I went to see a J-League Game Yesterday

[AssKissinger]

It's actually the third time I've gone out to see San Frecce but the first time since they've been promoted to J-1. Hiroshima has a nice outdoor stadium called the Big Arch out in the mountains.



Info from Get Hiroshima

Big Arch
This 50,000 capacity sports stadium, built for the Asian Games, is the home ground of Hiroshima's professional soccer team San Frecce.

Access by public transport:

From downtown (Hondori)
Take the Astram Line from Hondori Station to Koiki Koen-mae Station (36min), from there it is a 5 - 10 minute walk.

From Hiroshima Station
Take the Kabe Line train from Hiroshima Station to JR Omachi Station (20min. Then change to the Astram Line to Koiki Koen-mae Station(19min), from there it is a 5 - 10 minute walk.

From JR Shin-Inokuchi Station
25 minutes by shuttle bus from Alpark bus terminal (stop #5).
Adults: 380 yen one way
Children: 190 yen one way

I think one of the reasons I never took to the teams in Nagoya when I lived in that shit hole is that the Nagoya Dome is so nasty. For the life of me, I can never understand why someone in a southern climate would want to watch sports indoors. Although the Grampus do have an outdoor stadium so...

But what is it with the team supporters? I think it's cool to sing and yell chants and stuff, especially if the action is kind of slow, but to sing organized chants the whole game? It's like they're so focused on their chants that they're not even watching the game. And this game had a pretty big cheering section from the oppossing Kobe. Hiroshima won 2-nil but those Kobe fans kept up their singing the whole game. They didn't even take a single hemidemisemiquaver rest! They did have a nice theme song with a melody taken from that Joplin rag that was repopularized on the Sting soundtrack but Jesus, if I came all the way from Kobe to watch a soccer game I'd at least want to watch the game. Different strokes I guess.

[Papa-Lazarou]

hmmmmm

I often find the atmosphere at J-League games to be well erm a bit odd really.

As you say the chants are just a little too organized. Its like they watched english football on the TV and thought about it a little too much.

The fact that the game never ever decendes into a drunken orgy of violence is equally dissapointing

[FG Lurker]

hmmmmm

I often find the atmosphere at J-League games to be well erm a bit odd really.

As you say the chants are just a little too organized. Its like they watched english football on the TV and thought about it a little too much.

You should try going to a j-pop concert...

I had a free ticket to go to a Mr. Children concert once at Hanshin Koshien stadium. Without doubt one of the most bizzare experiences of my time in Japan, and certainly the oddest concert experience I've ever had.

[Papa-Lazarou]

hmmmmm

I often find the atmosphere at J-League games to be well erm a bit odd really.

As you say the chants are just a little too organized. Its like they watched english football on the TV and thought about it a little too much.

You should try going to a j-pop concert...

I had a free ticket to go to a Mr. Children concert once at Hanshin Koshien stadium. Without doubt one of the most bizzare experiences of my time in Japan, and certainly the oddest concert experience I've ever had.

I went to a boxing show at Korakuen a few years ago, expecting more of the same well planned, rehersed chanting and was pleasently suprised to find drunken passion and spontaneous opionated bigotry.

Or was it just very, very, very well rehearsed at home, beforehand?

[AssKissinger]

Its like they watched english football on the TV and thought about it a little too much.

Bull's Eye! Case in point

Mulboyne's thread http://www.fuckedgaijin.com/forums/showthread.php?t=11520

More than 10 soccer fans were injured in a scuffle following a J.League match in Kashiwa, Chiba Prefecture, on Saturday night. The incident took place shortly after 9 p.m. at Hitachi Kashiwa Stadium, after a game in which Nagoya Grampus Eight defeated Kashiwa Reysol 2-0. According to a Reysol spokesman, some Grampus supporters remained at the stadium after the match. A couple of Reysol supporters burst into the Grampus fans' area of the stadium, shaking off security guards and jumping over a 1.8-meter-high metal fence, and were followed by about 50 more Reysol supporters. In the ensuing fight, a Grampus supporter suffered a neck injury and was taken to a hospital. Others were treated at the stadium's dispensary for minor wounds.

