime being pretty much second best throughout. The bright spots being the debut of Japan U-19 Yuki Kobayashi and an 89th minute penalty drilled home by Yoshiaki Takagi following a handball on his shot which would have probably splattered the defenders nose 3 foot across his face had he not put his hands up to block it. One game to go, it`s Mito, let`s batter them again and wrap up for Christmas!!

What Goes Around and Celebrity Dipshits Verdy 2 - 3 Avispa

You have to wonder what`s going in football sometimes. Verdy were to dominate the game but were never in front. After the comeback of the season against Toyama, Verdy got a taste of their own medicine in more traditional Green style. Avispa were nervous as hell and if they play like that in J1 next season they will finish dead last (again). The game kicked off with the Boys passing it around crisply enough though not really threatening the Avispa goal. Avispa themselves were without top scorer and ex Verdy wide man Genki Nagasato and struggled to find any kind of rythmn for the first 20 minutes.
The opening goal came on 20 minutes with Shohei Takahashi giving away the penalty following a trip which probably WAS just inside the box despite the vehement protests. Veteran Kudo made no mistake from the spot, twice slamming past Doi after the first penalty had to be re-taken for encroaching.
Verdy continued to press without succes and probably at the this point the neutral fan would have changed channel to watch some celebrity no marks eat stuff, do the monkey clap/laugh thing, say eeeehhhhh!!! nodding their heads in endless agreement. I personally would love it if one day someone on Japanese TV would say "Actually mate that`s complete bollocks, this food tastes like arse!! I`m off to Mcdonalds"
And what a treat they would have missed!!! The second half was another ding dong battle starting off with Avispa extending their lead with Jogo tearing Tomisawa and Tuschiya to pieces through the middle sprinting from the half way line to slot past Doi. The Verdy backline has been superb at times this season but recently has looked very shaky leaking seven in three games.
However Verdy were to come back into it with a superb strike and contender for Goal of The Month from Kazunori Iio. He was on the edge of the D surrounded by markers, he turned and fired straight into the top corner. Boom!
After this Verdy were to really lay siege to the Avispa goal and it wasn`t long before Goal Machine got us back to 2-2 with a first time header running at full pelt on a looping cross from Shibasaki. Two spectacular goals and a superb comeback. At this point it looked like there would only be one winner with Avispa more than a little shellshocked. Tsuchiya found himself clean through about 10 yards out and in traditional centre half style blasted hopelessly over the bar. Kawano fired wide and deep into injury time these misses came back to haunt Verdy. Free kick 25 yards out.......and I`m sure you can guess the rest.

Roundabouts..Traffic entering the roundabout yields to traffic already on the roundabout."Eeeeeeh!!! Aaah so desu ka? Sugoi ne!!! Ne!! Ne! Shiranakatta!! KA-BOOM!! TV fades to black to the sound of semi automatic gunfire...

Anyway a great game, superb entertainment but unfortunately no points. Avispa will have to up their game considerably if they are to avoid coming straight back down next season and seemingly so will JEF if they make it after struggling to overcome the comically bad Giravanz.

Over The Hill With the Swords Of 25,000 Men, Women and Children!! Verdy 25,000 (1) - 2 JEF United

Thump!! Outside the box and in!!!

Jesus Christ , Mary Mother of Jesus, Joseph, All the Disciples, Noah and The Animals, The Monkees, The Jesus And Mary Chain, Mary Mary and all other God/Jesus/Music related beings. What was that all about?? THERE WERE 25,000 PEOPLE AT AJINOMOTO STADIUM WATCHING TOKYO VERDY LAST NIGHT. 25,000 people!! 25,000!!! Tonight was simply a great night to be a Verdy supporter, a night that will be remembered as one of the great days of the club. Todays match was the first to recognise the new owners offically, with the team taking to the field for the first time with the new sponsors name on their shirts.
The match started off with Verdy in the ascendancy; unsurprising given the backing they had and they had already hit the bar before Goal Machine opened the scoring after seven minutes lashing home from outside the box following great build up from Kikuoka and then Shibasaki. 1-0 and the roof nearly came off with the cheer that went up when Hiramoto scored!! The game then descended into a bit of a midfield stalemate with neither side offering too much going forward. There was an air of inevitability about Alex` equaliser coming on 60 minutes, JEF had been threatening and Doi had already made one excellent save pushing away an overhead kick from inside the box. One point soon became no points as Yuto Sato was left in acres of space to finish in-off the post. Verdy tried in vain to force an equaliser but to be honest they never really looked like getting anything, an effort from Tsuchiya headed wide in the dying minutes was the best the Boys could muster.

