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!!

Verdy (don`t) Get Their Fingers Wet.... Verdy 0 - 1 Machida

Romance of the cup my arse, that was more like a teenage rummage on the sofa, the hand just goes past the panty line and boom....girls dad come`s home, kicks you in the nuts and breaks your nose whilst tossing you out the house in a superhuman rage!!  What have Honda FC, Honda Lock, SC Tochigi, Machida Zelivia and Omiya Ardija all got in common?? Doesn`t take a genius to work it out.......they have all succeded in dumping Tokyo Verdy out of The Emperors Cup from a lower division. Both Honda`s, SC Tochigi and now Zelvia have all come out on top from the JFL (Japanese 3rd Division) while Omiya triumphed whilst still in J2 while Verdy were in J1.  Verdy have now failed to win a single game in the competition since winning the thing on a crisp New Years Day at a packed Olympic Stadium back on New Years day 2005. Bollocks to it......
Could be intersesting to see if Verdy do go belly up this winter if this has any effect on Machida. If Verdy cease to exist, then Machida Zelvia might get a boost being a Tokyo team that isn`t FC Tokyo. Maybe, maybe not as having lived in or around Machida City from 2000 to 2007 and never met a single FC Machida (as they were) or Machida Zelvia fan; they could be destined to stay as lowly supported as they currently are.
I`d like to see it but, on the whole I just don`t think Tokyo is a "football city" as of 2010. Baseball is King in the Capital unfortunately,The Yomiuri Giants draw 40,000 five days a week and even an average team like Yakult regularly get into the high teens.. FC Tokyo can get 25,000 on a good day with a big team coming to town, Verdy even in J1 only averaged about 14,000 and even this figure is boosted by the big away followings of Urawa, Marinos and such like. Maybe Machida can change a few peoples way of thinking and they will definately have turned a few heads with last nights derby win. All credit to them, they turned up, did a job and took the spoils.

1-0 Not Quite....

Jumpers For Goalposts, Romance of the Cup, Greatest Knockout Tournament in The World.....! But unfortunately The (mini) Boys couldn`t quite make it. 1-0 loss but a great story anyway!!

The Topsy Turvy World Of Tokyo Verdy.....

Get in lads!!!!!

After winning the Tokyo Prefectural Qualifying Tournament our own Verdy YOUTH Team have qualified for the Emperors Cup first round proper and are just one step away from facing FC Tokyo (the real deal not the youth line up)  in the 2nd round of the Emperors Cup on Sunday......Game on tonight at Nishigaoka vs Komazawa University, win that and while the top team will be facing Machida Zelvia at Nishigaoka, the YOUTH team will be facing FC Tokyo "away" at Ajinomoto Stadium for a place in the next round!! The mind BOGGLES.........BOGGLES.....as both games are Sunday which game do you go to??!! Who does each respective coach pick being as half the Verdy first team qualify for the youth team as well!! Lets hope the Boys can do the business against Komazawa and set up a fantastic ocassion for all concerned!! C`MON THE (mini) BOYS!!!!!!!