fc2ブログ

Japanese Non-league Football News

Tohoku Division 2 Promotion Playoff 2005
東北社会人リーグ2部(優勝決定戦)

The winners of the two regionalised sections of the Tohoku League Division 2 held a play-off on Sunday 30 October to decide which of them would achieve automatic promotion to Division 1 for 2006. Sendai Nakata Club from the south overcame Tono Club 3-0 and will therefore be promoted, while Tono now have one more opportunity to do the same in a second play-off against the Division 1 bottom side Morioka Zebra.
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Tohoku League Division 2 (South) Results 2005
東北社会人リーグ2部(南ブロック)

08/05/2005 Furukawa Battery 5-0 Kureha Chemicals
08/05/2005 Marisol Matsushima 6-9 Northern Peaks

15/05/2005 Kureha Chemicals 3-3 Northern Peaks
15/05/2005 Yamagata FC 2-4 Marisol Matsushima

31 Oct 05 - Furukawa Battery

Another fine day in the life of Furukawa Battery

22/05/2005 Furukawa Battery 5-1 Marisol Matsushima
22/05/2005 Sendai Nakata Club 5-3 Northern Peaks

29/05/2005 Northern Peaks 3-1 Yamagata FC
29/05/2005 Sendai Nakata Club 3-0 Furukawa Battery

12/06/2005 Yamagata FC 2-0 Sendai Nakata Club

26/06/2005 Sendai Nakata Club 12-0 Kureha Chemicals

03/07/2005 Kureha Chemicals 0-0 Furukawa Battery

10/07/2005 Furukawa Battery 3-2 Northern Peaks
10/07/2005 Sendai Nakata Club 4-0 Marisol Matsushima

17/07/2005 Marisol Matsushima 18-0 Yamagata FC

31/07/2005 Marisol Matsushima 5-0 Kureha Chemicals
31/07/2005 Yamagata FC 0-10 Furukawa Battery

11/09/2005 Furukawa Battery 0-4 Sendai Nakata Club
11/09/2005 Northern Peaks 2-1 Marisol Matsushima
11/09/2005 Yamagata FC 6-1 Kureha Chemicals

18/09/2005 Marisol Matsushima 0-1 Furukawa Battery
18/09/2005 Yamagata FC 1-5 Northern Peaks

25/09/2005 Northern Peaks 5-1 Kureha Chemicals
25/09/2005 Sendai Nakata Club 9-0 Yamagata FC

02/10/2005 Kureha Chemicals 12-0 Yamagata FC
02/10/2005 Marisol Matsushima 2-4 Sendai Nakata Club

09/10/2005 Kureha Chemicals 0-5 Marisol Matsushima
09/10/2005 Northern Peaks 1-2 Sendai Nakata Club

16/10/2005 Kureha Chemicals 2-2 Sendai Nakata Club
16/10/2005 Northern Peaks 3-2 Furukawa Battery

23/10/2005 Furukawa Battery 3-0 Yamagata FC


Final Ranking

1 Sendai Nakata Club 25pts (GD +35)
2 Furukawa Battery 19 (+16)
3 Northern Peaks 19 (+11)
4 Marisol Matsushima 12 (+5)
5 Kureha Chemicals 6 (-24)
6 Yamagata FC 6 (-53)

Sendai Nakata Club qualify for a promotion play-off against Division 2 (South) winners Tono Club.
Tohoku League Division 2 (North) Results 2005
東北社会人リーグ2部(北ブロック)

15/05/2005 Mizusawa 0-1 Tono Club

22/05/2005 Aster Aomori 1-3 Tono Club
22/05/2005 Hokuto Bank 3-3 Sanno Club

05/06/2005 Sanno Club 0-3 Aster Aomori

12/06/2005 Hokuto Bank 1-2 FC Akita Cambiare
12/06/2005 Sanno Club 3-1 Tono Club

19/06/2005 Mizusawa 4-3 Hokuto Bank
19/06/2005 Tono Club 3-1 FC Akita Cambiare

26/06/2005 Aster Aomori 2-2 Mizusawa

03/07/2005 Mizusawa 4-5 FC Akita Cambiare

10/07/2005 Aster Aomori 0-2 FC Akita Cambiare
10/07/2005 Sanno Club 0-3 Hokuto Bank

17/07/2005 Hokuto Bank 2-4 Aster Aomori

31/07/2005 FC Akita Cambiare 3-1 Mizusawa

07/08/2005 Hokuto Bank 2-8 Tono Club
07/08/2005 Sanno Club 2-2 FC Akita Cambiare

04/09/2005 Mizusawa 7-3 Sanno Club

11/09/2005 Aster Aomori 1-2 Hokuto Bank
11/09/2005 Tono Club 6-1 Sanno Club

18/09/2005 FC Akita Cambiare 8-0 Sanno Club
18/09/2005 Tono Club 3-0 Mizusawa

25/09/2005 FC Akita Cambiare 8-0 Aster Aomori
25/09/2005 Sanno Club 1-3 Mizusawa
25/09/2005 Tono Club 8-2 Hokuto Bank

09/10/2005 Aster Aomori 4-3 Sanno Club
09/10/2005 FC Akita Cambiare 2-2 Tono Club
09/10/2005 Hokuto Bank 1-5 Mizusawa

16/10/2005 FC Akita Cambiare 7-1 Hokuto Bank
16/10/2005 Mizusawa 0-5 Aster Aomori

23/10/2005 Tono Club 2-1 Aster Aomori


Final Ranking

1 Tono Club 25pts (GD +24)
2 FC Akita Cambiare 23 (+26)
3 Mizusawa 13 (-1)
4 Aster Aomori 13 (-3)
5 Hokuto Bank 7 (-22)
6 Sanno Club 5 (-21)

Tono Club qualify for a promotion play-off against Division 2 (South) winners Sendai Nakata Club.
Tochigi Aim For J2
JFL outfit Tochigi SC have announced that they have made an approach to the Tochigi prefectural government to request council and local business support in making a final push for J2 membership. Currently in the top four in the JFL, the club's aim is to establish a public company to oversee necessary developments and - if this can be done by February 2006 - to achieve J-League status in 2007.

In many ways, Tochigi can be seen as a test case for similarly-ranked clubs seeking to become fully paid-up members of the pro game: their infrastructure and support are reasonably good and they have an excellent stadium in the beautiful Tochigi Green, although it's acknowledged that further work will be required to bring it up to J-League standard. Furthermore, there are no other clubs in their home prefecture even close to their level - the nearest being Hitachi Tochigi in the Kanto League - which means that all attention locally can be focused on just the one organisation.

31 Oct 05 - Tochigi Green

Tochigi Green Stadium

With so much going for them, then, it could be argued that if Tochigi fail it will be that much harder for teams such as Alo's Hokuriku and FC Horikoshi, the latter of whom have already applied to the J-League but were rejected on the grounds of their lacking a proper home stadium, to make the case for League membership. But getting things right on the field - as well as succeeding in the formation of the company to support their case, with all-important prefectural and business support - is never as simple as that and the competition is likely to become more fierce over the next few years rather than less.
JFL Results - 2005
Results

27/03/2005 Alo's Hokuriku 0-1 Sagawa Kyubin Osaka
27/03/2005 Ehime FC 1-0 Mitsubishi Mizushima
27/03/2005 FC Horikoshi 0-1 Yokogawa Musashino
27/03/2005 Honda FC 3-1 Honda Lock
27/03/2005 Sagawa Kyubin Tokyo 1-0 SC Tottori
27/03/2005 Tochigi SC 1-2 Sagawa Printing
27/03/2005 Sony Sendai 4-0 Denso
27/03/2005 YKK AP 1-1 Ryutsu Keizai University

02/04/2005 Yokogawa Musashino 3-1 Sagawa Kyubin Tokyo

03/04/2005 Denso 0-1 Ehime FC
03/04/2005 Honda Lock 0-2 Alo's Hokuriku
03/04/2005 Mitsubishi Mizushima 0-2 YKK AP
03/04/2005 Ryutsu Keizai University 1-3 Honda FC
03/04/2005 Sagawa Kyubin Osaka 1-1 Tochigi SC
03/04/2005 Sagawa Printing 0-3 FC Horikoshi
03/04/2005 SC Tottori 1-3 Sony Sendai