As a specatacle the game itself was pretty poor but the atmosphere generated in the barn that is Ajinomoto was something to behold for the long suffering Verdy faithfull. Probably everyone who has ever been to a Verdy game in the past turned out in what was a remarkable show of support for the club. To get such a huge turnout was amazing and the organisers of the Save Our Verdy campaign should be congratulated on the fanstastic event that was put on last night. Yeah, we lost, but Verdy are alive and kicking like a MULE!! Onwards and Upwards The Boys March On!!

Verdy`s 12th Man...and The Flag Bitch

Speaking of insanity, the last post got me thinking about another odd character you will ocassionally see at Verdy games. I`ve no idea what this guys name is and I`d forgotten he even existed until bumping into him again yesterday. It must be 6 or 7 years ago since me and  Mrs Nerdy went to a game and noticed a rather odd guy at the back of the stand pacing around,hopping on one foot, then the other nervously and smiling to himself. He had a Verdy uniform on but the unusual thing was that he had the rest of the kit too....now as kid I had my fair share of football kits which I would never take off and wear anywhere. But that stopped as with most other people as I got older. Seemingly not with this guy, all those years ago he would have been in his early 20`s with his top tucked unto his Verdy shorts, pulled up to his nipples, his socks pulled up to his knees with football trainers on. Myself and Mrs Nerdy laughed and thought  he must be a bit strange.....and that thought was reconfirmed yesterday. We were sitting on the grass bank at Toyama and the same hopping around nervously guy came into view. Same Verdy uniform but this time he had seemingly adjusted his attire to reflect the modern game. The top was now outside the shorts and he had his socks rolled down, this time sporting post match flip flops. Not TOO mad I thought but then I noticed the strips of plaster material that players strap to their calves for whatever reason. He was stripped up to the nines, he hopped around for a bit and went and stood with the people with the drums for 10 minutes then went off got changed and sat down with his friend.

The Flag Bitch and Mrs Insanity chatting.......

Yeah just like what Ice-T said...

The Flag Bitches are an interesting phenomenom and (I imagine) are  present at each and every J League stadium in the country. Tokyo Verdy have their very own Flag Bitch who did a sterling job of carrying 8 or 9 flags and poles strapped to various parts of his body.  A typical Flag Bitch will be a young member of a supporters club and will be easily recognisable as he will be completely obscured from view due to the sheer number of flags he is carrying. The Verdy Flag Bitch yesterday, directed us to the stadium delivered all his flags stood a good 10 metres away from the main supporters groups with the drums. Jumped up and down for 90 minutes, collected his flags and was last seen dashing for the sation presumably on some flag related emergency. The job of the Flag Bitch is probably the most important job in J2. If the team is playing at a far away stadium, it is The Flag Bitch`s job to carry as many flags as is humanly possible to the ground, forgoing all thoughts of hunger, expense and concept of time until his flags have been safely delivered to their wavers or tied to the stadium walls. A team with only 25 away supports but with 377 flags and banners tied behind the away end?? All due to the endless energy of The Flag Bitch. All hail The Flag Bitch!!

Kitty chan v Tulio?? Endo v Cinamon?? How about Yanagisawa?? Verdy 3- 2 Toyama!!

Shibasaki mobbed at the end!! 94th minute!!

