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April 05, 2025
 

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Andrew MCKIRDY

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Andrew MCKIRDY
Andrew McKirdy is a sports writer for The Japan Times. His main beat is soccer, but he has also covered rugby, tennis, volleyball, golf and even tug-of-war. A native of the Scottish Borders, he has written for The Scotsman newspaper and organized filming for a program on Japanese soccer for ITV television.
SOCCER / J. League
Nov 18, 2012
Sanfrecce retain lead despite defeat
Sanfrecce Hiroshima maintained a wafer-thin advantage in the J. League title race despite losing 2-0 to Urawa Reds on Saturday, as Vegalta Sendai closed the gap at the top to one point with two games of the season left to play.
SOCCER / J. League
Nov 17, 2012
Ardija striker Ljubijankic focused on avoiding relegation
Omiya Ardija striker Zlatan Ljubijankic sees no reason why his summer move to the J. League should call an end to his international career, but for the time being the Slovenian is more concerned with keeping his struggling club in the first division.
SOCCER / J. League / J. LEAGUE NOTEBOOK
Nov 15, 2012
Sanfrecce, Vegalta prepare for final charge toward title
The 2012 title race has been one of the most open in J. League history, but with only three games of the season left to play, the championship contenders have finally been whittled down to two.
Japan Times
SOCCER / SOCCER SCENE
Nov 8, 2012
Oman qualifier brings Japan back to reality after European tour
Japan may have enjoyed dining at soccer's top table in prestige friendlies against France and Brazil last month, but with World Cup-qualifying points at stake in next Wednesday's away trip to Oman, Alberto Zaccheroni's side will have to quickly readjust to the realities of Asian competition.
SOCCER / J. League
Nov 8, 2012
Gamba still in danger of relegation despite draw with Reysol
Former J. League champions Gamba Osaka remained deep in relegation trouble despite salvaging a late 2-2 draw with Kashiwa Reysol on Wednesday, while Sanfrecce Hiroshima edged closer to their first-ever title after opening up a two-point gap at the top of the table with three games left to play.
SOCCER / J. League
Nov 4, 2012
Shibasaki scores twice as Antlers beat S-Pulse in Nabisco Cup final
Gaku Shibasaki struck twice to help defending champions Kashima Antlers capture the Nabisco Cup for a record fifth time with a 2-1 extra-time victory over Shimizu S-Pulse on Saturday afternoon.
SOCCER / J. League
Oct 28, 2012
Reds blow chance to close gap on leaders
Urawa Reds let a precious chance to make up ground in the J.League title race slip through their fingers after a frustrating 0-0 draw with Cerezo Osaka on Saturday.
SOCCER / J. League / J. LEAGUE NOTEBOOK
Oct 25, 2012
Relegation fears cast long shadow over struggling sides
Another weekend of mixed results has left this year's J. League championship race as opaque as ever, but after further movement at the bottom of the table, the relegation battle is looking even harder to call.
SOCCER / J. League
Oct 21, 2012
Gamba improve survival chances
Gamba Osaka took decisive action in their bid to avoid J.League first-division relegation with a 3-2 win over Kawasaki Frontale on Saturday.
SOCCER / J. League
Oct 20, 2012
Experiences put game in perspective for Umesaki
Urawa Reds will be disappointed if their pursuit of this season's J. League title comes to nothing, but attacking midfielder Tsukasa Umesaki has survived enough setbacks in his career to know that the bad times can be just as important as the good.
SOCCER / J. League
Oct 14, 2012
Efficient Antlers advance to Nabisco Cup final
Defending champions Kashima Antlers earned a shot at a record fifth Nabisco Cup title after claiming a 5-4 aggregate semifinal win over Kashiwa Reysol with a 2-2 second-leg draw on Saturday.
Japan Times
SOCCER / SOCCER SCENE
Oct 11, 2012
Prestige friendlies provide perfect chance to lay down marker
International friendlies are often looked upon as little more than an irritation in the crowded calender of the modern game, but as Japan prepares to take on France and Brazil over the coming week, national team manager Alberto Zaccheroni is unlikely to concur.
SOCCER / J. League
Oct 7, 2012
Sanfrecce let off hook after Ono misfires late
Sanfrecce Hiroshima escaped with minimal damage to their J.League title ambitions after Yokohama F. Marinos missed a second-half penalty in a 0-0 draw with the division leaders on Saturday.
SOCCER / J. League / J. LEAGUE NOTEBOOK
Oct 4, 2012
Title-chasing pack slims down after weekend purge