09/04/2005 Honda Lock 4-1 Ryutsu Keizai University
09/04/2005 Sagawa Kyubin Tokyo 2-2 Sagawa Printing
09/04/2005 Sony Sendai 2-0 Yokogawa Musashino

10/04/2005 Ehime FC 4-1 SC Tottori
10/04/2005 FC Horikoshi 2-0 Sagawa Kyubin Osaka
10/04/2005 Honda FC 4-0 Mitsubishi Mizushima
10/04/2005 Tochigi SC 1-1 Alo's Hokuriku
10/04/2005 YKK AP 3-2 Denso

16/04/2005 Denso 0-3 Honda FC
16/04/2005 Sagawa Printing 1-2 Sony Sendai

17/04/2005 Alo's Hokuriku 2-1 FC Horikoshi
17/04/2005 Mitsubishi Mizushima 1-3 Ryutsu Keizai University
17/04/2005 Sagawa Kyubin Osaka 1-0 Sagawa Kyubin Tokyo
17/04/2005 Tochigi SC 3-2 Honda Lock
17/04/2005 SC Tottori 1-5 YKK AP
17/04/2005 Yokogawa Musashino 2-0 Ehime FC

23/04/2005 Ehime FC 2-1 Sagawa Printing
23/04/2005 Ryutsu Keizai University 3-1 Denso
23/04/2005 Sony Sendai 1-0 Sagawa Kyubin Osaka

24/04/2005 FC Horikoshi 3-1 Tochigi SC
24/04/2005 Honda FC 3-0 SC Tottori
24/04/2005 Honda Lock 3-4 Mitsubishi Mizushima
24/04/2005 Sagawa Kyubin Tokyo 0-1 Alo's Hokuriku
24/04/2005 YKK AP 2-0 Yokogawa Musashino

29/04/2005 Alo's Hokuriku 1-3 Sony Sendai
29/04/2005 Sagawa Printing 0-2 YKK AP

30/04/2005 Denso 1-1 Mitsubishi Mizushima
30/04/2005 FC Horikoshi 1-1 Honda Lock
30/04/2005 Sagawa Kyubin Osaka 2-2 Ehime FC
30/04/2005 Tochigi SC 1-1 Sagawa Kyubin Tokyo
30/04/2005 SC Tottori 4-0 Ryutsu Keizai University
30/04/2005 Yokogawa Musashino 1-0 Honda FC

03/05/2005 Sagawa Kyubin Tokyo 0-1 FC Horikoshi
03/05/2005 YKK AP 0-0 Sagawa Kyubin Osaka

04/05/2005 Ehime FC 2-0 Alo's Hokuriku
04/05/2005 Honda FC 2-0 Sagawa Printing
04/05/2005 Honda Lock 2-5 Denso
04/05/2005 Mitsubishi Mizushima 1-1 SC Tottori
04/05/2005 Ryutsu Keizai University 1-1 Yokogawa Musashino
04/05/2005 Sony Sendai 0-3 Tochigi SC

07/05/2005 Sagawa Kyubin Tokyo 5-1 Honda Lock
07/05/2005 Sagawa Printing 2-1 Ryutsu Keizai University
07/05/2005 Yokogawa Musashino 5-1 Mitsubishi Mizushima

08/05/2005 Alo's Hokuriku 2-1 YKK AP
08/05/2005 FC Horikoshi 3-0 Sony Sendai
08/05/2005 Sagawa Kyubin Osaka 1-3 Honda FC
08/05/2005 Tochigi SC 3-2 Ehime FC
08/05/2005 SC Tottori 2-2 Denso

14/05/2005 Ehime FC 1-0 FC Horikoshi
14/05/2005 Ryutsu Keizai University 1-2 Sagawa Kyubin Osaka

15/05/2005 Denso 0-1 Yokogawa Musashino
15/05/2005 Honda FC 3-2 Alo's Hokuriku
15/05/2005 Honda Lock 1-2 SC Tottori
15/05/2005 Mitsubishi Mizushima 1-2 Sagawa Printing
15/05/2005 Sony Sendai 1-2 Sagawa Kyubin Tokyo
15/05/2005 YKK AP 0-1 Tochigi SC

21/05/2005 Alo's Hokuriku 2-2 Ryutsu Keizai University
21/05/2005 Sagawa Kyubin Osaka 3-0 Mitsubishi Mizushima
21/05/2005 Sagawa Kyubin Tokyo 1-0 Ehime FC
21/05/2005 Sagawa Printing 1-0 Denso
21/05/2005 Yokogawa Musashino 1-2 SC Tottori

22/05/2005 FC Horikoshi 2-0 YKK AP
22/05/2005 Tochigi SC 3-2 Honda FC
22/05/2005 Sony Sendai 3-1 Honda Lock

28/05/2005 Ryutsu Keizai University 0-6 Tochigi SC
28/05/2005 SC Tottori 0-1 Sagawa Printing

29/05/2005 Denso 0-2 Sagawa Kyubin Osaka
29/05/2005 Ehime FC 1-2 Sony Sendai
29/05/2005 Honda FC 2-1 FC Horikoshi
29/05/2005 Honda Lock 1-1 Yokogawa Musashino
29/05/2005 Mitsubishi Mizushima 0-1 Alo's Hokuriku
29/05/2005 YKK AP 3-1 Sagawa Kyubin Tokyo

04/06/2005 FC Horikoshi 5-2 Ryutsu Keizai University
04/06/2005 Sagawa Kyubin Osaka 0-0 SC Tottori

05/06/2005 Alo's Hokuriku 4-2 Denso
05/06/2005 Ehime FC 4-1 Honda Lock
05/06/2005 Sagawa Kyubin Tokyo 0-2 Honda FC
05/06/2005 Sagawa Printing 0-1 Yokogawa Musashino
05/06/2005 Tochigi SC 2-1 Mitsubishi Mizushima
05/06/2005 Sony Sendai 0-4 YKK AP

11/06/2005 Ryutsu Keizai University 0-7 Sagawa Kyubin Tokyo
11/06/2005 SC Tottori 0-1 Alo's Hokuriku
11/06/2005 Yokogawa Musashino 2-2 Sagawa Kyubin Osaka

12/06/2005 Denso 0-4 Tochigi SC
12/06/2005 Honda FC 1-1 Sony Sendai
12/06/2005 Honda Lock 1-4 Sagawa Printing
12/06/2005 Mitsubishi Mizushima 1-4 FC Horikoshi
12/06/2005 YKK AP 1-2 Ehime FC

18/06/2005 Alo's Hokuriku 1-0 Yokogawa Musashino
18/06/2005 Ehime FC 2-2 Honda FC
18/06/2005 FC Horikoshi 0-1 Denso
18/06/2005 Sagawa Kyubin Tokyo 1-0 Mitsubishi Mizushima

18/06/2005 Sony Sendai 3-3 Ryutsu Keizai University

19/06/2005 Sagawa Kyubin Osaka 1-2 Sagawa Printing
19/06/2005 Tochigi SC 5-0 SC Tottori
19/06/2005 YKK AP 3-1 Honda Lock

25/06/2005 Ryutsu Keizai University 1-4 Ehime FC

26/06/2005 Denso 0-3 Sagawa Kyubin Tokyo
26/06/2005 Honda FC 2-2 YKK AP
26/06/2005 Honda Lock 0-4 Sagawa Kyubin Osaka
26/06/2005 Mitsubishi Mizushima 0-3 Sony Sendai
26/06/2005 Sagawa Printing 0-1 Alo's Hokuriku
26/06/2005 SC Tottori 1-0 FC Horikoshi
26/06/2005 Yokogawa Musashino 0-1 Tochigi SC

