Shonan Bellmare held on for a 2:1 victory over Imabari at the ASICS Satoriyama Stadium on Saturday, the result of a J-League 2 Regular Season round 8 encounter that opened at 08:00 local time. The visitors took the lead before half-time and held firm after Imabari equalised, with the decisive moment arriving in stoppage time. The home side had been in a poor run of form, losing four of their last five before this match, while the visitors carried three wins in eight league games to the fixture.
E. Junio gave Imabari the advantage in the 21st minute, and it looked like a result that might have carried some weight given the visitors' record. T. Kondo received a yellow card for the hosts in the 35th minute, not long before N. Kase was substituted off for Shonan Bellmare in the 39th. H. Yamada then levelled for the away side in the 43rd minute, and both teams made changes at the break with T. Kondo and K. Watanabe coming off for Imabari.
By then the match had settled into something rather one-sided, though the statistics told a different story. Imabari held 51 per cent possession and registered 94 attacks, yet created zero big chances with 21 shots off target. Shonan Bellmare managed 111 attacks with only 49 per cent possession, and similarly failed to create a big chance despite 10 shots on target going wide. The home side had seven corners to the visitors' four, but neither team could find a clear-cut opportunity through open play.
And here's the thing about late drama — F. Gonzalez missed a penalty for Imabari in the 90th minute plus six, then immediately recovered to score the winner himself. K. Mori had picked up a yellow card for the hosts in the 74th minute, and K. Sanada received one for Shonan Bellmare three minutes later. The visitors had already brought on A. Palocevic and E. Junio in the 69th minute, while Imabari saw off H. Yamada in the 82nd. The penalty miss and quick response felt like the kind of moment that separates teams over a season.
The result leaves Shonan Bellmare in fourth place with 15 points from eight games, while Imabari remain 20th on four points with just one victory. The visitors extended their unbeaten run to two matches, having drawn with Blaublitz Akihara before this win. For Imabari, the defeat extended their winless streak to five games and deepened the gap at the bottom of the table.