So in a hamburger eating tabehodai (all you can eat) battle, would a team of Sanrio characters or a team of past and present Japan internationals prevail?? A tough question indeed and one of many questions put to myself and my two friends by an absolutely bark raving insane lady on the bus on the way back to the station from Toyama Stadium yesterday. You know how it is, somebody says "hello" and not wanting to be rude you say "hello" back and then when the person starts talking, you quickly realise the person is actually mad. There are two ways to react in this situation; humour the mentalist or move away slowly. On a packed bus, option two was unavailable. So for 25 minutes the four of us weighed up the pros and cons of Yanagisawa`s meat consuming aptitude (not good as he is older so eats less hamburgers these days). Kitty-chan is young so of course eats more but then is female so eats less. She was actually very knowledgeable about the stats side of things, knowing all the heights and weights of the players, but to be honest her hamburger eating ability judgements were clearly subjective....This truly bizzare bus ride was just another part of a superb trip which came with a fantastic game, glorious sunshine, a brush with the "stars" a few beers and a stay in a what turned out to be a decent, cheap ryokan.
The ride out into the countryside was pleasent as it always is when you get out of the city, buildings and factories soon giving way to rice fields and unconcreted rivers. Toyama is a beautiful, mountainous part of the country and is currently spectacular with the forest leaves changing colour. We arrived at a stadium bathed in sunshine and were pleased to find that three sides of the ground had a grass bank to sit on which on a day like yesterday was superb and even better with little kids in tow. The Toyama supporters were in good voice after celebrating their first win in eleven games last weekend over the uber-shite that is Giravanz.
The game kicked off and Verdy were to absolutely dominate the opening twenty minutes with Doi hardly touching the ball. Yoshiaki Takagi and Kawano had been put in as strikers with Goal Machine dropping to the bench. The attack was VERY lightweight in the first half as even though  Verdy had all the possesion it was Toyama who took the lead slicing through the Verdy rearguard all too easily on a breakaway. Ex Japan forward Kurobe made it two with another breakaway goal and great finish to leave Verdy with a mountain to climb.  Verdy were to pull one back on the stroke of half time through an own goal which I couldn`t see as it was miles away...Right so half time and Kawakatsu brought on Goal Machine to add a bit of weight to the forward line and his introduction had the desired effect. Hiramoto offers a target to the midfielders, he can hold the ball up and when he gets the ball it sticks.
Unfortunately, Kurobe then scored another breakaway goal to make it 3-1 Toyama.......or so I thought for about 15 minutes. He had the ball in the net, the stadium announcer did his GOOOOOOAAAAAAALLLLLL!!! shout and when I looked again the ball was back around the centre circle. Iio got another back with a short range finish in the box and I thought maybe we have a chance here at 3-2, get back to 3-3 maybe. Kikuoka also "scored" but had it rightly called for offside. Anyway the confusion ended when my friends came back from the bar and said the Toyama "goal" had been called for offside.....Nice one!! Felt like I`d found a tenner in my pocket that I didn`t know was there. For the last 25 minutes Verdy pressed and pressed but couldn`t seem to find the decisive opening. Until the 94th minute when after a scramble in the box, Kosei Shibasaki poked the ball home to cap a thrilling comeback. Seconds later the ref whistled for full time, the Toyama players flopped to the ground and the Verdy travelling support went wild!! Well as wild as 50 or so middle age oddballs can go anyway.....
Sometimes J-League footballers get reputations for being ponces, stuck up arrogant toss pots,  unworthy of anything aside from derision from amateur, arm chair supporters (like me...) who reckon they could do better with their eyes closed. Sometimes this is absolutely deserved but usually probably not. When we were on the train on the way back last night it turned out that the Verdy squad was on the same train. I was with my son and thought I`d go and ask very politely if it would be OK if I could get his picture taken with them. I`m sure they`ll never read this but I`d like to say thankyou to Iio, "Goal Machine" Hiramoto and Tsuchiya for making the effort and being so friendly. Nice one boys!!

Get stuck in Kitty!!

Post game celebrations...

An absolutely superb weekend of entertainment and something that will be done again next season!! Gotta love football in Japan!!

Toyama Here We Come!!

HOLY SHIT!!!??? Apparently this is Toyama.....

That`s right folks, match tickets bought, Shinkansen booked, hotel (probable rat infested hovel considering the price) paid for, Tokyo Nerdy 1969 will be off to Toyama next weekend for the bash up with Kataller. Not been to a distant away game for far too long so away we go!! Nothing better than travelling in style to a new place for a game. New stadium, new scenery, new atmosphere. Like many other sad bastards I`d love to be able to have been to every stadium in the league. Love a game of footy me and there is nothing better than going to a new ground. I used to love it as a kid, getting away from an empty Molienuex,  running up the steps that used to lead to the top of one of the stands at St. Andrews. I had the excitement of going to Villa once or twice and standing on the Holte End. Hearing the mighty Boothen End in full voice at Stoke City`s old Vic. 2-2 Cup game against Arsenal.. . A day at Port Vale in January was probably one of the coldest experiences I have ever had in my life. A 2-0 Wolves victory completely numbed by spending 90 minutes standing on an open terrace with horizontal rain lashing into my face. Probably the oddest away ground is Cowdenbeath FC who have always been pure shite in Scotland. I could be mistaken but I wouldn`t be surprised if they are the only club in the world to have a hot rod track round their pitch!! Football on the Saturdy and Hot Rod racing  complete with a Demolition Derby on the Sunday won by a Hillman Imp!! Funny the things you remember......Anyway, well excited about next weekend, it`s been T-O-O long!!