02/07/2005 Ryutsu Keizai University 1-5 YKK AP
02/07/2005 Sagawa Printing 1-1 Tochigi SC
02/07/2005 Yokogawa Musashino 3-1 FC Horikoshi

03/07/2005 Denso 0-4 Sony Sendai
03/07/2005 Honda Lock 1-2 Honda FC
03/07/2005 Mitsubishi Mizushima 0-2 Ehime FC
03/07/2005 Sagawa Kyubin Osaka 1-4 Alo's Hokuriku
03/07/2005 SC Tottori 3-1 Sagawa Kyubin Tokyo

09/07/2005 Ehime FC 1-0 Sagawa Kyubin Osaka
09/07/2005 Ryutsu Keizai University 2-4 SC Tottori
09/07/2005 Sagawa Kyubin Tokyo 2-2 Tochigi SC

10/07/2005 Honda FC 0-1 Yokogawa Musashino
10/07/2005 Honda Lock 2-3 FC Horikoshi
10/07/2005 Mitsubishi Mizushima 3-8 Denso
10/07/2005 Sony Sendai 2-0 Alo's Hokuriku
10/07/2005 YKK AP 4-2 Sagawa Printing

16/07/2005 Alo's Hokuriku 0-1 Ehime FC
16/07/2005 Sagawa Printing 1-2 Honda FC
16/07/2005 Tochigi SC 1-0 Sony Sendai
16/07/2005 SC Tottori 4-1 Mitsubishi Mizushima

17/07/2005 FC Horikoshi 2-0 Sagawa Kyubin Tokyo
17/07/2005 Sagawa Kyubin Osaka 0-3 YKK AP

18/07/2005 Yokogawa Musashino 3-1 Ryutsu Keizai University

23/07/2005 Denso 2-3 SC Tottori
23/07/2005 Honda Lock 0-3 Sagawa Kyubin Tokyo
23/07/2005 Ryutsu Keizai University 1-1 Sagawa Printing

24/07/2005 Ehime FC 1-0 Tochigi SC
24/07/2005 Honda FC 2-1 Sagawa Kyubin Osaka
24/07/2005 Mitsubishi Mizushima 2-1 Yokogawa Musashino
24/07/2005 Sony Sendai 0-1 FC Horikoshi
24/07/2005 YKK AP 1-0 Alo's Hokuriku

30/07/2005 Alo's Hokuriku 3-2 Honda FC
30/07/2005 Sagawa Kyubin Osaka 2-1 Ryutsu Keizai University
30/07/2005 Tochigi SC 1-2 YKK AP
30/07/2005 SC Tottori 3-1 Honda Lock

31/07/2005 FC Horikoshi 1-3 Ehime FC
31/07/2005 Sagawa Kyubin Tokyo 4-0 Sony Sendai
31/07/2005 Sagawa Printing 1-0 Mitsubishi Mizushima
31/07/2005 Yokogawa Musashino 0-0 Denso

06/08/2005 Denso 1-2 Honda Lock

24/09/2005 Ehime FC 0-3 Sagawa Kyubin Tokyo
24/09/2005 Ryutsu Keizai University 0-3 Alo's Hokuriku
24/09/2005 SC Tottori 0-2 Yokogawa Musashino

25/09/2005 Denso 0-0 Sagawa Printing
25/09/2005 Honda FC 0-0 Tochigi SC
25/09/2005 Honda Lock 1-4 Sony Sendai
25/09/2005 Mitsubishi Mizushima 1-2 Sagawa Kyubin Osaka
25/09/2005 YKK AP 6-1 FC Horikoshi

01/10/2005 Sony Sendai 1-2 Ehime FC
01/10/2005 Yokogawa Musashino 1-1 Honda Lock

02/10/2005 Alo's Hokuriku 5-0 Mitsubishi Mizushima
02/10/2005 FC Horikoshi 2-1 Honda FC
02/10/2005 Sagawa Kyubin Osaka 2-0 Denso
02/10/2005 Sagawa Kyubin Tokyo 2-1 YKK AP
02/10/2005 Sagawa Printing 3-2 SC Tottori
02/10/2005 Tochigi SC 2-1 Ryutsu Keizai University

15/10/2005 Ryutsu Keizai University 3-2 FC Horikoshi
15/10/2005 Denso 0-4 Alo's Hokuriku

16/10/2005 Honda FC 1-3 Sagawa Kyubin Tokyo
16/10/2005 Honda Lock 0-3 Ehime FC
16/10/2005 Mitsubishi Mizushima 1-5 Tochigi SC
16/10/2005 SC Tottori 0-2 Sagawa Kyubin Osaka
16/10/2005 YKK AP 3-2 Sony Sendai
16/10/2005 Yokogawa Musashino 1-1 Sagawa Printing

22/10/2005 Ehime FC 0-1 YKK AP
22/10/2005 FC Horikoshi 6-2 Mitsubishi Mizushima
22/10/2005 Sagawa Kyubin Osaka 1-0 Yokogawa Musashino
22/10/2005 Sagawa Kyubin Tokyo 3-1 Ryutsu Keizai University

23/10/2005 Alo's Hokuriku 4-0 SC Tottori
23/10/2005 Sagawa Printing 2-2 Honda Lock
23/10/2005 Tochigi SC 4-4 Denso
23/10/2005 Sony Sendai 0-1 Honda FC

29/10/2005 Sagawa Kyubin Osaka 1-1 Sony Sendai
29/10/2005 Yokogawa Musashino 1-0 YKK AP
29/10/2005 Denso 0-2 Ryutsu Keizai University

30/10/2005 Tochigi SC 1-0 FC Horikoshi
30/10/2005 Alo's Hokuriku 2-2 Sagawa Kyubin Tokyo
30/10/2005 Sagawa Printing 1-2 Ehime FC
30/10/2005 Mitsubishi Mizushima 0-1 Honda Lock
30/10/2005 SC Tottori 3-4 Honda FC

05/11/2005 Ehime FC 3-0 Yokogawa Musashino
05/11/2005 Sagawa Kyubin Tokyo 2-1 Sagawa Kyubin Osaka

06/11/2005 Honda FC 1-1 Denso
06/11/2005 YKK AP 2-0 SC Tottori
06/11/2005 Sony Sendai 1-0 Sagawa Printing
06/11/2005 FC Horikoshi 0-2 Alo's Hokuriku
06/11/2005 Ryutsu Keizai University 2-1 Mitsubishi Mizushima
06/11/2005 Honda Lock 1-3 Tochigi SC

12/11/2005 Yokogawa Musashino 1-2 Sony Sendai
12/11/2005 Ryutsu Keizai University 2-2 Honda Lock

13/11/2005 Alo's Hokuriku 0-0 Tochigi SC
13/11/2005 Sagawa Kyubin Osaka 2-3 FC Horikoshi
13/11/2005 Sagawa Printing 0-1 Sagawa Kyubin Tokyo
13/11/2005 SC Tottori 1-1 Ehime FC
13/11/2005 Denso 1-2 YKK AP
13/11/2005 Mitsubishi Mizushima 1-5 Honda FC

19/11/2005 Sony Sendai 2-0 Mitsubishi Mizushima
19/11/2005 FC Horikoshi 4-1 SC Tottori
19/11/2005 Alo's Hokuriku 1-0 Sagawa Printing
19/11/2005 Sagawa Kyubin Osaka 3-1 Honda Lock

20/11/2005 YKK AP 1-0 Honda FC
20/11/2005 Ehime FC 2-0 Ryutsu Keizai University
20/11/2005 Sagawa Kyubin Tokyo 0-2 Denso
20/11/2005 Tochigi SC 2-3 Yokogawa Musashino

26/11/2005 Sagawa Printing 2-4 Sagawa Kyubin Osaka
26/11/2005 Yokogawa Musashino 0-1 Alo's Hokuriku
26/11/2005 Ryutsu Keizai University 1-1 Sony Sendai

