Jubilo Iwata, in a confident and entertaining performance, maintained the J. League Division One lead after beating last season's triple-crown winning Kashima Antlers 2-1 on Saturday at Tokyo's National Stadium.
Kashima forward Takayuki Suzuki gave the hosts a 1-0 lead only four minutes into the game, slotting the ball into the net after Jubilo's Dutch goalkeeper Arno van Zwam dropped the ball in a challenge from the Antlers forward in the area.
But four minutes later, Jubilo equalized through Japan forward Naohiro Takahara, who ran into the box to receive a Hiroshi Nanami free kick near the post and turned around to hit an angled shot into the goal.