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July 28, 2024
 

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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.
Japan Times
SOCCER / J. League
Aug 29, 2010
Motoyama's late goal gives Antlers draw against Reds
SAITAMA — Masashi Motoyama salvaged a point in the final minute of injury time as Kashima Antlers snatched a 1-1 draw with Urawa Reds on Saturday night.
Japan Times
SOCCER / J. League
Aug 28, 2010
No regrets as Inamoto reflects on nomadic career
KAWASAKI — If Japanese soccer has been on a journey since the J. League began in 1993, no one has racked up more miles than Junichi Inamoto.
Japan Times
SOCCER / J. League / J. LEAGUE NOTEBOOK
Aug 26, 2010
Cerezo, Albirex come from behind to enter title race
Nagoya Grampus finally managed to consolidate their position at the top of the J. League last weekend, but behind them the field is getting crowded.
Japan Times
SOCCER / J. League
Aug 22, 2010
Inui, Cerezo outplay Antlers in big match
KASHIMA, Ibaraki Pref. — Cerezo Osaka denied Kashima Antlers top spot in the J. League table and leapfrogged the defending champion into second place for good measure with a 1-0 win on Saturday.
Japan Times
SOCCER / J. League
Aug 19, 2010
Frontale run roughshod over J. League-leading Grampus
KAWASAKI — Kawasaki Frontale shredded Nagoya Grampus' hopes of opening up a gap at the top of the J. League table with a clinical 4-0 win on Wednesday night.
Japan Times
SOCCER / J. League / J. LEAGUE NOTEBOOK
Aug 12, 2010
S-Pulse, Grampus prove championship credentials
Neither Shimizu S-Pulse nor Nagoya Grampus have ever won a J. League title, but both clubs are giving off serious signals that this could be their year.
SOCCER / SOCCER SCENE
Jul 29, 2010
Steady Japan works balancing act
With co-hosting in 2002 still fresh in the memory, Japan's bid to stage the World Cup for a second time in 2022 was always going to be a hard sell.
SOCCER / J. League
Jul 29, 2010
FC Tokyo squanders opportunity at home
FC Tokyo failed again to win at home as striker Masashi Oguro had a hand in goals at both ends in a 1-1 draw with Jubilo Iwata on Wednesday night.
Japan Times
SOCCER / J. League / J. LEAGUE NOTEBOOK
Jul 22, 2010
Clubs cope with roster changes as season resumes after World Cup
The World Cup was always going to cast a long shadow over this year's J. League championship, and how teams now deal with the fallout will play a significant part in the destination of the title.
Japan Times
SOCCER / J. League
Jul 18, 2010
Kennedy provides spark for Grampus
Nagoya Grampus shrugged off a first-half red card for Igor Burzanovic to grab a 1-0 away win over Omiya Ardija on Saturday.
Japan Times
SOCCER / SOCCER SCENE
Jul 2, 2010
Japan impressed despite falling short of Okada's goal
In the end, national team manager Takeshi Okada got neither the semifinal he craved nor the quarterfinal that looked there for the taking. When the dust settles on Japan's 2010 World Cup campaign, however, the overall feeling will be one of pride rather than regret.
SOCCER / SOCCER SCENE
Jun 27, 2010
Victory over Denmark gives Japan inspiration
On a night when a positive result was more important than a positive performance, Japan emphatically delivered both.
Japan Times
SOCCER / SOCCER SCENE
Jun 22, 2010
Attack as well as defense needed to secure qualification
Japan's disappointment at losing to the Netherlands on Saturday was understandable, but Thursday's final group game against Denmark was always going to be the one that mattered most. With only a point now needed to secure qualification for the knockout phase, Takeshi Okada's side stands on the verge...
Japan Times
SOCCER / SOCCER SCENE
Jun 17, 2010
Bold changes rewarded as Okada gets team tactics right
Japan's hard-boiled victory over Cameroon on Monday was never going to win Takeshi Okada's side any new friends, but confidence, respect and three crucial points are a far more valuable reward.
Japan Times
SOCCER / World cup
Jun 10, 2010
World Cup gets ready for kickoff