27/11/2005 Honda Lock 2-2 YKK AP
27/11/2005 Honda FC 1-3 Ehime FC
27/11/2005 Denso 0-0 FC Horikoshi
27/11/2005 Mitsubishi Mizushima 1-4 Sagawa Kyubin Tokyo
27/11/2005 SC Tottori 1-1 Tochigi SC

04/12/2005 Honda FC 2-1 Ryutsu Keizai University
04/12/2005 YKK AP 1-0 Mitsubishi Mizushima
04/12/2005 Ehime FC 2-0 Denso
04/12/2005 Sony Sendai 0-0 SC Tottori
04/12/2005 Sagawa Kyubin Tokyo 0-1 Yokogawa Musashino
04/12/2005 FC Horikoshi 1-1 Sagawa Printing
04/12/2005 Tochigi SC 1-0 Sagawa Kyubin Osaka
04/12/2005 Alo's Hokuriku 2-1 Honda Lock


Final Ranking

1 Ehime FC 66pts (GD +28)
2 YKK AP 64 (+35)
3 Alo's Hokuriku 61 (+26)
4 Tochigi SC 57 (+28)
5 Honda FC 56 (+22)
6 Sagawa Kyubin Tokyo 52 (+22)
7 Sony Sendai 50 (+11)
8 FC Horikoshi 48 (+13)
9 Yokogawa Musashino 48 (+8)
10 Sagawa Kyubin Osaka 45 (+6)
11 Sagawa Printing 34 (-9)
12 SC Tottori 33 (-18)
13 Ryutsu Keizai University 22 (-40)
14 Denso 19 (-30)
15 Honda Lock 15 (-41)
16 Mitsubishi Mizushima 8 (-61)
Hokushinetsu League Division 2 2005
第31回 北信越フットボールリーグ2部

10/04/2005 FC Billboard 1-2 Giocatore Takaoka
10/04/2005 FC Kanazu 2-4 Nissei Resin
10/04/2005 Matsumoto Yamaga Club 2-2 Fukui KSC
10/04/2005 PFU FC 0-3 TOP Niigata
10/04/2005 Shinjo Club 2-1 Valiente Toyama

28 Oct 05 - Scarf

You know you want one - a Matsumoto Yamaga scarf

24/04/2005 Fukui KSC 1-2 Shinjo Club
24/04/2005 Giocatore Takaoka 5-0 PFU FC
24/04/2005 Nissei Resin 7-2 FC Billboard
24/04/2005 TOP Niigata 0-0 Matsumoto Yamaga Club
24/04/2005 Valiente Toyama 2-1 FC Kanazu

08/05/2005 FC Billboard 2-3 Fukui KSC
08/05/2005 Giocatore Takaoka 1-2 FC Kanazu
08/05/2005 Matsumoto Yamaga Club 2-1 Nissei Resin
08/05/2005 PFU FC 0-3 Valiente Toyama
08/05/2005 Shinjo Club 2-1 TOP Niigata

15/05/2005 FC Kanazu 4-0 FC Billboard
15/05/2005 Fukui KSC 3-1 PFU FC
15/05/2005 Giocatore Takaoka 3-1 Shinjo Club
15/05/2005 Nissei Resin 0-0 TOP Niigata
15/05/2005 Valiente Toyama 0-2 Matsumoto Yamaga Club

22/05/2005 Fukui KSC 1-1 FC Kanazu
22/05/2005 Matsumoto Yamaga Club 0-1 Shinjo Club
22/05/2005 PFU FC 1-1 FC Billboard
22/05/2005 TOP Niigata 2-0 Giocatore Takaoka
22/05/2005 Valiente Toyama 5-2 Nissei Resin

28 Oct 05 - Giocatore Takaoka

Comfort before style, that's Giocatore Takaoka

05/06/2005 FC Billboard 1-2 Matsumoto Yamaga Club
05/06/2005 FC Kanazu 2-0 PFU FC
05/06/2005 Giocatore Takaoka 1-0 Fukui KSC
05/06/2005 Nissei Resin 1-1 Shinjo Club
05/06/2005 TOP Niigata 1-0 Valiente Toyama

12/06/2005 FC Billboard 3-2 Valiente Toyama
12/06/2005 Fukui KSC 3-4 Nissei Resin
12/06/2005 Matsumoto Yamaga Club 1-2 Giocatore Takaoka
12/06/2005 Shinjo Club 5-0 PFU FC
12/06/2005 TOP Niigata 1-0 FC Kanazu

26/06/2005 FC Kanazu 1-1 Shinjo Club
26/06/2005 Nissei Resin 2-1 Giocatore Takaoka
26/06/2005 PFU FC 0-12 Matsumoto Yamaga Club
26/06/2005 TOP Niigata 3-0 FC Billboard
26/06/2005 Valiente Toyama 6-1 Fukui KSC

03/07/2005 Fukui KSC 0-0 TOP Niigata
03/07/2005 Giocatore Takaoka 1-2 Valiente Toyama
03/07/2005 Matsumoto Yamaga Club 3-3 FC Kanazu
03/07/2005 PFU FC 1-2 Nissei Resin
03/07/2005 Shinjo Club 1-1 FC Billboard

10/07/2005 FC Kanazu 2-1 Fukui KSC
10/07/2005 Giocatore Takaoka 7-5 FC Billboard
10/07/2005 Nissei Resin 0-2 Matsumoto Yamaga Club
10/07/2005 Valiente Toyama 2-0 TOP Niigata

24/07/2005 FC Billboard 0-2 FC Kanazu
24/07/2005 Shinjo Club 0-3 Matsumoto Yamaga Club
24/07/2005 TOP Niigata 2-1 Nissei Resin

25/09/2005 FC Billboard 2-0 PFU FC
25/09/2005 Matsumoto Yamaga Club 3-1 Valiente Toyama
25/09/2005 TOP Niigata 0-2 Shinjo Club

02/10/2005 Fukui KSC 0-2 FC Billboard
02/10/2005 Nissei Resin 1-2 Valiente Toyama
02/10/2005 PFU FC 1-0 Giocatore Takaoka

23 Oct 05 - Matsumoto Yamaga

Matsumoto Yamaga fans celebrate promotion after the 4-0 win over TOP Niigata

23/10/2005 Fukui KSC 2-3 Giocatore Takaoka
23/10/2005 Matsumoto Yamaga Club 4-0 TOP Niigata
23/10/2005 PFU FC 0-3 FC Kanazu
23/10/2005 Shinjo Club 1-2 Nissei Resin

30/10/3005 Valiente Toyama 0-1 Shinjo Club
30/10/2005 FC Kanazu 2-1 Giocatore Takaoka
30/10/2005 PFU FC 0-3 Fukui KSC


Final Ranking

1 Matsumoto Yamaga Club 27pts (GD +25)
2 Shinjo Club 24 (+6)
3 Valiente Toyama 21 (+8)
4 TOP Niigata 21 (+2)
5 Nissei Resin 20 (+3)
6 FC Kanazu 24 (+10)
7 Giocatore Takaoka 21 (+6)
8 Fukui KSC 12 (-6)
9 FC Billboard 11 (-4)
10 PFU FC 4 (-40)

Matsumoto Yamaga Club win the division and are therefore promoted to the Hokushinetsu League Division One next season. Shinjo Club will take part in a play-off with Division One club Niigata University of Management to try and win promotion. Fukui KSC, FC Billboard and PFU FC are all relegated to the prefectural leagues; Giocatore Takaoka will take part in a play-off to try and remain in the Hokushinetsu League for 2006.
Hokushinetsu League Division 1 2005
第31回 北信越フットボールリーグ1部

10/04/2005 Japan Soccer College 2-1 Niigata University of Management
10/04/2005 Kanazawa SC 0-0 FC Antelope
10/04/2005 Nagano Elsa 2-1 Teihens FC
10/04/2005 Ueda Gentian 1-3 Ferverosa

24/04/2005 FC Antelope 1-2 Ueda Gentian
24/04/2005 Ferverosa 0-6 Nagano Elsa
24/04/2005 Niigata University of Management 0-1 Kanazawa SC
24/04/2005 Teihens FC 2-0 Japan Soccer College