What a bunch of tards. As if J-league is anything to get violent about. Can you say 'poseurs'?

BTW, I've been startled to learn how tiny many of these stadiums are.

http://www.j-league.or.jp/eng/

Saitama Urawa Komaba Stadium(capacity : 21,500)

Omiya Football Stadium (capacity: 12,500)

Ichihara Stadium (capacity: 16,933 from June, 2004)

Kashiwa Hitachi Stadium (capacity: 15,900)

Kawasaki Todoroki Stadium (capacity: 25,000)

Yokohama Mitsuzawa Football Stadium (capacity: 15,046)

Niigata Athletic Stadium (capacity: 18,671)

Nihondaira Sports Stadium (capacity: 20,339)

Yamaha Stadium(Iwata) (capacity: 16,893)

Nagoya Mizuho Athletics Stadium(capacity: 27,000)

Expo'70 Commemorative Stadium (capacity: 23,000)

Pathetic. Japan really is a sports wasteland.

[Blah Pete]

Saitama Urawa Komaba Stadium(capacity : 21,500)

Omiya Football Stadium (capacity: 12,500) Exclamation

Ichihara Stadium (capacity: 16,933 from June, 2004)

Kashiwa Hitachi Stadium (capacity: 15,900)

Kawasaki Todoroki Stadium (capacity: 25,000)

Yokohama Mitsuzawa Football Stadium (capacity: 15,046)

Niigata Athletic Stadium (capacity: 18,671)

Nihondaira Sports Stadium (capacity: 20,339)

Yamaha Stadium(Iwata) (capacity: 16,893)

Nagoya Mizuho Athletics Stadium(capacity: 27,000)

Expo'70 Commemorative Stadium (capacity: 23,000)

There are also stadiums that are only used for big games. Yokohama stadium is Mitsuzawa but they usually use Yokohama Int. Stadium where the WC final was held. It seats around 50,000. I think the only time they use Mitsuzawa is when the play teams from Asia is the Champions League, or what ever they call it. Not much excitement when they play a team from Indonesia or UAE.

Saitama, Niigata, Osaka all have stadiums built for the WC that hold around 50,000. There is also a stadium in Chofu that holds 50,000 that the Kawasaki and Tokyo teams use.

Some of the smaller stadiums are not that bad viewingwise because there is no running track so you are close to the action.

[AssKissinger]

Brazilian Araujo wins Japanese press award

TOKYO, Feb 20 (Reuters) - Brazilian striker Araujo has been named Japan's 2005 Footballer of the Year in a poll of Japanese soccer writers.

The 28-year-old scored 33 goals last season to help Gamba Osaka win their first J-League title before returning to Brazil to join Cruzeiro.

Araujo became the first non-Japanese winner of the award since Yugoslav Dragan Stojkovic in 1995 when he was at Nagoya Grampus Eight.

Celtic's Shunsuke Nakamura finished second with Araujo's former Gamba striking partner Masashi Oguro third.

[AssKissinger]

Japan players cannot take criticism, says Osim

TOKYO, Sept 7 (Reuters) - Japan coach Ivica Osim said Japanese players were unable to take criticism positively after Wednesday's fortuitous 1-0 Asian Cup qualifying win in Yemen.

Substitute Kazuki Ganaha's injury-time goal sent holders Japan through to next year's finals but a poor display in Sana'a enfuriated Osim.

"The result was the only positive," fumed Osim. "I'm not criticising the players but if you tell them this or that was not good, the fear is they'll get a complex about it and play worse."

Osim added: "It's an old disease of Japanese football and I don't see it improving anytime soon."

Next year's Asian Cup will be co-hosted by Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia and Vietnam.