Hope It`s Chips, It`s Chips!! We Ho-ope It`s Chips, It`s Chips! Will It Be Mushrooms?? Fried Onion Rings?? You`ll `ave to wait and see.......Verdy 0 - 1 Oita

So the new owners got their first look at the club at home and what did they get to see? 4,500 fans which isn`t massively encouraging, no goals either but on the bright side a team with lots of promise for next season. I think we can finally say thats it for 2010. Verdy will more than likely spend at least a third season in J2. Though JEF lost, unfortunately Avispa clocked up another 3 points to extend their lead over Verdy to 9 points with a game in hand. Too much of a gap at this stage of the season and even moreso with the goals seemingly drying up for the Greens.
The game kicked off with the Verdy support in fine voice (probably due to the micrphones being turned up to 11) attacking the away goal, Verdy started brightly with Hiramoto breaking through and Kawano flashing an effort wide. Verdy were to dominate the opening half an hour but as the game went on the more Oita came alive. Oita are the only other team to beat Kashiwa so they can`t be COMPLETE mugs. Their Korean playmaker Kim was a livewire throughout causing plenty of trouble for Tsuchiya and Tomisawa at the back though he should have done better with a skied effort from inside the box with a clear view of the target. Just after halftime, Oita were to take the lead when Kawahara spotted Doi out of position and chipped him with a shot Tiger Woods would have been proud to make assumingly when he makes time between drilling prozzies, cougars, and cougars who are also prozzies.....
Verdy huffed and puffed for all they were worth, Kawakatsu brought on Yoshiaki Takagi who had surprisingly been dropped in favour of Takuma Abe, he came on and almost immediately tested the keeper with a superb shot from a corner. The ball came over he controled it, dummied to shoot giving him time to take a real blast which the keeper did very well to bat away for another corner. Kikuoka came on and finally as a last resort he dragged Taira Inoue out of kindergarton and threw him on for the last 15 minutes. He had a decent headed chance and of course fluffed it wide from about 10 yards out....Anyway, doesn`t matter now, we are done for the year and can wind down safe in the knowledge that we`ll still have something to talk about next season. Onwards and (not really) Upwards The Boys March On!!

Shohei Takahashi Ladies and Gentlemen!! Verdy 1-0 Sagan

Now I want Verdy to get to J1 and beat all comers on the way, probably more than the next man as it turns out. But, there is a way and a style to do it. That way and style does not include conning the referee with a DIABOLICAL dive for a penalty in the 87th minute of the match. Shohei Takahashi hang your head in absolute shame you TWAT!! Firstly for your pathetic, premeditated, flop to the ground and secondly for your fist pumping celebration at being awarded a penalty. Any decent player would be annoyed for being fouled when in a good position unless you had planned to go down... Cocksuckers like you ruin the game for all concerned.
So, 3 points in the bag, JEF lost but I`m too annoyed to care!! From last weeks "easy" win over Fagiano,Verdy beat Sagan with an absolute joke of a penalty.......sometimes things don`t add up. If I had to bet if the game was fixed or not, I`d have to say  a resounding YES! YES! and thrice YES! Not in the sense that Sagan didn`t try, as it turned out they battered Verdy from start to finish and but for Doi having his game of the season and being absolutely unbeatable they would have ran up a cricket score. However, it seemed like the referee couldn`t wait to give the penalty. Maybe he had a few quid on Toto for an away win?? Something stinks in the J League sometimes and I for one don`t like it......

Takahshi`s hilarious Riding a Broomstick routine is always a winner......

Fukuda sent off for two yellows, Goal Machine back but did NOTHING, Shibasaki slammed the penalty away in the top left corner. The Sagan goalie got booked after the final whistle for continuing to backchat the referee about the penalty. Sometimes managers moan about players getting silly yellows but if I was the manager of Sagan Tosu tonight I`d be asking my goalkeeper why the referee didn`t give him a straight red for violent conduct..... Onwards and Criminally Upwards The Boys March On!!

HAPPY AS A DOG WITH TWO....

So, tomorrow The Boys are off down to Kyushu for a bash up with Sagan Tosu. Down to Kyushu, the island of rain, floods, typhoons and football. Sanfrecce got the ball rolling in the beginning, Avispa and Sagan were added to the mix, followed by Trinita, Kumamoto and finally this season Kitakyushu. Six teams, derbies aplenty but no team that`s ever managed to do much....and hopefully our Boys can batter Sagan Tosu into oblivion. That`s the hope, the reality however could be something quite different. We do not care in the slightest however, if we win; GREAT!! If we lose 7-0 it will be shite but at least there is next season to think about, which there wasn`t last week. Onwards and Still Breathing The Boys March On!!

Happy Days



Eeeeeeeeh!! Sit on it Cunningham!!

