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September 09, 2025
 

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Andrew MCKIRDY

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Andrew MCKIRDY
Andrew McKirdy is a sports writer for The Japan Times. His main beat is soccer, but he has also covered rugby, tennis, volleyball, golf and even tug-of-war. A native of the Scottish Borders, he has written for The Scotsman newspaper and organized filming for a program on Japanese soccer for ITV television.
SOCCER / J. League
Oct 30, 2011
Antlers edge Reds in final
Kashima Antlers came through a tense war of attrition to beat Urawa Reds 1-0 after extra time and win the Nabisco Cup for a record fourth time on Saturday.
SOCCER / J. League
Oct 29, 2011
Yamada hoping Nabisco final can spark Reds' survival
Urawa Reds head into Saturday's Nabisco Cup final against Kashima Antlers looking for a rare moment of joy in an otherwise troubled season, but midfielder Naoki Yamada admits the specter of relegation is casting a large shadow over the occasion.
JAPAN / Media
Oct 23, 2011
Pele's message of solidarity in Tohoku
In world sports, there are few names more iconic than that of Brazilian soccer legend Pele.
SOCCER / J. League
Oct 23, 2011
Stojkovic works magic with late-game changes
Defending J. League champions Nagoya Grampus dug deep to beat Omiya Ardija 3-2 on Saturday and keep themselves firmly in the title shakeup going into the final four games of the season.
SOCCER / J. League
Oct 16, 2011
Struggling Urawa falls into relegation zone
J. League heavyweights Urawa Reds slipped into the relegation places with five matches remaining after a 1-0 derby-day defeat to Omiya Ardija on Saturday.
SOCCER / World cup
Oct 13, 2011
Kagawa heads back to Germany with confidence restored
Out-of-sorts Borussia Dortmund star Shinji Kagawa hopes to turn his stuttering season around after hailing his two-goal contribution to Japan's 8-0 rout of Tajikistan as a psychological breakthrough.
SOCCER / World cup
Oct 12, 2011
Havenaar, Japan pulverize Tajikistan in 2014 World Cup qualifier
Japan found its scoring touch to thrash Tajikistan 8-0 on Tuesday and stay on course for a place in the final qualifying round for the 2014 World Cup.
Japan Times
SOCCER / SOCCER SCENE
Oct 6, 2011
Japan looking for attacking balance without talisman Honda
Vietnam and Tajikistan are unlikely to ask too many questions of Japan's defense over the coming week, but a Keisuke Honda-sized hole in attack could prove to be more of a problem for national team manager Alberto Zaccheroni.
Japan Times
TENNIS
Sep 29, 2011
Kanepi upsets Wozniacki
World No. 1 Caroline Wozniacki crashed out of the Pan Pacific Open after a shock 7-5, 1-6, 6-4 loss to Estonian Kaia Kanepi on Wednesday.
SOCCER / J. League
Sep 25, 2011
Vegalta hand title-chasing Marinos demoralizing defeat
Vegalta Sendai dealt Yokohama F. Marinos' J. League title ambitions a heavy blow with a come-from-behind 3-1 win on Saturday.
SOCCER / J. League
Sep 24, 2011
Tashiro, Antlers not ready to relinquish J. League crown
Kashima Antlers would need a miracle to end the season with their fourth J. League title in five years, but that does not mean striker Yuzo Tashiro is prepared to write the campaign off as a bust just yet.
SOCCER / J. League / J. LEAGUE NOTEBOOK
Sep 15, 2011
Front four jostle for position heading into final stretch
It is all but certain that the 2011 J. League champion will come from the four-team breakaway group that has formed at the top of the table, but with a quarter of the season still to play, that is about as clear as the picture gets.
SOCCER / J. League
Sep 11, 2011
Reysol display mettle, championship drive
Kashiwa Reysol came from behind to refuel their title ambitions with a feisty 2-1 win over defending J. League champions Nagoya Grampus on Saturday.
SOCCER / World cup
Sep 4, 2011
Zaccheroni maintains confidence, trust in players
National team manager Alberto Zaccheroni insists he never lost faith in his team's ability to score after a last-gasp Maya Yoshida goal gave Japan a winning start to its 2014 World Cup qualifying campaign against North Korea on Friday.
SOCCER / World cup
Sep 3, 2011
Yoshida's late goal propels Japan past North Korea
