Ozeki Kisenosato outlasted Gagamaru to maintain his share of the lead, while yokozuna Hakuho stayed in touch with the early pacesetters with a third win at the Summer Grand Sumo Tournament on Wednesday.Kisenosato had to dig deep into his energy reserves but still had too much gumption for the Georgian No. 2 maegashira, forcing him over the straw bales to preserve his prefect start. Gagamaru dropped to 1-3.Kisenosato, fellow ozeki Kotoshogiku and three lower-ranked wrestlers improved to 4-0 on a day when Estonian Baruto was the only one among the six ozeki to bite the dust at Ryogoku Kokugikan.Hakuho, who lost his opening bout on Sunday, slapped down No. 2 maegashira Myogiryu (1-3) to take another step toward his 23rd Emperor's Cup.Baruto (3-1), though, returned to the locker room shaking his head after getting mugged at the edge of the ring by Aminishiki (2-2), who prevailed with a pulling overarm throw to claim his second major scalp after opening the meet with an upset win over Hakuho."I was able to get a quick attack going. It's a nice feeling (to beat both Hakuho and Baruto)," said Aminishiki. "I just have to keep on giving it my best shot."Harumafuji (3-1) showed nifty footwork and toppled top-ranked Takayasu (0-4) with a textbook "kotenage" armlock throw and fellow Mongolian Kakuryu (3-1) finally dismantled Toyonoshima (2-2) after an entertaining slugfest in the next bout.Kakuryu who flirted with a championship at the spring tourney in March before losing to yokozuna Hakuho in a playoff, is fighting in his first tournament as ozeki. He is the first wrestler to attain the rank since Kisenosato secured promotion at the Kyushu basho last November.Ozeki Kotooshu (2-2) returned to winning ways after back-to-back defeats against Goeido and Toyohibiki, the Bulgarian getting a firm grip on the front of winless Takekaze's mawashi and charging him out of the dohyo.
Showing posts with label leaders. Show all posts
Showing posts with label leaders. Show all posts
Thursday, May 10, 2012
Sunday, May 29, 2011
Tanaka double guides leaders Reysol past Vissel
KASHIWA, Chiba Pref. — Junya Tanaka scored two first-half goals and Leandro Domingues added another to extend Kashiwa Reysol's lead at the top of the J. League to three points with a 3-0 win over Vissel Kobe on Saturday.
Show of respect: Kashiwa Reysol fans congratulate Junya Tanaka (18) after his 24th-minute goal on Saturday against Vissel Kobe. Reysol won 3-0. KYODO PHOTOVissel went into the match at Hitachi Stadium on the back of three straight wins, but a brace from Tanaka inside the space of three minutes soon took the wind out of their sails and put last season's second-division champions firmly in the driving seat.A third from Leandro Domingues in the 73rd minute made the game safe, giving Kashiwa 19 points from eight matches as the Chiba side continues to confound expectations in its first season back in the top flight."The results we have been getting are a result of our preparation," said manager Nelsinho. "We have carried on from what we were doing last year, and that gives us a strong foundation to build on."In training the players never doubt what we are doing, and that is the key. Maybe other people are surprised at our results, but that's not the case for anyone at this club."Both teams took time to find their rhythm, but after some nervy moments Kashiwa took the lead in the 21st minute. Leandro Domingues split the Vissel defense with a perfectly weighted pass into the box, and Tanaka took a touch before rifling the ball home.It was not long before the 23-year-old had his second. Ryoichi Kurosawa switched the play with a brilliant cross-field ball to the left, and Tanaka left goalkeeper Kenta Tokushige clutching at thin air with a ferocious shot from the edge of the box."We expected them to come at us, and the players dealt with this by defending well, waiting for mistakes and hitting them on the counter," said Nelsinho. "Then we found our rhythm and got the two goals."We knew we were playing against a team that had won its last three games, and I told the players to go back out for the second half with the same attitude. We knew we couldn't just sit on a two-goal lead, and we were determined to get a third or a fourth."It was the visitors who almost started the second half with a goal, however, with Vissel pressure almost forcing Reysol defender Naoya Kondo to steer the ball into his own net.But it took a scrambled clearance from Kunie Kitamoto to deny Tanaka his hat trick at the other end, and 10 minutes later Kashiwa put the result beyond doubt. Hideaki Kitajima broke into space down the left, and the striker squared the ball for Leandro Domingues striding through the middle to sweep home.Vissel substitute Popo then earned a straight red card for a meaty 86th-minute challenge on Tatsuya Masushima, leaving manager Masahiro Wada to pick the bones out of a miserbale afternoon for the visitors."We were playing against the team at the top of the league today," Wada said. "For the first 15 minutes we played at a good tempo and created some chances, and if we had managed to score from one of them it might have been a different story."But after Kashiwa scored they were able to play at their own pace, and we had trouble putting together moves on the slippy pitch. Games like this happen, and the important thing now is for the players to put it behind them."Elsewhere in the J. League, Vegalta Sendai and Yokohama F. Marinos — second and third in the table, respectively, at the start of the day — drew 1-1, while struggling Urawa Reds were pegged back from a first-half lead to finish 1-1 against Albirex Niigata.The Shizuoka derby between Shimizu S-Pulse and Jubilo Iwata finished 0-0, and Ventforet Kofu drew 1-1 with Montedio Yamagata.