 Breathe easy my Verdy friends!! The club has been saved!!! The new owners as reported in the Sponnichi dirtsheet and Official Verdy website are Xebio Sports Ltd a national chain of sports shops. They have agreed a 5 year sponsorship deal including stumping up the cash to be the main sponsor. The whys and wherefores? Probably a ton of brown envelopes stuffed with cash, Xebio company executives pictured in embarrassing clinches with hookers, blackmail and sordidness.Who cares!! WE`RE ALIVE!!!! Now let`s get a win this weekend against Tosu to go with the Kensuke Fukuda super strike inspired 1-0 victory over Fagaiano last weekend and get something for the fans to cheer about!!
To be honest I love the club but the head honcho (One Yuu Morohashi) of Xebio must be clinically insane. Company is doing well, billions of Yen in the black....hmmm let`s buy Tokyo Verdy!! The crowd for the Fagiano game even when all supporters knew the club was at deaths door?? 4,000!! Seriously, I have to wonder at the mans brain.....or does his company get a SWEET deal on J-League merchandising to be sold through his national chain of sports shops?? Very high chance of a a bit of "you scratch my back, I`ll tickle your balls....." in that one.

10,000 T-shirts for a Quid!!




5 Lighters for a Pound, 5 Lighters for a Pound??

 

The Save Our Verdy campaign has come up with a discount scheme and T-shirt offer for the JEF United match. Tickets bought before matchday will be down to 1,000円　for behind the home goal and ticket holders will also be able to claim a T-shirt as pictured above to hopefully entice some fat company executives to throw their money away. 10,000 shirts will be printed and hopefully they`ll sell every single goddamn one. It was only three seasons ago that 14,000 turned up to watch Verdy clinch promotion back to J1 with a 5-0 (5-1??) victory over Consadole. They even opened the top teir behind the goal!!! Probably the last time it was ever opened at a Greens game....Surely they can do 10,000?? Which begs the question, where did 10,000 people go in under 3 years?? They can`t have ALL been killed by natural disasters and thrown themselves under trains surely!!
Speaking of fan numbers (it seems shocking now) I once went to a summer Saturday night league game at Ajinomoto vs Jubilo and 30,000 were in....I was shocked, flabbergasted you might even say. Turned out it was Chofu Festival that week and both FC Tokyo and Verdy had given out rucks of FREE tickets. I recall FC Tokyo tickets being made from the usual shiny colour printed paper....Verdys however were simply a black and white piece of cut up A4 with a Verdy seal handstamped on..... Verdy Eco-Warriors!!  Green to The End!!

Last Orders....Verdy 0 - 1 Thespa

So  JEF stumbled out of 3rd, to be overtaken by Avispa, who have now lost two in a row.....the last spot is definately up for grabs and whoever can keep their nerve and put a run together will be in J1 next season or the dole office with their heads held high in the case of Verdy!! Still no word on a new buyer or hint of anything in the pipeline....
So that leaves 8 games for The Boys to do the most damage they can and finish the season being the first team in Japan to get promoted and go out of business at the same time. It would be fantastic to repeat the Yokohama Flugels triumph of winning the Emperors Cup before biting the dust.  And what a time to do it!! Verdy currently have FIVE Under-19 National Teamers on board, the best young crop of homegrown talent the team has probably ever produced. The future of the club is right there playing week in week out putting the club within shouting distance of promotion. OK, so chances are that Verdy won`t finish 3rd, Avispa are still 6 points ahead with a game in hand. But if Verdy were given the chance to have another go next year, the current young guns the Takagi brothers, Hiroki Kawano (when he`s not suspended...), Shohei Takahashi, Shuto Minami, Takuma Abe have ALL contributed when called upon this term and could do even more with another years experience.  Yuki Kobayashi is another waiting in the wings, with many expecting great things.Another recent call up to the Under 19 squad.

