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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 / SOCCER SCENE
Mar 19, 2009
Golden age becomes a distant memory for jaded Jubilo
While Kashima Antlers' start to the new J. League season has not been as imperious as it was shaping up to be, the Ibaraki club's troubles are nothing compared to those facing old rival Jubilo Iwata.
Japan Times
SOCCER / J. League
Mar 15, 2009
Home support inspires Reds against FC Tokyo
SAITAMA — Urawa Reds manager Volker Finke warned he intends to turn Saitama Stadium into a fortress after his side beat FC Tokyo 3-1 on Saturday to collect its first points of the J. League season.
Japan Times
SOCCER / J. League
Mar 8, 2009
Defending champion Antlers defeat Reds in intense opener
KASHIMA, Ibaraki Pref. — Kashima Antlers landed the first blow of the 2009 J. League season as the reigning champions beat Urawa Reds 2-0 in a ferocious opening-day battle of the big guns on Saturday.
Japan Times
SOCCER / J. League
Mar 7, 2009
Antlers favored for third straight J. League crown
The following is the second of a two-part J.League preview for the upcoming season. Team-by-team previews of the nine top-ranked teams competing in the first division are listed.
Japan Times
SOCCER / J. League
Mar 6, 2009
J. League also-rans looking to change gear
The following is the first of a two-part J. League preview for the upcoming season. Team-by-team previews of the nine bottom-ranked teams competing in the first division are listed.
Japan Times
SOCCER / J. League
Mar 5, 2009
Miyamoto returns to pass on experience
Tsuneyasu Miyamoto's time at Red Bull Salzburg may not have been as successful as he would have liked, but the former national team captain is determined to use the experience to benefit his new Vissel Kobe teammates.
Japan Times
SOCCER / J. League
Mar 4, 2009
Stojkovic confident Grampus will be contender again this season
Nagoya Grampus' challenge for the J. League title last season may have come as a shock to most observers, but manager Dragan Stojkovic insists he saw it coming all along.
Japan Times
SOCCER / J. League
Mar 3, 2009
JEF United aiming to use last season's adversity as stepping stone
Alex Miller packed more emotion into his seven months in charge of JEF United Chiba last season than most coaches manage in their entire careers, but the Scotsman believes the experience may prove the making of his team.
Japan Times
SOCCER / J. League
Mar 2, 2009
Supporters driving force behind Finke's Reds reclamation project
New Urawa Reds manager Volker Finke might not have been smitten with the team he saw play twice last season, but the German admits his first taste of the Saitama Stadium crowd was love at first sight.
Japan Times
SOCCER / J. League
Mar 1, 2009
Antlers trounce Gamba Osaka in curtain-raiser
Kashima Antlers sent out a warning to those who covet their J. League crown with a 3-0 thrashing of Gamba Osaka in the Fuji Xerox Super Cup on Saturday.
Japan Times
SOCCER / J. League
Feb 28, 2009
Antlers begin quest to defend J. League title
Kashima Antlers manager Oswaldo Oliveira is hoping his team can lay down a marker for the rest of the J. League season in Saturday's curtain-raising Fuji Xerox Super Cup clash against Gamba Osaka.
SOCCER / SOCCER SCENE
Feb 14, 2009
Japan showed promise in draw
Japan's 0-0 draw with Australia on Wednesday night was far from being the disastrous result that Socceroos manager Pim Verbeek warned it would be during his pre-match mind games.
Japan Times
SOCCER / World cup
Feb 12, 2009
Socceroos frustrate Japan in draw
YOKOHAMA — A disciplined defensive performance from Australia frustrated Japan's attempts to jump to the top of Asian World Cup qualifying Group A on Wednesday night as the Socceroos held Takeshi Okada's men to a 0-0 draw.
Japan Times
SOCCER / World cup
Feb 11, 2009
Verbeek believes pressure is on Japan in Group A qualifier
YOKOHAMA — Australia manager Pim Verbeek has shrugged off suggestions his players won't be ready in time for Wednesday's crunch World Cup qualifier against Japan, insisting the pressure is all on Takeshi Okada's side.
SOCCER / SOCCER SCENE
Feb 8, 2009
Victory over Australia would give Japan boost
Takeshi Okada faces the biggest test of his second coming as national team manager against Australia on Wednesday night, but there is evidence to suggest the optimistic noises he has been making recently have some justification.
Japan Times
SOCCER / World cup
Feb 5, 2009
Japan crush Finland ahead of qualifier
Japan gave national team manager Takeshi Okada a welcome tonic ahead of next week's World Cup-qualifying match against Australia with a resounding 5-1 win over Finland on Wednesday night.
Japan Times
SOCCER / World cup
Feb 4, 2009
Japan faces quality tuneup match against Finland
National team manager Takeshi Okada is confident his side will be in fighting shape for next week's World Cup-qualifying showdown with Australia, starting with a sparring match against Finland on Wednesday night.
SOCCER / SOCCER SCENE
Feb 1, 2009
Japan's best shot is 2022 World Cup
Japan resumes its campaign for a place at the 2010 World Cup this month against Australia, but the nation's power brokers are already setting their sights on a more distant — and potentially more rewarding — edition of the tournament.
SOCCER / SOCCER SCENE
Jan 22, 2009
Win over Yemen gives Okada's plans vital breathing space
Japan's 2-1 win over Yemen on Tuesday night may not have been pretty, but the result could prove invaluable for manager Takeshi Okada's strategy for 2009.
Japan Times
SOCCER / SOCCER SCENE
Jan 15, 2009
No time to lose for Urawa as Finke gets down to business
Urawa Reds were quick off the mark to begin training for the 2009 season this week, but then the Saitama club has good reason to be impatient for a fresh start.
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.

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