S-PULSE 1-0 Ventforet Kofu
Sunday, June 25^th 2017
6:00pm, IAI Stadium Nihondaira

S-Pulse Goals: Futami 60
S-Pulse Yellow Cards: Tiago 51, Kanu 90+2
Attendance: 11007


LINE UP

GK Rokutan
DF Kamata, Kanu, Futami, Matsubara
MF Musaka, Takeuchi, Edamura, Duke, Tiago
FW Tese


SUBSTITUTIONS

Kaneko on for Tiago (69)
Kitagawa on for Edamura (77)
 

REPORT

S-Pulse’s fans, iridescent with their famous bright orange shirts, flags and scarves, blew away Sunday’s rainy season gloom, playing a vital role in helping their team over the finish line with all 3 points intact. Shimizu had had to settle for draws late in the game on more than one occasion of late, which meant the 5 additional minutes were fraught with tension. That nervous energy dissipated instantly into the breezy summer night when Masuya Ueda blew his whistle to conclude proceedings, fireworks greeting a first J1 home win for over two years.

In a game of two distinct halves, it was the second 45 that fans will remember. While the opening period was not short of industry, there were few worrying moments for either goalkeeper. After the restart however, that final ball which had hitherto been lacking was in abundant supply. S-Pulse in particular began the 2^nd half in fine fettle, Tiago hitting the post directly from a corner, and Tese nodding narrowly over after a long shot, again from Tiago, was spilt by keeper Oka. The pressure paid off on the hour when defender Futami pounced on a corner which Kofu had failed to deal with, sweeping the ball into the net.

The guests went on the offensive, substitutions reflecting their intentions to get back into the game, but Shimizu’s back line was firm and unwavering. Despite ample additional time, Ventforet were unable to deviate from type, the division’s lowest scoring side failing to pose any genuine threat. While there were undeniably nerves around IAI Stadium Nihondaira, they were born more of late opposition goals in recent games than the reality of Sunday evening’s match. 1-0 was how the game ended, providing a long awaited and deserved win for the home team.

When Saturday comes, the boys and their army of travelling orange fanatics will be enjoying the covered confines of Sapporo’s beautiful dome. With the hosts are on a poor run of form S-Pulse will be looking to capitalise on the positivity surrounding Sunday, knowing a win would increase the cushion between themselves and the danger zone of 16^th place and down. Why not jump on plane to Hokkaido and cheer the boys on to glory?


NEXT GAME

Meiji Yasuda J1 League
Saturday, July 1^st 2017
Hokkaido Consadole Sapporo vs S-PULSE
Sapporo Dome, 2pm