This season has been remarkable if only for the number of young players that have been blooded. Kawakatsu has had his hand forced by some woeful performances earlier on in the season but also the quality of these youngsters has shone through in their initial cameo appearances through to them taking their places in Kawakatsu`s first choice line up. I absolutely tip my hat to Verdy`s manger this season, he has gone about his business in a quiet, unruffled manner when those around him have been constantly harbouring visions of doom and gloom all season.
On to the game, we lost at Kusatsu and this time it was the oppositions turn to hammer a free kick from miles out that the goalie should have saved. Matsushita, the baldy Kusatsu dwarf hoofed it goalward the flight of the ball seemed to confuse Doi and somehow it managed to squeeze in between his arms and the crossbar. The Boys up top, struggled to get anything going first half, Kawano was introduced to try to speed things up which he managed to a degree. Iio flashed an effrot against the bar, Yoshiaki Takagi had a turn and shot well saved before being taken out. Abe had the chance of the game with only 3 minutes left on the clock, slicing his shot agonisingly past the post from the edge of the 6 yard box. After scoring for fun in the last few games, it was tough watch this one. Verdy looked tired and though they pressured Thespa for the whole of the second half, you can`t say that Verdy did enough to take 3 points.
 However, given what is probably coming at the end of the season we at Tokyo Nerdy 1969 are going to sit back and thoroughly enjoy the remainder of the 2010 season whatever results come our way. If Verdy are to be finishing this winter, then that`s that but I for one will remember an absolute roller coaster ride supporting one of the most fabled teams in all of Japan. Up! Down! Up! Down! Down! Down! and maybe finally out....fear not though readers, one fact that we can all take comfort from is that always and forever Even in death Tokyo Verdy piss on FC Tokyo`s chips:)!!

CALLING ALL GREENS!! Club Overboard!!

Tokyo Verdy have OFFICIALLY announced that the home game against JEF United at Ajinomoto Stadium on November 14th will be the culmination of the "Save Our Verdy" campaign. Rumours have been rife all season concerning the state of the club, prospects for next season, money, debts, the need for new owners etc.. Well now the time is here. VERDY ARE IN DEEP SHIT AND NEED A GOOD SHOW ON NOVEMBER 14th. If any new owners are to be tempted to buy the club, they need to be shown that more than 5,000 people actually care. The 3,000 regulars will be there for sure with bells on, but for the casual supporters out there please get along to the ground and bring as many friends as you can. Verdy have always been there for 90 minutes entertainment a week for the last 10 or so  years (for me), week in week out in good times and in (usually) bad.
I suspect a lot of people couldn`t give a flying f@@K and might even be happy to see Verdy go. However, what do the people who live and breathe football week in week out do if their team is taken away from them?? To all the people who would be happy to see Verdy go just imagine YOUR team is up against it at the end of this season. Time to stand and be counted!!

Verdy have installed a Verdy Youtube Channel for fans to upload video messages of support:

http://www.youtube.com/user/verdychannel

Crash, Double Bang, Baldy Wallop!! Verdy 4-0 Giravanz

`Ave it!!

4-0 then and deservedly so. Giravanz Kitakyushu though please remember are currently the worst professional team in Japan and are odds on to finish the worst EVER team since the J League started in 1993. Tokyo Verdy had so much space and time on the ball it was ridiculous. Yoshiaki Takagi got the ball rolling 5 minutes in with another freekick from the edge of the box, that`s three in two games for him and once again it was to be a family affair with older brother Toshiyuki chipping in with a brace. His first a bumping barging run past three it has to be said, easily beaten defenders and a powerful finish. His second, a free kick from a ridiculous distance that he didn`t seem to hit that well, nevermind though when "The Cat" is in goal it`s seemingly always worth a crack. That was 3-0 and Tsuchiya was able to finish things off with a diving header into the top corner. How easily that sentence rolls of the tongue and onto the keyboard.......one more time....."Tsuchiya was able to finish things off with a diving header into the top corner". Nice!!

Attack of the Killer Trees!! Tokushima 2 - 3 Verdy

uh....uh.....peeeeeeeeeep!!!

Gotta love football!! 3-0 up with twenty minutes to go, cruising....Tsuchiya thinks the game is won, gets his Zidane head on, 3-1, five minutes later its 3-2 but we hold on for the win!! The absolute unpredictability of football is what makes it SUCH a game. I tuned in after a strange old day...I had to go to central Tokyo for work related stuff and once that was finished, myself and a workmate tried to go for a beer. We were walking down the road and noticed an Oktober Fest ad outside a bar which had a giant plastic frosty beverage outside, that`ll do we thought.....I had a quick check on the menu before entering and nearly fell over. 2520円　(about 19 Pounds Sterling) for a pint!!! This was an outside(ish)  stand up bar and for some reason most of the male clientel looked like offduty kabuki actors in full very expensive looking kimonos. Bizzare and another reminder of why downtown Tokyo generally licks balls.

