Football Japan Minutecast

Nagoya Grampus ended the Japanese O-Bon holiday on top of the J1 table after a 3-1 victory over freefalling Urawa Reds, as title rivals Shimizu S-Pulse and Kashima Antlers surprisingly dropped points at home to Yokohama F Marinos and FC Tokyo respectively.

Following a goalless first half, Grampus took the lead nine minutes after the restart thanks to a header from Japan defender Marcus Tulio Tanaka - who was released by Urawa in acrimonious circumstances at the end of last season. 22-year-old left-back Tomoya Ugajin levelled the scores with a terrific strike from just outside the Nagoya penalty area soon afterwards, but two goals in four minutes by Keiji Tamada sealed a deserved three points for the new league leaders.

Tulio insisted during his post-match interviews that he �gcould not really enjoy the goal out of respect for the Urawa supporters�h, but in typically straightforward fashion, added that he was �gglad to have provided an answer in such an important game�h. The win is Nagoya�fs fifth in six matches since the World Cup - in stark contrast to Urawa, who fall to 11th in the table following five losses over the same period.

Shimizu had taken top spot at the halfway mark of the season with a 2-1 victory over long-time leaders Kashima the previous weekend, but slipped to defeat by a similar margin against Yokohama F Marinos thanks to a trademark free kick from former Celtic hero Shunsuke Nakamura. Kenta Hasegawa�fs side are now two points off the pace, with the Antlers a single point further back in third after Yasuyuki Konno�fs late equaliser gave FC Tokyo a share of the spoils at Kashima Stadium.

Elsewhere, Kawasaki Frontale enjoyed a straightforward 2-0 win over Sanfrecce Hiroshima to stay fourth, with Cerezo Osaka still fifth after Akihiro Ienaga�fs late finish gave them a 1-0 win at bottom side Kyoto Sanga. Gamba Osaka beat struggling Vegalta Sendai 3-1 to record their fourth victory in a row - with midfielder Hideo Hashimoto having scored on each occasion - and move to within one goal of their city rivals.

Shonan Bellmare remain second from bottom following a goalless draw at Vissel Kobe, with Omiya Ardija and Jubilo Iwata still just outside the relegation zone after their stalemate at the NACK5 Stadium. In the Friday evening match, Montedio Yamagata secured a 1-0 win over Albirex Niigata.


J1 results (matchday 18)
Montedio Yamagata 1-0 Albirex Niigata
Vissel Kobe 0-0 Shonan Bellmare
Shimizu S-Pulse 1-2 Yokohama F Marinos
Vegalta Sendai 1-3 Gamba Osaka
Kashima Antlers 1-1 FC Tokyo
Nagoya Grampus 3-1 Urawa Reds
Omiya Ardija 0-0 Jubilo Iwata
Kyoto Sanga 0-1 Cerezo Osaka
Kawasaki Frontale 2-0 Sanfrecce Hiroshima


J1 results (matchday 17 - 7/8 August)
Omiya Ardija 3-0 Shonan Bellmare
Kyoto Sanga 0-2 Albirex Niigata
Shimizu S-Pulse 2-1 Kashima Antlers
Vegalta Sendai 0-1 Yokohama F Marinos
Montedio Yamagata 1-0 Jubilo Iwata
Sanfrecce Hiroshima 0-2 Gamba Osaka
Cerezo Osaka 0-0 Kawasaki Frontale
Vissel Kobe 1-0 Urawa Reds
FC Tokyo 0-1 Nagoya Grampus