Show of respect: Kashiwa Reysol fans congratulate Junya Tanaka (18) after his 24th-minute goal on Saturday against Vissel Kobe. Reysol won 3-0. KYODO PHOTOVissel went into the match at Hitachi Stadium on the back of three straight wins, but a brace from Tanaka inside the space of three minutes soon took the wind out of their sails and put last season's second-division champions firmly in the driving seat.A third from Leandro Domingues in the 73rd minute made the game safe, giving Kashiwa 19 points from eight matches as the Chiba side continues to confound expectations in its first season back in the top flight."The results we have been getting are a result of our preparation," said manager Nelsinho. "We have carried on from what we were doing last year, and that gives us a strong foundation to build on."In training the players never doubt what we are doing, and that is the key. Maybe other people are surprised at our results, but that's not the case for anyone at this club."Both teams took time to find their rhythm, but after some nervy moments Kashiwa took the lead in the 21st minute. Leandro Domingues split the Vissel defense with a perfectly weighted pass into the box, and Tanaka took a touch before rifling the ball home.It was not long before the 23-year-old had his second. Ryoichi Kurosawa switched the play with a brilliant cross-field ball to the left, and Tanaka left goalkeeper Kenta Tokushige clutching at thin air with a ferocious shot from the edge of the box."We expected them to come at us, and the players dealt with this by defending well, waiting for mistakes and hitting them on the counter," said Nelsinho. "Then we found our rhythm and got the two goals."We knew we were playing against a team that had won its last three games, and I told the players to go back out for the second half with the same attitude. We knew we couldn't just sit on a two-goal lead, and we were determined to get a third or a fourth."It was the visitors who almost started the second half with a goal, however, with Vissel pressure almost forcing Reysol defender Naoya Kondo to steer the ball into his own net.But it took a scrambled clearance from Kunie Kitamoto to deny Tanaka his hat trick at the other end, and 10 minutes later Kashiwa put the result beyond doubt. Hideaki Kitajima broke into space down the left, and the striker squared the ball for Leandro Domingues striding through the middle to sweep home.Vissel substitute Popo then earned a straight red card for a meaty 86th-minute challenge on Tatsuya Masushima, leaving manager Masahiro Wada to pick the bones out of a miserbale afternoon for the visitors."We were playing against the team at the top of the league today," Wada said. "For the first 15 minutes we played at a good tempo and created some chances, and if we had managed to score from one of them it might have been a different story."But after Kashiwa scored they were able to play at their own pace, and we had trouble putting together moves on the slippy pitch. Games like this happen, and the important thing now is for the players to put it behind them."Elsewhere in the J. League, Vegalta Sendai and Yokohama F. Marinos — second and third in the table, respectively, at the start of the day — drew 1-1, while struggling Urawa Reds were pegged back from a first-half lead to finish 1-1 against Albirex Niigata.The Shizuoka derby between Shimizu S-Pulse and Jubilo Iwata finished 0-0, and Ventforet Kofu drew 1-1 with Montedio Yamagata.
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