Anyhow I went to the supermarket on the way home bought a massively cheaper limited selection of beverages in a handy pack of 6 and settled down for the game. Line ups, Goal Machine has apparently succumbed to a gammy knee and was replaced by Toshiyuki Takagi in tandem with his brother Yoshiaki in a 4-4-2. Wada kept his place as Takahashi continued to deputise for Captain Tomisawa. On paper I thought Mmmm looks a bit weak up top...but that clearly just shows what a cock I am. The first half was a fairly even affair with neither side creating too many CLEAR chances. However, sometimes it takes something special to score a goal.....or two...Yoshiaki Takagi again came to the fore with a superb finish after being released on the edge of the box by Iio. He had missed an earlier chance dragging his shot wide but made no mistake this time. Like his brother last week, Dream Goal....edge of the box, hit with the right foot curled into the top corner. He followed this up with some Micheal Owen-esque six yard box play. Kikuoka going at full pace cutting into the penalty area, Takagi flanked by two covering defenders also going at full speed, Takagi simply checked his run opening up the space leaving an easy pass for Kikuoka and easy finish. So, 2-0 at half time, Vortis offering not much and when Toshiyuki Takagi scored the 3rd through chasing down a long ball, game over check mate you would have thought...Nope!! Never that easy is it!! Again talking about unpredictability, 3-0 game over but one mistake from a Tsuchiya trying somekind of fancy flick when a hoof to row Z was called for and the game was turned on it`s head. Vortis folllowed up with number two shortly after following an unfortunate rebound being slotted away from an excellent Doi save...we hung on and for the time being we still have a promotion chance and even if that fades away, the boobs will always be there!!  

Big Tree Power!!

Reasons To Be Cheerful...Boobs.

Boobs are always there when times are tough be they real or just a picture. Should we lose tomorrow please ignore the match report and focus your mind on the above. The pain of defeat will recede momentarily..

Verdy are sitting in the promtion last chance saloon readers. Tomorrow is a national holiday in the `Pan and there is a full schedule of J League to keep us occupied. The Boys are off down to Tokushima to try and keep the season going. Lose tomorrow to another team directly above us and it`s pretty safe to say we will be spending at least a 3rd consecutive season in J2. So can they do it?? It`s a tough ask considering Tokushima had banged in 12 goals in 3 games prior to their Shikoku Derby defeat and Verdy have been misfiring on all cylinders. Tokushima have to be favourites but you never know do you.....the odds on Verdy (still) being the only team to beat Reysol would have been huge and similarly the odds would have been pretty stacked that Giravanz would have found some way to beat another team apart from Verdy ALL season. C`mon The Boys!!!!!
Giravanz could however win soon as they come to Ajinomoto on Sunday...
Also please check FC Tokyo doing their utmost to join us in J2 next year!! Here`s to a J2 Tokyo Derby next season!!

Fat Birds At Leisure...Verdy 0 - 0 SC Tochigi

Fat Lady Driving a Car...

Lenny Kravitz reckoned it wasn`t over till it was over.... Not sure what he was on about originally though when applied to Verdy`s promotion attempt it probably IS all over unfortunately. It`s not impossible but becoming more and more unlikely. The game yesterday was tough on the eye with chances at a premium (at the Tochigi end of the field) and Verdy failing to even register an attempt on goal for the first 40 minutes. Verdy saw a lot of possesion but time after time the final ball was poor, Hiramoto could have formed his own monastic republic he was so isolated. Support striker Yoshiaki Takagi fresh from inking his first pro contract was busy but some stoic Tochigi defending kep him relatively quiet. In fact it was Tochigi who looked far more dangerous with a number of fast breaks on the counter attack with two efforts flashing inches past Doi`s post and one Doi did very well to get down to push on to the post. There was a makeshift defence on view with Captain Tomisawa out to a late injury and Shohei Takahashi coming in to the centre, Masaki Yoshida would have been the natural choice to take over on the left from Takahashi but Kawakatsu went with untested, and particularly raw Takuya Wada.
Verdy upped the pressure as the second half went on, Shibasaki had a long range blast which the  keeper was relieved to simply get a hand to, Hiramoto had an easily collected dolly shot when he should have broke the net, Takahashi blasted over when completely unmarked in the box.. Last weeks (semi) hero Toshiyuki Takagi came off the bench and went close with a thunderous strike coming back off the foot of the post to up his chances of starting the next game. The game finished on a slight bit of controversy with Takuma Abe sent sprawling in the box in the 93rd minute, no call from the referee. Definate penalty but would have been an undeserved win should it have been slotted away. 0-0 dull game, 3,700 people probably wondering why they bothered making the trip and a few more watching on TV wondering why they didn`t go shopping or something. Next up the worst team in the league Giravanz Kitakyushu. They have registered just one win in 25 games and we all know who that was against.........on a personal sidenote for the ladies out there, any bloke worth his salt will tell you there`s nowt wrong with a bird with a big arse.

Fat Lady Enjoying a Light Snack, not a microphone in sight.....

