1 Nov 2007(Thu)

October 30, 2007: Who said a penalty shootout was a lottery?

Well, you weren't at Kashiwa Hitachi Stadium on Saturday afternoon for Reysol's home game against Vissel Kobe.

Now that's what I call a lottery!

It wasn't football as we know it, that's for sure; more like waterball on a pitch that was unplayable.

I arrived at 12.30pm, 90 minutes before kick-off, and the hardy Yellow Monkeys were already in place behind the goal, sheltering beneath makeshift blue covers. Very resourceful. The heavy rollers were fighting a losing battle trying to clear the deluge, and the floodlights were on for kick-off under heavy skies and heavy rain -- and getting heavier.

Even though the match would have been postponed in many other countries, my thought was...well, why not play? The conditions were the same for both teams, there were almost 9,000 fans in the ground, the TV feed was organised, and the logistics of a postponement for a mid-table game did not bear thinking about.

In fact it was quite interesting watching the game unravel. A good pass became a bad one, and a bad pass became a good one. The players had to think, adapt to the conditions and revise their technique -- the only danger they faced was drowning.

In the end, Vissel -- maybe they should be renamed Vessel Kobe for the way they mastered the water -- adjusted better, particularly Leandro. The Brazilian forward quickly worked out that you could actually pass to yourself, chasing down a ball that would stop in a puddle before the defender could react.

Leandro's first goal was a neat header to an excellent cross from Seiji Koga -- what a good signing he is by Kobe manager Hiroshi Matsuda, as it brings balance on the left flank and allows Okubo to play through the middle -- and his second was a wonderful finish under the circumstances, chipping the ball beyond Minami without breaking stride.

You had to feel sorry, though, for Reysol's Brazilian forward Franca -- an artist trying to paint another masterpiece on a soggy canvas that had been left out in a typhoon.

ends