Maya Yoshida headed in an injury-time goal to get Japan's bid to qualify for a fifth successive World Cup off to a winning start with a 1-0 victory on Friday night.
SOCCER / SOCCER SCENE
Sep 1, 2011
Zaccheroni must build upon strong start, be wary of rivals
Alberto Zaccheroni's first year as national team manager could hardly have been more successful, but that does not mean the Italian can expect to stroll through Japan's opening World Cup qualifying fixtures starting this week.
SOCCER / J. League
Aug 21, 2011
Reysol beat Avispa, pull even with Gamba
Kashiwa Reysol survived an early scare to beat bottom side Avispa Fukuoka 3-2 on Saturday and move level on points with Gamba Osaka at the top of the J. League.
SOCCER / J. League
Aug 20, 2011
Strong play has Kofu's Havenaar out of father's shadow
Ventforet Kofu might be struggling to keep their heads above water this season, but striker Mike Havenaar is making a big splash in the J. League's first division.
SOCCER / J. League / J. LEAGUE NOTEBOOK
Aug 11, 2011
Full-blooded competition a fitting tribute to Matsuda
Last weekend's J. League fixtures were always going to be difficult so soon after the shock death of former Yokohama F. Marinos and national team defender Naoki Matsuda, but in the event the passion and determination on show were a fitting tribute.
SOCCER / J. League
Aug 7, 2011
Kashiwa climbs back to top of standings
Kashiwa Reysol wrested leadership of the J. League away from Yokohama F. Marinos with a 2-0 win on Saturday night, just two days after the shock death of former Marinos defender Naoki Matsuda.
Japan to experience blood moon lunar eclipse on Monday
A blood moon is seen during a partial eclipse in the sky over Lake George near Canberra on March 14.
Ishiba to quit as prime minister amid LDP discontent
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba announces his decision to step down, at the Prime Minister's Office in Tokyo on Sunday.
Japan eyes two types of 'hometown resident' registration
People buy groceries from a mobile supermarket in a rural area of Nagomi, Kumamoto Prefecture. The government is considering a new "hometown resident" registration system to help strengthen regional revitalization measures.
Race to become next LDP president kicks off again
Former Liberal Democratic Party Secretary-General Toshimitsu Motegi on Monday became the first to enter the race to replace Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba.
‘Confugenics’ and East Asia's demographic crisis
East Asia’s fertility plunge is driven not just by financial costs but by perfectionist cultural expectations that burden parents with intense educational and social demands.
In rural Hokkaido, the stops and starts of tourism revival on full display
Redevelopment plans for Kawayu Onsen have hit some snags — an example of how bringing tourists back to declining rural communities is far from easy work.
London’s calling and sumo’s top division — along with Hello Kitty — are ready to answer
Yokozuna Hoshoryu and Hello Kitty, an ambassador for sumo's upcoming tour to London, at Tokyo's Kokugikan on Tuesday
Resonac creates 27-member consortium to pursue advanced chip developments
Representatives from member companies of JOINT3, a consortium working together on semiconductor-related developments announced by Resonac, pose for a photo in Tokyo on Wednesday.
Haru Nemuri’s radical new album refuses easy listening
Musician Haruna Kimishima, better known as Haru Nemuri, confronts Japan’s politics, nationalism and censorship on her recent output.
Overseas sluggers step up to bat in small-town Hokkaido
The Betsukai Pilot Spirits welcomed new players (left to right) Yuta Yamanaka, Roman Guthrie, Scott Bellina and Leo Jiminian this year, pictured here with Yassir Lachkar of the Ishikari Red Phoenix.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Longform

Figure skater Akiko Suzuki was once told her ideal weight should be 47 kilograms, a number she now admits she “naively believed.” This led to her have a relationship with food that resulted in her suffering from anorexia.
The silent battle Japanese athletes fight with weight
By Mai Yoshikawa

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