JFA faces own Watergate: report

LONDON — A member of the Japan Under-23 soccer team that reached the semifinals of the London Olympics caused ?80,000 (?10 million) worth of damage to a Scottish hotel after a kickaround set off a sprinkler and caused flooding, according to a report published Wednesday in the online edition of Scotland's Daily Record.

Japan played in Glasgow when it stunned Spain in their opening match of the group stage.

The unnamed player kicked the ball at a sprinkler and set off the system, flooding rooms. The rooms had to be evacuated and renovated, racking up a bill that is still unsettled, the report said.

The Marriott Hotel in Glasgow has been in talks with London Olympics and the Japanese soccer authorities after a row broke out over who was liable for the damage, according to the report, which quoted an insider as saying,

"It was an accident but it caused chaos. One sprinkler being activated set off the whole floor and the results were catastrophic.

"Afterwards the hotel was looking to be paid for the damage and LOCOG were in dispute with the Japanese squad about who should pay. They still haven't sorted it out."

However, a source at the Japan Football Association said, "It is true that rooms were flooded but there is no way that a player would be kicking a ball around in his room. There is no clear reason why the sprinkler was set off."

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Harumafuji faces final test against Hakuho

Harumafuji put one hand up on his fourth career Emperor's Cup with a ransacking of fellow ozeki Kakuryu on Saturday, setting up a final day showdown against yokozuna Hakuho for all the marbles at the Autumn Grand Sumo Tournament.

Business as usual: Harumafuji (right) improves to 14-0 in the Autumn Grand Sumo Tournament by beating fellow ozeki Kakuryu on Saturday. KYODO

After Harumafuji blazed through Kakuryu in the day's penultimate bout to improve to an unblemished 14-0 mark, Hakuho defeated longtime nemesis Kisenosato with an equally powerful performance, bringing his record to 13-1.

Hakuho, seeking his 23rd career title and first in three meets, can force a playoff against Harumafuji with a win against him on Sunday. Harumafuji, who won the Nagoya Basho in July with a perfect 15-0 record, would all but guarantee his promotion to yokozuna with a win over Hakuho in the grand finale of the Tokyo meet.

The lone Mongolian yokozuna holds a 22-12 record over his countryman, but has lost his previous two meetings with the fiery ozeki.

Harumafuji got a turbo start at the tachiai, getting his right hand under the armpit of Kakuryu (10-4) in the blink of an eye before sending his rival retreating over the edge in a frontal force out to extend his winning streak to 30 consecutive bouts.

In the day's finale at Ryogoku Kokugikan, fireworks were set to erupt before the bout even got started as the two men exchanged glares with Kisenosato intent on not backing down. However, the ozeki's bark proved to be much louder than his bite once the match begun.

Hakuho rammed Kisenosato with a right elbow to the face that all but stopped the ozeki's forward motion, and proceeded to violently slap him to the sandy surface with an emphatic thud. Kisenosato slipped to a 10-4 mark.

In other noteworthy bouts, maegashira wrestler Okinoumi beat Chiyotairyu (5-9) by frontal force out to pick up his 10th win, but fellow rank-and-filer and early title contender Takayasu (10-4) was sent packing by technician Aminishiki (9-5).

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City faces test of leadership

LONDON — After a glut of goals in the opening four months of the season, Manchester City enters the packed Christmas fixture program as the top team in England for the first time since 1929.

Back then, City failed to stay the course, taking until 1937 to win the title and 1968 to repeat the feat.

This time, another slip-up would be unacceptable for City's owners after an expensive overhaul of the squad over three years.

But City has displayed resilience since exiting the Champions League and losing for the first time this season at Chelsea, bouncing back with successive Premier League wins to establish a two-point lead over Manchester United.

Ahead of Monday's match at West Bromwich Albion, City has already scored 53 goals in 17 league matches — more than twice the haul at this stage a year earlier.

"Last season we got a lot of uncalled-for negative publicity because the goals weren't flowing freely," City defender Joleon Lescott said. "But this year we have the belief and the confidence to score more goals.

"We did need to change and there is an air of confidence about us now. But it is controlled, you don't want it to be too arrogant. The main thing is to keep progressing and keep our feet on the ground."

It is two years since Roberto Mancini replaced Mark Hughes as City manager. Having already ended the club's 35-year trophy drought by lifting the F.A. Cup in May, the focus is firmly on delivering the club's first league crown since 1968.

"We need to win away games," Mancini said. "We have only one point from our last two."

Stumbling at West Brom could allow United to go top with a win over Wigan on Monday. The champions are maintaining the pressure on City despite a series of setbacks this season — including Champions League elimination and a humiliating 6-1 loss against its neighbor.

"We have shown the resilience and determination to do something about it each time (a setback) has happened," United manager Alex Ferguson said Friday. "That says a lot about the character of the team. We lose games in normal seasons.

"This season we have lost games that have been dramatic and a bit more emphatic in the sense of the impact it had on our chances of winning trophies. These were bad results for us but the character of the team has rescued us each time."

The Manchester teams have ended the week further ahead of their title rivals after Tottenham drew 1-1 with Chelsea in the clash of third and fourth.

Tottenham is seven points behind United and a further two adrift of City with a game in hand, while Chelsea is two points further back in fourth.

But Tottenham's injury crisis deepened in Thursday's draw with Chelsea as playmaker Rafael van der Vaart sustained a hamstring problem — like four teammates — that is likely to rule him out until January.

Winger Aaron Lennon was injured against Sunderland on Sunday and is likely to be out for the club's next three games, while defenders Ledley King and Younes Kaboul both hurt their hamstrings against Chelsea, the latter in the warmup.

While striker Jermain Defoe also missed the London derby, he could be fit for the trip to Norwich on Tuesday to help Tottenham close the gap on second-place United.

"At this point in time everyone thinks it is going to be a one-two for the city (of Manchester)," Ferguson said. "But things change . . . lose a game in this league and all the rest get a pickup and start chasing harder."

Arsenal is struggling to break into the top four and its defensive troubles have been compounded by Kieran Gibbs undergoing surgery on his left groin and being ruled out for another month. The England left back has been out of action since October after having surgery to remove a hernia, but it had been hoped he would be back this week.

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Hakuho faces up to gloomy basho

Yokozuna Hakuho has been in this tenuous situation before — sort of.

The Mongolian, who is taking part in a "test meet" in Tokyo in place of the summer basho following a match-fixing scandal, had to deal with disappointment when, despite winning last year's Nagoya basho, he received nothing for his efforts, including the coveted Emperor's Cup.

There are no awards, trophies or cash prizes being offered either at the May Technical Examination Tournament, as it is being called, but the results still count.

The Ryogoku Kokugikan appears even gloomier, due to the reduced lighting to conserve energy following the March 11 earthquake in northeastern Japan.

"I felt the same way at the Nagoya basho last year but I fought through it," said Hakuho, who is aiming to match former yokozuna Asashoryu's all-time record of seven consecutive titles at this meet.

"Last time when I was in this type of situation, I tried to remember the joy of sumo as I wrestled. That's the same thing I have to do here. I have to feel appreciation while I wrestle."

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