The J-Talk Podcast

Episode 492 - Kobe Are J1 Champions

Vissel Kobe won the first J1 Championship in their history on Saturday afternoon, and Alan Gibson guests to talk us through a tense 90 minutes at the Noevir Stadium, and what this title means for the club, plus towards the end of Part 1 Alan shares his thoughts on how both Osaka clubs, Cerezo and Gamba, are shaping up under their current managers (to 43:45).

Then in Part 2 we run through the other eight games from J1 Matchday 33, highlighted by a difficult weekend for both Yokohama clubs, with F.Marinos seeing their title hopes dashed, and Yokohama FC all but mathematically confirmed relegated.

Episode 491 - High Fives All Round

Japan got their World Cup qualification campaign off to a very satisfying start during this international break, and we round up the 5-0 wins over Myanmar and Syria (not necessarily in that order) (to 16:45), before comparing notes on how the Asian Cup squad is shaping up, with some very difficult decisions looming for Hajime Moriyasu (to 31:00).

Then its back to J1 matters, as we hand out six more Player of the Season awards (to 53:40), and then wrap up the episode with an in-depth preview of the huge games coming at the top of the table (to 1:03:00) and in the Relegation Dogfight in J1 Matchday 33.

J-Talk: Extra Time J2 Playoff Preview & J3 Round 36

The regular J2 season may have ended, but some teams still have games to play: James Taylor and Jon Steele preview the playoff semi-finals and Kofu’s Asian Champions League game (start to 15:40), before chatting about some confirmed managerial departures (15:40 to 27:10).

 

We know that Ehime will be in J2 next year, but who will join them? The battle to finish 2^nd – or should that be not to finish 2^nd? – in J3 is in full flow, and Mike Innes has all the details in J-Talk: Short Corner (27:10 to end).

 

Thank you as ever to all our Patreon subscribers and listeners.

JTET - J2 Round 42 / J3 Round 35 Review

The JTET crew are back with another episode, keeping you up to date with all things J2 and J3!

To start things off this week, Jon Steele and James Taylor cover all of the J2 action from a dramatic final day of the regular season. Jon reviews the battle for second place and some of the 'dead rubber' fixtures (Start to 09:50), while James casts his forensic eye over the tussle for the last available Play-Off place, and the rest of the second-tier games (09:50 to 15:50).

After that, you'll hear Jon and James in conversation, sharing their views on how the season climax unfolded. The boys start with Mito v Shimizu (15:55 to 22:40), then discuss Tochigi v Iwata (22:40 to 28:15) and Omiya v Tokyo Verdy (28:15 to 35:30).

There was also time for Jon and James to chat about JEF Chiba v Nagasaki (35:30 to 42:00), and Yamagata v Kofu (42:00 to 49:50). After that, the boys (basically men at this point) look ahead to the Play-Off games coming up in a week's time (49:50 to 53:00).

Rounding things off in perfect style is Mike 'The Magic' Innes, who has all of the J3 latest for you (as ever) in 'J-Talk: Short Corner' (53:00 to Finish).

Thanks for all the support so far in 2023 - enjoy the show!

Episode 490 - Controversy Clouds Kobe’s Crazy Win

Kobe took another massive step towards their first J1 title on Sunday, but should their stoppage time winner at Saitama Stadium have stood? Jonny and Ben discuss the hugely contentious closing moments, from Shusaku Nishikawa's decision to go up for Urawa's set piece, to whether or not Yuya Osako's eagerness to collect Daiya Maekawa's punt upfield saw him stray offside, and whether or not the VAR crew checked the latter as thoroughly as they should have.

After all that madness we wrap up a run-of-the-mill home win for Yokohama F.Marinos against Cerezo Osaka (to 33:10), before we're joined by Jon Steele to chat about Yokohama FC, and their prospects of making a great escape after their terrific 3-1 away win over Tosu on Saturday (to 1:03:40).

Then we wrap up the rest of the relegation dogfight, and all of the other results from J1 Matchday 32.

JTET - J2 Round 41 / J3 Round 34 Review

Once again, all of the latest J2 and J3 news is wrapped up in a brand-new JTET!

We begin this week with James Taylor reviewing all of Sunday's J2 action (Start to 06:00), with Jon Steele taking over to cover the rest of the Round 41 games along with Kofu's thumping win over Zhejiang in the ACL on Wednesday night (06:00 to 18:35).

After that, James and Jon convened to discuss some of the big J2 talking points ahead of Sunday's huge final day. The gents focused on JEF Chiba, and the teams scrapping for the final Play-Off spot (Kofu, Yamagata, and Nagasaki) in this segment (18:40 to 41:45).

James and Jon then take a detailed look at the Round 42 fixtures (41:45 to 56:50), with a focus on the battle for the second automatic promotion spot, and the aforementioned tussle for 6th place.

After all that, there's the J3 latest in 'J-Talk: Short Corner' with Mike 'The Magic' Innes (56:50 to Finish), as Ehime edge inexorably closer to a return to the second tier (with Kagoshima or Toyama looking the most likely to grab second place).

Thanks for all of your support of JTET, and The J-Talk Podcast - enjoy the show!

Episode 489 - Avispa Buzzing After First Trophy Triumph

Fukuoka broke the longest major trophy drought in J.League history at the National Stadium on Saturday, and Daniel Hawkins guests to revel in Avispa's 2-1 victory over Urawa in the Levain Cup final.

After praising heroes Kazuya Konno, Hiroyuki Mae and Daiki Miya, among others, we chat about what this success means for the club going forward, and how it shapes expectations for coming campaigns.

Finally, we wrap up the episode with a look ahead to the crunch clashes at both ends of the table in the weekend's J1 Matchday 32.

J-Talk: Extra Time – J2 Round 40 & J3 Round 33

The JTET team is back in action with a full review of J2 and J3. In part 1, James Taylor rounds up Saturday’s J2 matchday 40 games (start to 06:45), then in part 2 Jon Steele talks you through Sunday’s games (06:45 to 16:35). Part 3 is analysis of the two games with implications for automatic promotion, Shimizu v Kumamoto and Iwata v Tokyo Verdy, and a preview of the coming weekend’s fixtures (16:35 to 43:55). Finally, Mike Innes is on hand with the latest from J3 in J-Talk: Short Corner (43:55 to end).

Episode 488 - J1 Matchday 31

Kobe slipped on a Bellmare banana skin on Saturday afternoon in J1 Matchday 31, and the top flight title race has new life after Yokohama F.Marinos moved to within two points of Vissel after a big win away at Fukuoka (to 28:15).

The relegation dogfight is still a battle in three after Kashiwa threw away two points at home against ten man Kawasaki (to 43:10).

JTET - J2 Round 39 / J3 Round 32 Review

A bit later than planned this week (apologies!), the JTET crew are back and banging with a full roundup of all the latest action from J2 and J3.

In Part 1, Jon Steele rounds up half of last weekend's J2 fixtures (Start to 12:35), then hands over to James Taylor for a review of the rest of the second-tier games (12:40 to 19:00) - James also mentions Kofu's disappointing ACL trip to China in midweek.

After that, you'll hear Jon and James chatting in depth about some of the big J2 talking points from Round 39, with a focus on those crazy 3-2 matches in Tokyo and Fujieda (19:00 to 43:40). The boys (alright, middle-aged men) then preview all of the Round 40 matches coming up this weekend (43:40 to 54:25).

Bringing up the rear is Mike 'The Magic' Innes - as always, he has all of the J3 news that you need to know in 'J-Talk: Short Corner' (54:30 to Finish).

Hope everyone enjoys the show, and the weekend football!