There is still much to sort out before the identity of the 2012 J. League champion becomes known, but for perhaps the first time in a season that has consistently refused to produce a clear front-runner, a definitive shape is beginning to crystallize at the top of the table.
SOCCER / J. League
Sep 30, 2012
Jubilo Iwata blow lead, fall to FC Tokyo
FC Tokyo trampled Jubilo Iwata's J.League title ambitions into the dirt after coming from behind to beat the three-time champions 2-1 on Saturday.
SOCCER / J. League
Sep 29, 2012
Olympic experience had profound impact on Omiya's Higashi
Escaping relegation would be the only thing on the mind of most teams sitting one place above the drop zone with just eight matches left to play, but Omiya Ardija midfielder Keigo Higashi has grander ambitions for his struggling side than mere survival.
SOCCER / J. League / J. LEAGUE NOTEBOOK
Sep 20, 2012
Urawa eyeing immediate reward for improved season
Urawa Reds would have settled for a step in the right direction after escaping relegation by the skin of their teeth last season, but with a first J. League title since 2006 in sight with only nine games left to play, hopes of an unlikely triumph are gathering steam.
SOCCER / J. League
Sep 16, 2012
Reds rally for victory against Marinos
Urawa Reds came from behind to ramp up the pressure in the J.League title race with a 2-1 win over Yokohama F. Marinos on Saturday.
Japan Times
SOCCER / World cup
Sep 13, 2012
Zaccheroni keeps focus as Japan eyes early berth
National team manager Alberto Zaccheroni insists he will not be tempted to experiment with his starting lineup over the remainder of Japan's World Cup qualifying program despite all but locking up a place in Brazil with a 1-0 win over Iraq on Tuesday.
SOCCER / World cup
Sep 12, 2012
Maeda header carries Japan past Iraq
Japan shook off the late withdrawal of injured Manchester United star Shinji Kagawa to beat Iraq 1-0 and move to the brink of qualification for the 2014 World Cup on Tuesday.
U.S. tourist arrested after bringing a handgun into Japan
Hyogo police believe the handgun a U.S. tourist inadvertently brought into Japan slipped through security procedures at Kansai International Airport in Osaka Prefecture.
3D printer used to construct train station building in Japan
A train station building (front) is assembled from parts printed using 3D printer technology, in Arida, Wakayama Prefecture, on Wednesday.
Japan’s leader didn’t read the job description
Prime Minister and ruling Liberal Democratic Party leader Shigeru Ishiba is facing a political funding scandal that has damaged his reputation and sparked speculation that internal efforts to remove him are underway.
Japan promises 'bold and speedy' response to Trump’s surprise 24% tariffs
U.S. President Donald Trump unveils new U.S. tariffs at the White House in Washington on Wednesday.
Tokyo’s KK Line to close for decadelong overhaul as public greenway
People enjoy running and yoga on Tokyo Expressway’s KK Line, a 2-kilometer elevated expressway cutting through the capital’s commercial Ginza district, when it was opened as a pedestrian space in May last year.
Haruki Murakami TV adaptation revisits 30 years of watershed moments
Though Haruki Murakami's trademark whiff of offbeat existentialism is threaded throughout NHK's "After the Quake," the final episode — conceived as a sequel to the story "Super-Frog Saves Tokyo" — is the most stylized, featuring an anthropomorphic talking frog (voiced by Non) and his erstwhile associate Katagiri (Koichi Sato).
Nintendo to launch the Switch 2 on June 5
The controllers for the Switch 2 will attach to the console magnetically rather than sliding on rails as with the original device.
A new human trafficking trend emerges from Myanmar scam centers
Victims of scam centers who were tricked or trafficked into working in Myanmar gather at a compound inside KK Park, a fraud center on the country's border with Thailand, after a multinational crackdown in February.
Meiji says sayonara to bottled milk, a staple of Japan's bathhouses
Meiji bottled milk lined up in a fridge at Kosugiyu, a bathhouse in Tokyo. The sticker urges patrons to enjoy the milk one last time before it’s gone.
A Canadian made a weekend trip to Costco a Japanese pastime
Under the watchful eye of Ken Theriault, Costco representative director and Japan country manager, the American membership-model wholesaler has flourished in Japan.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Longform

Professional cleaner Hirofumi Sakurai takes a moment to appreciate some photographs in a Gotanda apartment whose occupant died alone.
The last cleanup: Life and death in a lonely Japan
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