S-PULSE GOALS Braga (7), Inui (9), Kitagawa (68)

YELLOW CARDS Miyamoto (90 + 4)

RED CARDS

PENALTY KICK

ATTENDANCE 5038

LINE UP

GK Gonda,

DF Yamahara, Takahashi, Sumiyoshi, Kitazume

MF Carlinhos, Nakamura, Inui, Miyamoto, Braga

FW Kitagawa

SUBSTITUTIONS

Matsuaki on for Carlinhos (39)

Nishihara on for Inui (70)

Nishizawa on for Kitagawa (70)

Hasukawa on for Braga (87)

Yoshida on for Kitazume (87)

REPORT

A momentous win which confirmed us at the top of the J2 League!

But it certainly was not an easy game against a team we walked over last year by a stupendous 16-2 aggregate.

In fact, it would be fair to admit we had our share of good luck.

The difference was that we made our few chances count in spite of being dominated in possession, corner kicks and opportunities.

It just proves once again that the whole J2 league his little different from the upper division and that each game will have to be taken utterly seriously!

One advantage we have that cannot be pointed out enough is that we benefit from a big travelling fan contingent even in the pitifully small crowd of this venue far away from our bases!

The first minutes of the game seemed to augur we were about to finish the game the same way as our last two encounters of last year when first in the 7th minute a long clearance was sweetly controlled by Kitagawa who had all the time in the world to run past Iwaki’s right flank and cross for a lurking Braga to easily score from point blank.

Two minutes later Iwaki could not clear a long forward pass which was eventually controlled by Braga and Miyamoto before the latter looped over the defense to send Kitagawa through inside the box who calmy crossed it to Inui who only had to tap it in, albeit with the help of the far post.

But then S-Pulse left most control to their opponents who finally scored a goal back in the 22nd minute when S-Pulse’s defense was guilty of complacency allowing an Iwaki’s forward all the time to curl in a fine goal over Gonda’s head into the far top corner of the goal mouth.

S-Pulse had to make the most of very few chances in game stuck into long sterile moments.

In the 55th minute Yamahara sent a low shot from close range but the angle was too acute to beat the opposite goal keeper.

But in the same Yamahara proved the danger he was when Inui first sent a long pass across the pitch to Braga on the lest side who sent Yamahara for an apparent run past the Iwaki’s defense, but Yamahara seeing he would not reach the ball first feinted by running past the last defender before coming back to steal the ball from a flabbergasted defender with a fine tackle from behind before sending it to Kitagawa for a simple opportunistic goal.

Iwaki courageously fought back and had two consecutive great chances in the 78th minute when S-Pulse allowed a dangerous looping cross to be met first by a sharp heading which was repulsed by Gonda and Sumiyoshi somehow blocked the ensuing low shot.

But in the 80th minute Iwaki finally pulled a goal back when a looping corner kick found an Iwaki forward unmarked behind S-Pulse’ defenders who had all the time to volley into another sucker punch that we should have avoided.

But Shimizu somehow managed to protect their lead until the very last minute of an interminable extra time when Iwaki lost their last chance to equalize.

But now we will need more than good luck to deal with Vegalta Sendai next Saturday at home, a club who also was in the J1 League not so long ago and keen to go back there.

Our fans will have their say once again!

NEXT GAME

J2 League

Game 11

Shimizu S-Pulse vs Vegalta Sendai

Saturday April 20th, 2:00 pm

IAI Nihondaira Stadium (Shizuoka)