Match Review 18th Sec : VS Thespakusatsu Gunma at Shoda Shoyu Stadium Gunma on June 14

Okayama 1 Thespakusatsu Gunma 1

Fagiano marched into Gunma where they had no good memory in the past seasons. According to the reports, 2,312 fans came to the Stadium for the evening match.

This sec, an ace forward, Oshitani was back on starting line-up from the one-match suspension. He has been struggling to score for a while. A young attacker, Kobayashi was on the reserve list for the first time this term right after he was promoted from Fagiano Next. Gunma's veteran attacker, Nagai was on the reserve list.

During the first half, in the 15^th minutes, Thespa's Brazilian, Kaique took an amazing shot, but a goal keeper, Nakabayashi showed an excellent saving. In the 30 minutes, Yajima scored an opener, bringing a joy to Fagiano supporters, however, two minutes later, Hattori's men equalized the match in a flash. Right after that, Tadokoro was taken out by Sawaguchi because of his injury.

After the interval, gradually, Gunma took control of the game. In the 64 minutes, Chiaki was sent into the field, making the team more defensive. Thespa actively attacked in waves, but struggled to score a decider. In the 82 minutes, a young hope, Kobayashi was placed to change the game. He performed well, however, the match ended in a tie. As a result, Okayama stays 13^th position with 23 points.

Match Preview 18th Sec : VS Thespakusatsu Gunma at Shoda Shoyu Stadium Gunma on June 14

In the past, Fagiano has not been good with the opponent because the overall record standing against Gunma is 3 victories, nine losses and one draw. Last season, Okayama lost both two matches.  


Hattori, who leads the team as a head coach, is experienced. He has worked for lots of J league clubs before, such as Avispa Fukuoka, Sagan Tosu and Albirex Niigata etc...  The former international, Nagai is remarkable. He has not scored any goals yet this season, however, this veteran forward has made a solid contribution to the team.


At last sec, Gunma was defeated by Tochigi SC, 1 - 5. During the match, Gunma was mostly on the back foot.  Right before the end of the match, Hattori's men scored a consolation goal.


Thespakusatsu stays 14th position with 20 points as of now. The club was qualified for the division 2 after the Japan Football League 2004 season. Since then, Hattori's men has never been promoted to the upper league. This term, Gunma struggles to score goals along with Fagiano, therefore, the match is expected to be relatively quiet game with low scores.

Fagiano can be seen everywhere in Okayama

Once you get to Okayama airport,  you are greeted by Fagiano's welcome message. 

At baggage claim, a bigger message can be seen.

At convenience store in Okayama city, you can find lots of Fagiano flags like the below.

Fagiano-wrapped buses are popular in the city.

It is obvious that Fagiano takes root in Okayama. 





Match Review 17th Sec : VS Tokyo Verdy at City Light Stadium on June 6

Okayama 0 Tokyo Verdy 1

The match took place in the evening for the first time this season. On the same day, Fagiano Next played against Vanraure Hachinohe at City Light Stadium in the Japan Football League, therefore, the total attendance was 10,019.

This sec, an ace forward, Oshitani was not able to play because of the suspension. Instead, an attacker, Someya played as a starter. He was expected to bring Okayama forces with speed. Needless to say, Fagiano's defense had been stable, so all the club needed were goals.

Six minutes after the kickoff, Verdy's midfielder, Chugo scored an opener. That led the visitors to dominate the match. Nagasawa's men were mostly forced to play on their own side and struggled to attack. Fagiano had a stressful time during the first half.

After the interval, Okayama tried to find a way out of the difficulty, however, the wine red uniformed attacker struggled to break Verdy's defense. In the 72 minutes, Soichi TANAKA was sent into the pitch for the first time this term to change the game. Even though Fagiano fought it out to the very end, they took only four shots with no goal during the match. As a result, Okayama got down to 13^th position.

Match Preview 17th Sec : VS Tokyo Verdy at City Light Stadium on June 6

Last season, Fagiano had two victories against Tokyo Verdy and the overall record standing of Fagiano against Tokyo is six victories, six losses and one draw. Both clubs are in a virtual tie as of now.


The head coach is Togashi, who used to lead the youth team of Verdy, so he is totally familliar with the team.  This season, midfielder, Yasuda made a comeback from Gainare Tottori in the division 3. A veteran forward, Hiramoto is remarkable, having scored five goals so far this season. Other young attackers, Sugimoto and Takagi are also the ones to watch out for.


At last sec, Tokyo made an upset victory against Tochigi SC, 3 - 2. Hiramoto scored a goal and young attacker, Takagi stroke a decider.


Tokyo currently stays 8th position with 24 points. Verdy had the golden ages more than 10 years ago in the top league, however, in the recent years, the visitors have struggled in the lower league. In the recent secs, Okayama have struggled to score goals, therefore, their attackers are expected to rise up during the match.

TV program, Get Sports features IWAMASA

This program features the former international, Daiki IWAMASA, who joined Fagiano Okayama this season. It was shot in Japanese, but it is certainly worth watching. I almost cried when watching this.  Check this out!

Match Review 16th Sec : VS Kamatamare Sanuki at Kagawa Marugame Stadium on May 31

Okayama 1 Kamatamare Sanuki 0

On the last day of May, lots of Fagiano supporters gathered at Kagawa Marugame Stadium for the derby match of Seto Great Bridge. According to the reports, most of them came to Marugame by chartered train from Okayama. The total attendance for the match was 6,556.

This sec, the head coach, Nagasawa made up the same starting line-up as the last sec. An ace forward, Oshitani has not scored goals for last seven matches, therefore, he seemed to be greedy for goals. In the home team, a striker, Tetsuya KIJIMA was placed as a starter for the first time this term.

After the kickoff, both teams were solid in defense, even though both created lots of chances with free kicks and corner kicks. In the 17^th minutes, Iwamasa took a brilliant header, but the shot was an offside. It seems that it was the most exciting moment for Fagiano fans before the interval.

During the second half, in the 51th minutes, Sanuki midfielder, Numata took an own goal, bringing the visitors a lucky opener. Kitano's men, then tried to equalize the match with lots of counter attacks, however, Okayama's goal keeper, Nakabayashi showed good performances to save Fagiano. In the 88^th minutes, Oshitani got a sending off with a red card. After that Okayama barely endured the opponent's attacking in waves and successfully obtained three points. Fagiano stay 11^th position with 22 points.