Andrew MCKIRDY - The Japan Times

September 03, 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 / SOCCER SCENE

Dec 6, 2017

Frontale worthy J. League champions despite Antlers' slip-ups

Kawasaki Frontale captain Yu Kobayashi said he believed his team was "cursed" when it lost to Cerezo Osaka in last month's J. League Cup final, but that must have made the club's first-ever J. League title all the sweeter when it arrived last weekend.

SOCCER / J. League

Dec 2, 2017

Frontale capture J. League title with rout of Ardija; Antlers held

Kawasaki Frontale clinched their first-ever J. League title with a 5-0 win over Omiya Ardija on Saturday, snatching the silverware from under Kashima Antlers' noses on goal difference.

Japan Times

SOCCER / SOCCER SCENE

Nov 29, 2017

Urawa Reds ready for new chapter after ACL victory

Urawa Reds have gained an unwanted reputation for choking on the big stage in the 10 years since they first won the Asian Champions League, but that tag may have to be re-evaluated after they reclaimed the title with a series of composed performances in this year's competition.

Japan Times

SOCCER

Nov 26, 2017

Urawa breathes sigh of relief after exorcizing demons in ACL final

Urawa Reds lifted the Asian Champions League trophy for the first time in a decade on Saturday — then breathed a sigh of relief that they had not let their fans down again.

SOCCER

Nov 25, 2017

Urawa Reds clinch Asian Champions League title on late goal against Al Hilal

Urawa Reds claimed the Asian Champions League title for the first time in a decade after Rafael Silva scored in the 88th minute to seal a 2-1 aggregate win over Saudi Arabia's Al Hilal with a 1-0 final second-leg win on Saturday.

Japan Times

JAPAN

Nov 24, 2017

Japan's lowriders get a little higher

The scene at Makuhari Messe could be at the Louvre — if the Louvre were to pump hip-hop throughout its galleries and have half-naked women posing beside its exhibits.

SOCCER / J. League

Nov 18, 2017

Frontale keep title hopes alive

Kawasaki Frontale defender Elsinho scored in the 82nd minute to keep the J. League title race alive for at least another round with a 1-0 win over Gamba Osaka on Saturday.

SOCCER / SOCCER SCENE

Nov 8, 2017

Competition heats up as Japan prepares for top-class tests

National team manager Vahid Halilhodzic demanded strong friendly opposition to help prepare Japan for next summer's World Cup, and this coming week's two fixtures certainly fit the bill.

Japan Times

Rugby

Nov 4, 2017

Wallabies crush Brave Blossoms

Two-time Rugby World Cup winner Australia handed 2019 host Japan a harsh lesson two years ahead of the tournament with a 63-30 win in Yokohama on Saturday.

Rugby

Nov 2, 2017

Rugby World Cup schedule unveiled in Tokyo

Japan will play the winner of the European qualifying competition in the opening game of the 2019 Rugby World Cup at Tokyo's Ajinomoto Stadium on Sept. 20, as organizers announced the full tournament schedule on Thursday.

Japan Times

JAPAN

Oct 29, 2017

Tokyo 2020 organizers mark 1,000 days until Olympic Games begin

Tokyo 2020 Olympic organizers on Saturday marked 1,000 days to go before the games begin with a parade and demonstrations of new Olympic sports in the city's Nihonbashi district.

SOCCER / J. League / J. LEAGUE NOTEBOOK

Oct 25, 2017

Fight for J1 survival taking toll on strugglers

This year's J. League title race has become a two-team duel between Kashima Antlers and Kawasaki Frontale, but the picture at the other end of the table is not quite so clear.

SOCCER / J. League

Oct 21, 2017

Antlers stumble against Marinos, lose grip on title race

Kashima Antlers saw their stranglehold on the J. League title race loosen after a 3-2 defeat to Yokohama F. Marinos on Saturday night.

SOCCER / J. League

Oct 19, 2017

Reds look to change image in ACL final

Urawa Reds defender Tomoaki Makino hailed his team's composure and resilience after holding off star-studded Shanghai SIPG to book its place in the Asian Champions League final on Wednesday night.

JAPAN

Oct 19, 2017

New IPC head 'very happy' about progress made to date for 2020 Tokyo Paralympics

During a two-day review of progress for the 2020 Tokyo Paralympics, IPC President Andrew Parsons sees preparations coming together successfully.

SOCCER

Oct 18, 2017

Urawa beats Shanghai to reach Asian Champions League final

Urawa Reds advanced to the final of the Asian Champions League for the first time since 2007 with a 2-1 aggregate win over China's Shanghai SIPG after winning Wednesday's semifinal second leg 1-0.

SOCCER / J. League

Oct 14, 2017

Yu Kobayashi delivers late brace as Frontale shock Vegalta

Yu Kobayashi scored a late double as 10-man Kawasaki Frontale kept their J. League title hopes alive with a stunning 3-2 win over Vegalta Sendai on Saturday.

Japan Times

SOCCER

Oct 11, 2017

Halilhodzic warns Japan to shape up before Brazil, Belgium tests

National team manager Vahid Halilhodzic branded Japan's 3-3 draw with Haiti on Tuesday "the worst match I have seen" and warned his players to shape up or be humiliated in next month's friendlies against Brazil and Belgium.

SOCCER

Oct 10, 2017

Shinji Kagawa's injury-time goal gives Japan draw with Haiti

Shinji Kagawa scored deep into injury time to save Japan from an embarrassing defeat in a 3-3 friendly draw with minnow Haiti on Tuesday night.

SOCCER / J. League

Oct 8, 2017

'King Kazu' wants to continue reign

Fifty-year-old soccer legend Kazuyoshi Miura insists he has no plans to retire any time soon, even joking that the day he stops will be "the day I die."

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.

Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Tetsuzo Shiraishi, speaking at The Center of the Tokyo Raids and War Damage, uses a thermos to explain how he experienced the U.S. firebombing of March 1945, when he was just 7 years old.

From ashes to high-rises: A survivor’s account of Tokyo’s postwar past

By Alex K.T. Martin

SUSTAINABLE JAPAN

Maruhachi never sleeps in quest for better futons

Maruhachi never sleeps in quest for better futons

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