The Bank of Japan officials huddle: they're planning a counterattack.

It's half-time, on a balmy Saturday afternoon in October on a soccer field in Machida, western Tokyo, and the central bank's team has just seen their 1-0 lead vanish with an equalizer by Japan Finance Corp.

One player says they should try harder to keep possession of the ball, another calls for more passes to key players in the upper-right field.