28 Oct 05 - Niigata University of Managament

The cauldron of noise that is Niigata University of Management's ground

08/05/2005 Japan Soccer College 3-1 Ferverosa
08/05/2005 Kanazawa SC 4-1 Teihens FC
08/05/2005 Nagano Elsa 5-0 FC Antelope
08/05/2005 Ueda Gentian 2-1 Niigata University of Management

15/05/2005 FC Antelope 1-2 Japan Soccer College
15/05/2005 Kanazawa SC 2-1 Ferverosa
15/05/2005 Nagano Elsa 2-1 Niigata University of Management
15/05/2005 Teihens FC 2-1 Ueda Gentian

22/05/2005 FC Antelope 0-5 Ferverosa
22/05/2005 Japan Soccer College 4-0 Nagano Elsa
22/05/2005 Kanazawa SC 0-0 Ueda Gentian
22/05/2005 Teihens FC 1-1 Niigata University of Management

05/06/2005 Kanazawa SC 1-0 Nagano Elsa
05/06/2005 Niigata University of Management 3-1 Ferverosa
05/06/2005 Teihens FC 1-3 FC Antelope
05/06/2005 Ueda Gentian 1-2 Japan Soccer College

12/06/2005 Ferverosa 4-1 Teihens FC
12/06/2005 Kanazawa SC 5-0 Japan Soccer College
12/06/2005 Nagano Elsa 3-0 Ueda Gentian
12/06/2005 Niigata University of Management 3-2 FC Antelope

26/06/2005 Ferverosa 1-2 Kanazawa SC
26/06/2005 Japan Soccer College 7-1 Teihens FC
26/06/2005 Niigata University of Management 2-3 Nagano Elsa
26/06/2005 Ueda Gentian 3-2 FC Antelope

28 Oct 05 - FC Antelope

The somewhat forlorn hope of FC Antelope fans

03/07/2005 FC Antelope 2-3 Nagano Elsa
03/07/2005 Ferverosa 3-0 Ueda Gentian
03/07/2005 Niigata University of Management 2-5 Japan Soccer College
03/07/2005 Teihens FC 1-2 Kanazawa SC

10/07/2005 Japan Soccer College 4-0 FC Antelope
10/07/2005 Kanazawa SC 3-2 Niigata University of Management
10/07/2005 Nagano Elsa 3-1 Ferverosa
10/07/2005 Ueda Gentian 3-1 Teihens FC

24/07/2005 FC Antelope 0-3 Kanazawa SC
24/07/2005 Ferverosa 1-5 Japan Soccer College
24/07/2005 Niigata University of Management 2-2 Ueda Gentian
24/07/2005 Teihens FC 0-2 Nagano Elsa

25/09/2005 Ferverosa 3-0 FC Antelope
25/09/2005 Nagano Elsa 1-0 Japan Soccer College
25/09/2005 Niigata University of Management 0-2 Teihens FC
25/09/2005 Ueda Gentian 1-2 Kanazawa SC

02 Oct 05 - Nagano Elsa

Nagano Elsa line up before their crunch match vs Kanazawa SC

02/10/2005 FC Antelope 1-5 Teihens FC
02/10/2005 Ferverosa 2-1 Niigata University of Management
02/10/2005 Japan Soccer College 6-0 Ueda Gentian
02/10/2005 Nagano Elsa 6-1 Kanazawa SC

23/10/2005 FC Antelope 1-3 Niigata University of Management
23/10/2005 Japan Soccer College 2-0 Kanazawa SC
23/10/2005 Teihens FC 3-0 Ferverosa
23/10/2005 Ueda Gentian 0-2 Nagano Elsa


Final Ranking

1 Nagano Elsa 36pts (GD +25)
2 Japan Soccer College 33 (+26)
3 Kanazawa SC 32 (+11)
4 Ferverosa 18 (-4)
5 Teihens FC 16 (-8)
6 Ueda Gentian 14 (-14)
7 Niigata University of Management 11 (-7)
8 FC Antelope 4 (-29)

Nagano Elsa win the championship and therefore qualify for the Regional League Championship Winners Play-off. FC Antelope are relegated to Division Two for 2006. Niigata University of Management will participate in a play-off with Division Two club Shinjo Club in an attempt to remain in Division One for the 2006 season.
Chugoku League 2005
第33回 中国サッカーリーグ

01/05/2005 Hiroshima Fujita SC 2-2 Fagiano Okayama (6-5 PK)
01/05/2005 Sagawa Kyubin Chugoku 2-0 Yamaguchi Teachers
01/05/2005 JFE Steel 1-1 Hitachi Kasado (4-5 PK)

01 May 05 - Fagiano Okayama fans enjoy a spring day out

Fagiano Okayama fans enjoy a spring day out at Hiroshima Fujita SC

08/05/2005 Yamaguchi Teachers 2-2 Hiroshima Fujita SC (5-6 PK)
08/05/2005 Hitachi Kasado 2-1 Ishimi FC
08/05/2005 Fagiano Okayama 0-4 Sagawa Kyubin Chugoku

15/05/2005 Hiroshima Fujita SC 4-0 JFE Steel
15/05/2005 Sagawa Kyubin Chugoku 5-0 Ishimi FC
15/05/2005 Hitachi Kasado 0-5 Fagiano Okayama

22/05/2005 Ishimi FC 0-0 Hiroshima Fujita SC (4-5 PK)
22/05/2005 JFE Steel 1-9 Sagawa Kyubin Chugoku
22/05/2005 Yamaguchi Teachers 0-0 Hitachi Kasado (4-3 PK)

22 May 05 - Yamaguchi Teachers vs Hitachi Kasado

It's the Yamaguchi derby! Yamaguchi Teachers (orange) vs Hitachi Kasado

29/05/2005 Hiroshima Fujita SC 3-0 Hitachi Kasado
29/05/2005 Fagiano Okayama 3-0 Ishimi FC
29/05/2005 JFE Steel 4-0 Yamaguchi Teachers

05/06/2005 Ishimi FC 2-1 Yamaguchi Teachers
05/06/2005 Fagiano Okayama 3-2 JFE Steel
05/06/2005 Sagawa Kyubin Chugoku 1-2 Hiroshima Fujita SC

12/06/2005 Yamaguchi Teachers 0-4 Fagiano Okayama
12/06/2005 Hitachi Kasado 1-3 Sagawa Kyubin Chugoku
12/06/2005 Ishimi FC 0-2 JFE Steel

19/06/2005 Fagiano Okayama 6-1 Hiroshima Fujita SC
19/06/2005 Yamaguchi Teachers 1-1 Sagawa Kyubin Chugoku (5-6 PK)
19/06/2005 Hitachi Kasado 3-1 JFE Steel

26/06/2005 Fagiano Okayama 5-1 Hitachi Kasado

03/07/2005 Ishimi FC 0-0 Hitachi Kasado (5-4 PK)

10/07/2005 JFE Steel 0-1 Hiroshima Fujita SC

31/07/2005 Ishimi FC 1-4 Fagiano Okayama

21/08/2005 Ishimi FC 2-2 Sagawa Kyubin Chugoku (4-3 PK)

04/09/2005 Hiroshima Fujita SC 2-1 Yamaguchi Teachers

25/09/2005 Sagawa Kyubin Chugoku 4-0 JFE Steel
25/09/2005 Hiroshima Fujita SC 3-2 Ishimi FC
25/09/2005 Hitachi Kasado 2-2 Yamaguchi Teachers (5-6 PK)

02 Oct 05 - Junji Ueda of Sagawa Kyubin despairs as Fagiano score

Sagawa's Junji Ueda (14) despairs as Fagiano pull back a last-minute goal

02/10/2005 Sagawa Kyubin Chugoku 2-1 Fagiano Okayama
02/10/2005 Hitachi Kasado 1-2 Hiroshima Fujita SC
02/10/2005 Yamaguchi Teachers 0-2 JFE Steel

