Empty platitudes are common in soccer, but there has been nothing false about the messages of support coming from all over Japan and around the world these past two weeks.
Next Tuesday, when the national team takes on a J. League select XI in Osaka to raise money for the victims of the March 11 earthquake and tsunami, everyone involved in the Japanese game gets their chance to play a part on the pitch as well as off it.
It goes without saying that soccer has taken a back seat in the aftermath of the country's worst crisis since World War II, and the J. League deserves credit for its swift and sensible decision to indefinitely postpone the campaign, announcing Tuesday that it will resume on April 23.