The World Cup breaks new ground on Friday as the world's top soccer tournament will be held in Africa for the first time. South Africa plays host to the monthlong competition, where 32 teams will compete for a place in the final in Johannesburg on July 11.
Japan Times
SOCCER / SOCCER SCENE
Jun 3, 2010
Battling performance leaves Nakamura's place in doubt
After the trauma of last week's defeat to South Korea, Japan salvaged some much-needed confidence — if not a result — against England. But if manager Takeshi Okada decides to stick with the revamped formation that served him so well on Sunday, where does that leave Shunsuke Nakamura?
Japan Times
SOCCER / SOCCER SCENE
May 27, 2010
Okada's moment of weakness sets worst possible example
...
Japan Times
SOCCER / World cup
May 26, 2010
Okada denies he offered to resign
National team manager Takeshi Okada insists he did not offer to resign in the immediate aftermath of Japan's 2-0 defeat to South Korea on Monday night.
Japan Times
SOCCER / World cup
May 25, 2010
Japan stumbles in World Cup tuneup
SAITAMA — South Korea sent Japan off to the World Cup with plenty to think about after a 2-0 defeat on Monday night.
Japan Times
SOCCER / J. League / J. LEAGUE NOTEBOOK
May 20, 2010
S-Pulse beating strong going into World Cup break
Shimizu S-Pulse's momentum may have faded in recent weeks, but manager Kenta Hasegawa has plenty to smile about as his side heads into the two-month World Cup shutdown on top of the J. League.
Japan's population continues to fall even as foreign resident count rises
The number of residents in Tokyo as of Jan. 1 rose by 0.03% from a year before, data shows, marking a year-on-year increase for the first time in three years, while the country's other 46 prefectures saw their populations continue to decline.
Ahead of the Olympics, Japan is still talking about the gymnast who won't be there
Japan's Shoko Miyata withdrew from the gymnastics team herself over her drinking and smoking, although it had already appeared as though the association was prepared to send her home from the team’s training camp in Monaco.
Yen melt-up nudges Japanese stocks into correction territory
Japanese stocks are down 10% from their July peak as the yen strengthens.
‘Crazy’ yen rally is at risk of shattering as soon as Wednesday
Some investors are warning that a yen rally is fragile, as was on show this week when the yen rapidly retraced an advance after Thursday’s stronger-than-expected U.S. economic growth figures.
Japan's average life expectancy rises for first time in three years
A decline in COVID-19-caused deaths likely helped boost the average life expectancy for Japanese men and women to rise for the first time in three years in 2023.
The Japanese Olympians looking to shine in Paris
Rim Nakamura, who is attempting to win Japan's first Olympic gold medal in cycling, will be one of the top Japanese athletes to watch at the Paris Games.
Japan’s minimum wage set for record ¥50 hike in major boost
Demonstrators rally to demand a big hike in minimum wages in Tokyo last week.
Japan loses top spot on strongest passport list to Singapore
Japan had the strongest passport for six years running from 2018, before being dethroned by Singapore on the 2024 list.
Why Japan's mysterious stash of classified funds escapes scrutiny
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi (right) during a meeting in Tokyo on Tuesday.
Japan eyes gold — and the future — as Olympic men's soccer campaign begins
Japan midfielder Yu Hirakawa controls the ball during a match against the United States in Kansas City, Kansas, on June 11.

Podcast

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

Longform

Traditional folk rituals like Mizudome-no-mai (dance to stop the rain) provide a sense of agency to a population that feels largely powerless in the face of the climate crisis.
As climate extremes intensify, Japan embraces ancient weather rituals
By Alex K.T. Martin

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JNTO promotes sustainable tourism initiatives

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