09/10/2005 Hiroshima Fujita SC 0-7 Sagawa Kyubin Chugoku
09/10/2005 Yamaguchi Teachers 4-0 Ishimi FC
09/10/2005 JFE Steel 0-2 Fagiano Okayama

23/10/2005 Sagawa Kyubin Chugoku 4-1 Hitachi Kasado

23/10/2005 JFE Steel 0-1 Ishimi FC
23/10/2005 Fagiano Okayama 2-0 Yamaguchi Teachers


Final Ranking

1 Sagawa Kyubin Chugoku 30pts (GD +35)
2 Fagiano Okayama 28 (+24)
3 Hiroshima Fujita SC 27 (0)
4 Hitachi Kasado 11 (-15)
5 Ishimi FC 11 (-17)
6 JFE Steel 10 (-15)
7 Yamaguchi Teachers 9 (-12)

NB. Drawn matches in the Chugoku League are decided on a penalty shoot-out, with the winners getting two points and the losers one

Sagawa Kyubin Chugoku win the championship and therefore qualify for the Regional League Championship Winners Play-off, as do runners-up Fagiano Okayama. Yamaguchi Teachers will participate in a play-off against the team that finishes second in the Prefectural Promotion Play-offs.
Hokkaido League 2005
2005 北海道サッカーリーグ

15/05/2005 Barefoot Hokkaido 8-0 R Superb Kushiro
15/05/2005 Sapporo Football Group 0-0 Norbritz Hokkaido
15/05/2005 Toyota Hokkaido 1-2 BlackPecker Hakodate
15/05/2005 Thank FC 1-0 ACSC Asahikawa

22/05/2005 ACSC Asahikawa 5-1 Toyota Hokkaido
22/05/2005 BlackPecker Hakodate 2-1 Barefoot Hokkaido
22/05/2005 Norbritz Hokkaido 3-2 Thank FC
22/05/2005 R Superb Kushiro 2-4 Sapporo Football Group

29/05/2005 ACSC Asahikawa 6-1 R Superb Kushiro
29/05/2005 Barefoot Hokkaido 4-0 Toyota Hokkaido
29/05/2005 BlackPecker Hakodate 1-3 Norbritz Hokkaido
29/05/2005 Sapporo Football Group 2-1 Thank FC

Hi! I'm Norbritz!

Hi! I'm Norbritz!

04/06/2005 Norbritz Hokkaido 3-0 ACSC Asahikawa
04/06/2005 Sapporo Football Group 2-1 Barefoot Hokkaido
04/06/2005 Thank FC 1-4 BlackPecker Hakodate
04/06/2005 Toyota Hokkaido 1-0 R Superb Kushiro

05/06/2005 R Superb Kushiro 0-5 BlackPecker Hakodate
05/06/2005 Sapporo Football Group 1-1 ACSC Asahikawa
05/06/2005 Thank FC 0-2 Barefoot Hokkaido
05/06/2005 Toyota Hokkaido 0-1 Norbritz Hokkaido

12/06/2005 Barefoot Hokkaido 1-0 ACSC Asahikawa
12/06/2005 Norbritz Hokkaido 4-0 R Superb Kushiro
12/06/2005 Thank FC 0-0 Toyota Hokkaido
12/06/2005 BlackPecker Hakodate 2-0 Sapporo Football Group

19/06/2005 BlackPecker Hakodate 0-3 ACSC Asahikawa
19/06/2005 Norbritz Hokkaido 5-1 Barefoot Hokkaido
19/06/2005 R Superb Kushiro 1-2 Thank FC
19/06/2005 Toyota Hokkaido 1-1 Sapporo Football Group

03/07/2005 ACSC Asahikawa 3-2 Sapporo Football Group
03/07/2005 Barefoot Hokkaido 1-0 Thank FC
03/07/2005 Norbritz Hokkaido 1-3 BlackPecker Hakodate
03/07/2005 R Superb Kushiro 5-3 Toyota Hokkaido

03 Jul 05 - Barefoot Hokkaido vs Thank FC

Barefoot Hokkaido in red take on Thank FC

10/07/2005 ACSC Asahikawa 2-2 Thank FC
10/07/2005 BlackPecker Hakodate 4-3 Toyota Hokkaido
10/07/2005 Norbritz Hokkaido 3-2 Sapporo Football Group
10/07/2005 R Superb Kushiro 4-2 Barefoot Hokkaido

07/08/2005 Barefoot Hokkaido 8-0 Sapporo Football Group
07/08/2005 R Superb Kushiro 2-4 Norbritz Hokkaido

04/09/2005 ACSC Asahikawa 4-1 Barefoot Hokkaido
04/09/2005 Norbritz Hokkaido 2-1 Toyota Hokkaido
04/09/2005 Sapporo Football Group 0-3 BlackPecker Hakodate
04/09/2005 Thank FC 1-0 R Superb Kushiro

11/09/2005 ACSC Asahikawa 1-4 BlackPecker Hakodate
11/09/2005 Toyota Hokkaido 3-2 Thank FC

24/09/2005 Barefoot Hokkaido 1-6 BlackPecker Hakodate
24/09/2005 Sapporo Football Group 4-0 R Superb Kushiro
24/09/2005 Thank FC 1-4 Norbritz Hokkaido
24/09/2005 Toyota Hokkaido 0-1 ACSC Asahikawa

24 Sep 05 - Toyota Hokkaido vs ACSC Asahikawa

Blue-shirted ACSC Asahikawa win away at Toyota Hokkaido

25/09/2005 ACSC Asahikawa 0-2 Norbritz Hokkaido
25/09/2005 BlackPecker Hakodate 8-3 R Superb Kushiro
25/09/2005 Thank FC 3-1 Sapporo Football Group
25/09/2005 Toyota Hokkaido 1-3 Barefoot Hokkaido

02/10/2005 Barefoot Hokkaido 0-2 Norbritz Hokkaido

02/10/2005 BlackPecker Hakodate 4-0 Thank FC
02/10/2005 R Superb Kushiro 2-6 ACSC Asahikawa
02/10/2005 Sapporo Football Group 2-4 Toyota Hokkaido


Final Ranking

1 Norbritz Hokkaido 37pts (GD +24)
2 BlackPecker Hakodate 36 (+30)
3 ACSC Asahikawa 23 (+11)
4 Barefoot Hokkaido 21 (+8)
5 Sapporo Football Group 15 (-11)
6 Thank FC 14 (-11)
7 Toyota Hokkaido 11 (-13)
8 R Superb Kushiro 6 (-38)

Norbritz Hokkaido striker Yusuke Okato

Norbritz Hokkaido striker Yusuke Osato. Looks a bit nervous, eh

Norbritz Hokkaido win the championship and therefore qualify for the Regional League Championship Winners Play-off. R Superb Kushiro are relegated to the local Block Leagues for 2006.
Ehime Snap Up Kyoto's Ishimaru
Kyoto Purple Sanga's experienced midfielder Kiyotaka Ishimaru has signed a short-term deal through to the end of the season with JFL title challengers Ehime FC, as the Shikoku side attempt to clinch promotion to the J-League. Ishimaru, who's just coming up to his 32nd birthday, began his professional career with Avispa Fukuoka, spending five years there before dropping down to J2 at Kyoto in 2001. A regular member of the first team there for the next four years, he nevertheless found himself squeezed out of the side and has yet to make a league appearance this season.

27 Oct 05 - Kiyotaka Ishimaru

Kiyotaka Ishimaru. What a cheerful fellow

Ehime will be keen to make use of a player who has in the region of 250 J-League appearances to his name as they enter potentially the most important six weeks in the life of their club. For the J-League have indicated that a top two JFL finish will probably be enough for the men in orange to claim a place in an expanded J2 for next season, with the final decision to be made at a meeting to be held after the end of the JFL season in early December. This having been announced last week, Ehime as league leaders at the weekend managed to lose 1-0 at home to second place YKK AP and so get themselves knocked off top spot, so a nailbiting time for fans in and around their home base of Matsuyama seems assured.

