Satoru Yamagishi hauled JEF United Chiba out of the relegation zone after his first-half strike earned a vital 1-0 win at fellow strugglers Yokohama FC on Saturday.
Yamagishi eased the pressure on manager Amar Osim when he buried Takashi Rakuyama's pass in the 10th minute at Nissan Stadium to give Chiba its third win in four matches.
"We always knew this was going to be a very difficult game but we were able to get an early goal and that gave us a bit of breathing space. After that we were able to see out the game," said Yamagishi.
"However we are still at the wrong end of the table and we have to keep working really hard in practice and try and keep picking up three points," added the Japan international.