Chocolate Teapot.... Verdy 2-3 Yokohama

More tea Vicar??

Well The Boys couldn`t take advantage of JEF`s slip up and now the gap is seven points. Another fightback to 3-2 from 3-0 down and some definate plus points in that respect, BUT make no bones about it Verdy had enough clear cut chances to win this game three times over. Once again the lack of an (anywhere near) decent centre forward put paid to our chances of collecting anything.
Taira Inoue did indeed (surely for the last time) take the field as starting striker and predictably gave a masterclass in scuffing, shinrolling, 50p heading and general ineptitude. He passed up FOUR golden opportunities to score. No amount of analysing, soulsearching or mediating circumstances can disguise the fact that TAIRA INOUE IS A SHIT FORWARD! He knew himself he was having a `mare cursing and slamming the turf in frustration at his feet not being able to do what his head was telling them. However he wasn`t the only one guilty of horrendous finishing, Abe skyed an effort from the 6 yard box that should be landing back down just about now, Shibasaki was shooting from anywhere. Truly awful.
Now let`s turn to Yokohama, it took them four attempts to score three goals. The first a corner swung in after 10 minutes and the forward was unmarked to glance his header home, the second a huge goalkick upfield, one bounce, Tomisawa left it thinking it`d run through to Doi, Yokohama forward nipped in and chipped in, the third saw Tsuchiya unusually unsure of himself and again the forward was able to slot home far too easily.  So 3-0 down after having the ball for the majority of the game and dominating play.
The Fightback....was orchestrated by the Takagi brothers and what a pair of goals they produced!! Wow!! is all I can say. After seeing an earlier effort crash back off the cross bar,the first  goal was a free kick won by Yoshiaki Takagi maybe five yards outside the box. He waved away all the oncomers took the kick himself, up and over the wall into the top corner and left the goalie rooted to the spot... 17 years old ladies and gentlemen!! Before the game there was a presentation for the previous weeks Goal Of The Week for J2 given to a Yokohama player for what was a cracking goal. The second Takagi goal (this time the older Toshiyuki) will be a tough one to beat for this weeks best. He recieved the ball on the far corner of the Yokohama box and started to work his way across the top of the box looking for a shooting opportunity, he dummied one defender putting him on his backside and instantaneously SLAMMED the ball into the top corner past the diving keeper!! Absolute Roy of The Rovers goal the kind you dream about when you`re a kid. Verdy`s first point of business if at all possible should be to hang on to these two for as long as they can.

Bend it like Takagi!!

Er..shout about it like the other Takagi!!

Promotion wise we are up against it though assuming Inoue has walked the plank into shark infested waters we should be in better shape when the absentees return. Only if the entire staff of Tokyo Verdy have doctor confirmed death certificates should Taira Inoue start another game. This includes the youth team, the Under 7`s, tea ladies, bus driver, cheerleaders and the bloke who wears the vulture mascot  suit. All teams need a fall guy to blame it all on, we had The Donk for the last couple of seasons and now we have Bonnie Taira.......so at least Inoue is useful for something!!

Game On!!

JEF lost to 4th place Avispa this afternoon so should this weeks patched up Verdy somehow manage to beat Yokohama the gap to 3rd will be cut to 4 points. Kick off in an hour......C`mon The Boys!!

Banned From The Roxy, Banned in DC, Banned in Yokohama!!

Shit!!

Suspensions are biting hard this weekend readers, "Goal Machine" is sitting out through accumulated yellow cards, Iio is out for his sending off against Machida and Kawano has been slapped with a THREE GAMER for his shite foul and susequent hissy fit in the same game....Lorks a Lordy my bottoms on fire, how the hell are we gonna score this weekend!!??
Looks like Taira Inoue might get a trot this weekend and probably the Takagi brothers will both play and Kikuoka will return. Iio has been quality lately and it`s a shame to see him out as he has really been putting a shift in recently. He was live and dangerous against Gifu and on another night could have had a hat trick (which probably would be his first ever I imagine). Kawano has got on my bloody nerves this season, for a guy with an abundance of talent he has spent far too much time being booked, moaning and suspended. He hit the heights against Mito earlier in the season when he was virtually unplayable but has done his reputation no favours this year. Yoshiaki Takagi  in no way looks out of place in the first team and looks like he could be some player, very steady player not as flashy as his older brother but seems closer to the finished article.
"Goal Machine" will be sorely missed especially considering Inoue is likely to replace him. Of course Oguro has now gone to FC Tokyo so without him to worry about who knows??

GM will probably be out and about on his Pimped Up Scooter this weekend, give him a wave if you see him!!