23 Oct 05 - Ehime FC vs YKK AP

Ehime FC in orange struggle to cope with the attack of JFL rivals YKK AP
FC Ryukyu Bolster Defence
FC Ryukyu have announced the loan signing until the end of January next year of Vissel Kobe's Wataru Nakazato ahead of their participation in the Regional League Championship Winners Play-off. 20-year-old Nakazato is a former captain of Kobe's reserve side and a speedy overlapping defender with a good line in free kicks. His new colleagues down Okinawa way include Brazilian duo Christiano and Da Silva and ex-Shimizu S-Pulse and Tokyo Verdy 1969 defender Tadaaki Matsubara.

27 Oct 05 - Wataru Nakazato

Well I never did, it's Wataru Nakazato

Ryukyu ended up second in the 2005 Kyushu League table, having been promoted from the Okinawa Prefectural League at the end of 2004 on a wave of optimism, tinged with the fear that they too could collapse in the same way that previous local big guns Okinawa Kariyushi had done, following their failure to achieve promotion to the JFL under the guidance of Ruy Ramos. Having pilfered a fair number of Kariyushi players, Ryukyu went on to offer the nearest challenge to Rosso Kumamoto - and indeed, if they'd managed to beat Rosso on the last day of the season would actually have won the title. But a 1-0 defeat still enabled them to qualify for the play-offs and so keep alive their dream of bringing a higher level of football to Okinawa.

Standing in their way at the end of November are Kanto League champions Luminozo Sayama and surprise winners of the Chugoku League, a side representing a big distribution company, Sagawa Kyubin Chugoku. The former have a fair degree of experience at this level and in fact twelve months ago only just missed out on a place in the JFL when they lost 3-1 to Ryutsu Keizai University in the final match of the play-offs. Sagawa Kyubin, meanwhile, are generally a young side made up of players from universities and high schools around Hiroshima, but on the other hand their parent company are well represented in the JFL already via Sagawa Kyubin Tokyo and Sagawa Kyubin Osaka.
All-Japan Shakaijin - 2005
The 2005 All-Japan Shakaijin knock-out tournament took place in the middle of October, with five rounds being played on five consecutive days in the middle of the month in Hyogo prefecture, central Japan. The competition ended in something of a surprising fashion with exhausted finalists Rosso Kumamoto and fellow Kyushu League side Nippon Steel Oita sharing the trophy after a 2-2 draw, when it had previously been announced that a penalty shoot-out would be used if the teams finished level.

19 Oct 05 - Rosso Kumamoto

Rosso Kumamoto celebrate their All-Japan Shakaijin win... well, joint win

That quirk aside, however, what was notable about Shakaijin this year was the extent to which it provided a dress rehearsal for the Regional League Championship Winners’ Play-offs at the end of November, which decide promotion to the JFL. Aside from Rosso, it’s probably Banditonce Kobe who came away from Hyogo feeling altogether better about themselves – outsiders, perhaps, as far as reaching the JFL is concerned, but nevertheless a team that succeeded in reaching the semi-finals of Shakaijin and, once there, gave Rosso a real run for their money in a 4-3 thriller. TDK Akita also impressed in beating both Kanazawa SC and Shizuoka FC, results which suggested that they too will have to be taken seriously as contenders for the play-offs.

15 Oct 05 - Machida Zelvia

Tokyo League side FC Machida Zelvia

But as well as offering a glimpse of the short-term future of the Japanese non-league game, the competition brought to the fore two clubs currently competing at prefectural level, but who are very definitely aiming to be involved in the spread of professional football over the next few years. FC Machida Zelvia have subsequently gone on to win this year's Tokyo Prefectural League and will be seeking to make the move up the ladder to membership of the Kanto League for 2006 - but at Shakaijin, they pulled off the shock of the tournament in beating experienced Kansai League outfit Ain Food 3-1 in the First Round, before being edged out the next day by TDK Akita on penalties after a goalless draw. Not quite as well backed but still a team to keep an eye on are FC Central Chugoku from Shimane prefecture towards the southern end of Honshu, who despite ultimately being eliminated by surprise package Hannan University had previously managed to overcome Nippon Steel Kamaishi from the Tohoku League.

15 Oct 05 - Takashi Shoji, FC Central Chugoku

Scorer for FC Central Chugoku against Nippon Steel Kamaishi, it's Takashi Shoji

All-Japan Shakaijin Round One - 15 Oct 05

Rosso Kumamoto 2-0 Sagawa Kyubin Kyoto
Norbritz Hokkaido 4-0 Honda Suzuka
Chukyo University 1-2 New Wave Kitakyushu
Sanyo Electric Sumoto 4-1 Ome FC Diego
Nippon Steel Kamaishi 1-1 FC Central Chugoku (PK 2-4)
Takamatsu FC 0-2 Japan Soccer College
Banditonce Kobe 6-0 FC Fighters
Hannan University 3-1 Furukawa Chiba
YSCC 2-4 FC Ryukyu
Shizuoka FC 3-2 Kobe FC 1970
TDK Akita 4-0 Kanazawa SC
FC Machida Zelvia 3-1 Ain Food
Takada FC 0-0 Hitachi Tochigi (PK 4-2)
Nippon Steel Oita 7-0 West Sagawa Kyubin
Sagawa Kyubin Chugoku 2-1 Yazaki Valente
Nangoku Kochi 2-1 Toho Titanium


Round Two - 16 Oct 05

Rosso Kumamoto 3-0 Norbritz Hokkaido
New Wave Kitakyushu 1-1 Sanyo Electric Sumoto (PK 2-4)
Japan Soccer College 0-1 Banditonce Kobe
Hannan University 4-1 FC Central Chugoku
FC Ryukyu 1-1 Shizuoka FC (PK 4-5)
TDK Akita 0-0 FC Machida Zelvia (PK 4-3)
Takada FC 0-7 Nippon Steel Oita
Sagawa Kyubin Chugoku 5-5 Nangoku Kochi (PK 0-3)

16 Oct 05 - FC Ryukyu vs Shizuoka FC

Shizuoka FC in white overcome FC Ryukyu in their penalty shoot-out

Round Three - 17 Oct 05

Rosso Kumamoto 5-0 Sanyo Electric Sumoto
Banditonce Kobe 4-0 Hannan University
Shizuoka FC 0-2 TDK Akita
Nippon Steel Oita 3-0 Nangoku Kochi


Semi-final - 18 Oct 05

Rosso Kumamoto 4-3 Banditonce Kobe
TDK Akita 1-1 Nippon Steel Oita (2-4 PK)


Final - 19 Oct 05

Rosso Kumamoto 2-2 Nippon Steel Oita AET, title shared
Grulla Strengthen Squad - But Will It Be Enough?
Tohoku League Division 1 joint champions Grulla Morioka have followed in the footsteps of their Regional League Championship Winners Play-off rivals Rosso Kumamoto by signing a young forward from a J1 side in order to strengthen their attacking options. 20-year-old Tomoya Hirayama, who's 1m 90cm tall, joins the club on loan until the end of December from Nagoya Grampus 8 - and his first task will be to prepare for the play-offs at the end of November, which will decide who gains promotion from the Regional Leagues to the JFL.

In the group stages, Grulla take on favourites Rosso and outsiders Fagiano Okayama from the Chugoku region, but with only one side to go through they will clearly have their work cut out to make progress. Hirayama is likely to line up alongside former Mito Hollyhock striker Shogo Sakurai in an attempt to get the goals to see the ambitious northern outfit through to the next step on the road to what Grulla hope will end in J-League membership - but unfortunately for them, Rosso have the kind of financial backing that enables them to populate their squad with no fewer than ten players signed from J-League clubs, such as midfielder Keisuke Suto and forward Hiroshi Fukushima, both from J2 high flyers Avispa Fukuoka.

27 Oct 05 - Hiroshi Fukushima

Hiroshi Fukushima, currently on loan at Rosso Kumamoto

The more modest Fagiano, meanwhile, have reached the play-offs as a result of having finished second in their Regional League to Sagawa Kyubin Chugoku. They too have their sights firmly set on playing at a higher level of football and indeed a year ago the club were taking part in the Okayama Prefectural League. but can only boast ex-Thespa Kusatsu striker Ryan Kyu Sa in their squad as a player with experience of the game at a higher level.
FAQs
1. What's Japanese Non-league Football News about?

