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J.League joy...from top to bottom

By Jeremy Walker

 TOKYO (May 15)--There was joy all round in the latest stage of J.League games...from the top to the bottom of the table!
 At the top, Yokohama F Marinos, Cerezo Osaka and Shimizu S-Pulse all won to stay on course for the first-stage title.
 At the bottom, Kyoto Purple Sanga also celebrated a welcome three points, thanks to two goals from evergreen captain Kazuyoshi Miura.
 Kazu's first goal in a 3-2 victory at home to Vissel Kobe made him the first player in the eight-year history of the J.League to score 100 goals; his second came in the last minute to win the game and spark further wild celebrations.  Although Purple Sanga are still 16th of 16 teams, they have narrowed the gap on 15th-placed Kawasaki Frontale to just two points.
 Vissel, who occupy the "safe" 14th spot as the bottom two are relegated, are still seven points ahead of Sanga, so Kazu and Co. have much to do to survive in the first division.
 Kyoto have six points from 12 games, Frontale have eight from 12 and Vissel have 13 from 11.

 At the top, the Marinos won 4-2 away to Avispa Fukuoka to move on to 24 points from 12 games, one point more than Cerezo, who recorded a crucial 2-1 victory away to FC Tokyo.
 S-Pulse needed a second-half penalty from captain Masaaki Sawanobori to beat stubborn JEF United Ichihara 1-0 to move on to 22 points, but have a game in hand on the two teams above them because of their commitments in the Asian Cup Winners' Cup.
 Defending champions Jubilo Iwata lost 2-1 away to Gamba Osaka to drop to fourth place with 20 points from 11 games, ahead of fifth-placed FC Tokyo on goal difference.
 The Marinos have done remarkably well this season under new manager Ossie Ardiles.
 At the end of last season they lost veteran central defender Masami Ihara to Jubilo Iwata and star striker Shoji Jo to Real Valladolid in Spain.
 To compensate for the absence of Jo, manager Ardiles moved South Korean ace Yoo Sang-chul from midfield to attack, and he responded with nine goals in nine games before suffering a knee injury which will keep him out for the rest of the first stage.
 Since then, new Brazilian recruit Edmilson has picked up the responsibility, and he scored twice to lead Marinos to a 4-2 win at Fukuoka.

 At Tokyo's National Stadium, Cerezo showed their team spirit and midfield skill in fighting back to beat FC Tokyo 2-1, who had gone ahead with a goal from Takuya Jinno after 22 minutes.
 Masaya Nishitani equalised early in the second half and centre forward Akinori Nishizawa struck the winner from the penalty spot after 58 minutes after a foul on livewire captain Hiroaki Morishima.
 Cerezo's rookie manager, Hiroshi Soejima, was delighted to have picked up three points. "This was a crucial game because both teams are near the top of the table and challenging for the championship," he said.
 "It was very important to win and keep our momentum going."
Soejima said Cerezo's marking in the first half had been a little sloppy, especially on Tokyo's talented Brazilian striker Tuto.
 "We changed things around a bit at half-time and were a much better side in the second half," he added.

 The other Osaka club, Gamba, shocked Jubilo 2-1 after young striker Naohiro Takahara had given Jubilo an early lead.  Brazilian striker Andradina was on target with two left-foot shots before half-time, and Gamba protected their lead in the second half for a famous win.
 With only two weeks remaining, there's all to play for...at the top and the bottom of the table.