Japanese Non-league Football News (JNFN) provides information, news and photos relating to the third and fourth tiers of Japanese club football - the Japan Football League and the Regional Leagues - plus the main knock-out competitions in which clubs in those leagues participate. We also cover teams aiming to go up into the professional ranks of the J-League; the play-offs through which clubs are promoted from the Regional Leagues to the JFL; and movement, too, between the Regional Leagues and the Prefectural Leagues lower down the scale.

The site mainly consists of news stories pertaining to the above topics, during the season naturally focusing more on to updates of results and tables from the relevant leagues. This being the case, it's particularly important that readers make use of the Category function on the left-hand side of the page, which will filter the information onscreen and enable a single league to be followed round-by-round much more easily.


2. Who puts the site together?

JNFN is written and researched by Furtho and Craig. If you have any queries, comments or suggestions, you're welcome to contact us via the email address on the left-hand side of this page.


3. Why are you doing JNFN?

Because it's fascinating to watch club football develop in what amounts to a "new" country, where previously there was almost no culture that supported the game. The key point now is that the structure of the various leagues mentioned above - plus the J-League itself - is in a state of flux because the J-League's stated aim is for professional football to expand to as many parts of the country as possible, something they're aiming to bring about within the context of their so-called One Hundred Year Plan.

It's thought that about forty teams at various different levels of the non-league game - from the JFL to the Prefectural Leagues and even below - have a serious interest in applying or preparing to apply for J-League membership in the future. JNFN aims to follow this major development, with plenty of stops along the way to draw upon the local and regional character that the Japanese non-league game provides.


4. What's the structure of club football in Japan now?

It's based around the J-League, which was started as a single division - known as J1 - in 1993 and was subsequently expanded to incorporate a J2 in 1999. As of now, there are eighteen teams in J1 and thirteen in J2, with Ehime FC the last club to gain promotion to the pro ranks, for the 2006 season. Underneath J2 within the existing structure is the Japan Football League (the aforementioned JFL), a single division that includes corporate teams such as Honda FC and Sony Sendai; community-based outfits like Tochigi SC and Arte Takasaki; and generally speaking one side from the otherwise separate University league structure.

But as far as enabling ease of progress up through the pyramid for ambitious, well-organised clubs is concerned, a real bottleneck occurs below the JFL, into which teams need to gain promotion via a series of play-offs at the end of the season (i.e. November / December) from the Regional Leagues. There are nine such Leagues, with one each on the islands of Hokkaido, Shikoku and Kyushu - the last of which also includes the southern archipelago of Okinawa - plus six covering the different areas of Honshu.

These are Chugoku (the far south, including Hiroshima), Kansai (the central / southern belt around Osaka, Kyoto and Kobe), Kanto (the greater Tokyo area), Tokai (roughly between Kansai and Kanto, including Nagoya and Shizuoka), Hokushinetsu (the central / northern prefectures over towards the Japan Sea coast, including Nagano and Niigata) and Tohoku (the far north). The Regional Leagues are in general very small and four of them have just a single division, usually of about eight teams. Kansai, Kanto, Hokushinetsu and Tokai, however, have two such divisions, while the set-up in Tohoku features a Division Two (North) and Division Two (South).

The particular difficulty with such an arrangement is that the changes and development required for clubs to compete at Regional level and then nationally in the JFL are often considerable. The three sides promoted to the JFL at the end of 2004, Mitsubishi Mizushima, Honda Lock and Ryutsu Keizai University, for instance, all struggled to cope with the progression, and if a relegation mechanism had been in place would have been favourites for the drop throughout 2005. As things stand, though, there's uncertainty as to what would be the best way ahead as far as any re-structuring is concerned, although a regionalised J3 - presumably consisting of JFL clubs, plus appropriate candidates from the Regional Leagues - has been one of the suggestions put forward so far.

Lower down the pyramid from the Regional Leagues are the Prefectural Leagues (the prefecture being Japan's main unit of local government, equivalent to a state in the US or a county in the UK), of which there are 47. Both promotion and relegation exist between these two rungs in the ladder, but these are organised very much on a case-by-case basis and as such vary a great deal across the country.


5. I'm looking for information about a specific club. Where can I find that?

JNFN is planning throughout 2007 to roll out a series of profile texts about each team in the JFL and the Regional Leagues. An up-to-date index can be found here:

http://furtho2.blog32.fc2.com/blog-entry-667.html


6. I'm interested in reading English-language material about the J-League and the Japanese National Team - where should I look?

Online, the Links section on the left-hand side of this page should help. Rising Sun News is a big, well-established site that's regularly updated and gives an excellent, opinionated commentary, especially on J1 and the National Team. Go! Go! Omiya Ardija is another blog offering news and views in English on Saitama's Mighty Squirrels; it also has a reasonably exhaustive collection of links to other relevant blogs and websites, which although not all in English are at least not in Japanese. Forza FC Gifu is a small page that is perhaps the only non-Japanese language site dedicated to a non-league club. Moving into the mainstream, there are three big media sources in Japan that provide English-language coverage, in the form of the websites of the Asahi Shimbun, Yomiuri Shimbun and The Japan Times. These tend not to give much depth, but can be useful for snippets of news.

As for printed material, it has to be said that pickings are not particularly rich. Obviously, if you're in Japan you can generally get hold of the English editions of the above newspapers. Other than that, as far as JNFN are aware, there are only two books published in English about Japanese football. Jonathan Birchall's Ultra Nippon: How Japan Reinvented Football appears to be out of print, but Japanese Rules by Sebastian Moffett is still available and a thoroughly recommended text about the development and early years of the J-League.
Takamatsu Set Off On Road To J
Mid-ranking Shikoku League outfit Takamatsu FC from Kagawa prefecture have announced their intention to follow in the footsteps of neighbouring clubs Tokushima Vortis and current JFL high-flyers Ehime FC and work towards a bid for J-League entry. Despite having spent just a single year under their current name - they were previously known as Sunlife Kagawa - the first step along what is likely to be a lengthy road to the ranks of the pros will see the club re-born in 2006 as Kamatamare Sanuki. This is in many respects a typical Japanese team name in that it consists of a convoluted mixture of local references - the famous sanuki udon noodles and Kagawa's beautiful seascape being the key factors at play here - and although there are mutterings of discontent among Takamatsu's existing fans, the new concept is at least in line with the original idea of the J-League, i.e. that clubs should be an expression of local character, in contrast with the corporate focus of Japanese baseball.

25 Oct 05 - Kamatamare Sanuki Emblem

The only club badge in the world that features cooked food?

In the 2005 season just finished, Takamatsu finished fourth in the eight-team Shikoku League, their four defeats coming at the hands of Ehime Shimanami and the League's major players since the promotion of Ehime FC in 2000, Nangoku Kochi - who are themselves, in theory at least, on a similarly upward trajectory. Indeed, one of the stated motivations behind the change in local attitude towards the Kagawa side is the chance to play proper derby matches against Tokushima, Ehime and Kochi, each team representing one of the four prefectures of Shikoku. And as the club now says, Dream Come True.

25 Oct 05 - Takamatsu FC, 2005 vintage

Takamatsu FC, 2005 vintage
Rosso Sign Cerezo's Yoneyama
Kyushu League champions Rosso Kumamoto have firmed up their bid for Regional League Championship Winners' Play-off success by announcing the short-term loan signing of 23-year-old Cerezo Osaka forward / attacking midfielder Daisuke Yoneyama. Yoneyama, who has also spent time with Sagan Tosu, has been on the fringes of the Cerezo first team this season but has made just one start and scored one goal. He signs for the JFL wannabes until the end of December.

Daisuke Yoneyama in action for Cerezo Osaka

Daisuke Yoneyama in action for Cerezo Osaka
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