Two excellent looks. I'm a Steelers fan by birth so black and gold dies hard, so Niigata might've taken the lead for me so far.

The patches for Tochigi are awesome. I didn't like the gray shading on the arrows on the clash kit though, with everything else being flat.

I've decided to throw my hat in with the Samurai. Go Niigata!

NPBL, Season 1 - Weeks 3-4

The season is now rolling and all teams are making their fist changes after the unexpected outcomes of the first two games. Kanagawa Flamingos took full control of their opportunities, beating Hokkaido and Tochigi. The main star of the matches was their goalkeeper, Tachihara Daichi, who only allowed ten or less goals per game.

Tokyo and Hokkaido went up in the ranks by solidifying their strategies. The lack of changes paid well to both teams. Osaka and Niigata are still finding their way into the standings. Osaka lost both their games, confronting their first scoring crisis. The situation is sightly better for Niigata, who could come up with a win in their fourth game, against the Thunder.

Saitama suffered hard, losing the games and, with it, their third spot in the highlights. Their scoring fell short against Tokyo and Hokkaido's defensive line.

Chiba Thunder is the most tormented team after four weeks of blockball. Even when they won for the first time against Warriors, the team is falling behind in the offensive zone. They need to improve their scoring chances, and do it quickly.

Three stars of the game

* Tachihara Daichi (G) - Kanagawa Flamingos
His saves were the highlight of both weeks. If everyone thought having just 9 goals against were a luck streak against Hokkaido, Tachibara proved his valor after allowing only ten goals versus Tochigi.

** Motozumi Shinji (RW) - Tokyo Nitro
If a player of the squad paid tribute to the name of the team, it was Motozumi. His incredibly quick reflexed were translated in valuable goals for Tokyo. Fans are already calling him Motozumi "Nitro" Shinji.

*** Tsunashima Keitarō (C) - Hokkaido Rangers
His leadership was very valuable in the games 3 and 4. After working hard with the training staff and head coach, Tsunashima succeeded in the field, giving the correct calls to to set Hokkaido's trademark aerial play-style.

Last edited by Nark24 (7/17/2019 6:02 pm)

Steelman wrote:

How many games in a season, and what is the playoff format like? Good stuff.

Thank you so much for the comments! They mean a lost, really.

The season
The regular season is composed by 14 games, similar to NFL format. Eventually, when the league expands, will be more games. The rule in the season is play twice vs all the teams. I'm thing about having a conference system in the future. Each game is worth 2 points, a draw worth 1, and 0 points to the losing team.

This first season will be displayed by week divisions. I wanted to write in small amounts to be able to flesh better the teams and their players. The next season I'm thinking of swapping bi week post to full seasons.

The playoffs
Four teams will qualify for the playoffs, in the search of the Nakamura Cup, 1st vs 4th and 2nd vs 4rd. All rounds will be best of 5 games.

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I was uploading weeks 5-6, but I noticed an error in the point system. I will have it updated tomorrow! Sorry for the wait. Rough weeks (Being a teacher is wild)

Last edited by Nark24 (7/10/2019 10:37 am)

~Bear wrote:

This is really cool so far. I like that each team has their own play style; it makes each team seem even more unique. The designs are good so far as well, and the standings graphics look really professional. Can't wait to see more!

Thank you so much! It really means a lot to me. I will keep up the hard work!


NPBL Season 1 - Weeks 5-6

The next weeks were full of close, interesting matches to watch. Almost every team won important points for the standings, but fell short in their search for more. Due to it, the table moved very little since weeks 3-4. 

Tochigi pushed for the top, winning one and losing one and stealing first position in the standings. Tokyo also won one and lost one, and are in direct battle with Archers for the top spot. 

Kanagawa fell two places after two rough loses against Saitama and Osaka. Captain Kuramoto Takahiro told the press to not to worry. “This happened to Hokkaido and they recovered from it. Please, do not panic about performance. We are working hard to get our team back in motion”. 

Hokkaido, Niigata and Saitama are also tied in points, battling the middle point of the table. We are in week 6, but everyone knows the importance of that very spot. The fourth team will qualify for the Nakamura Cup playoffs at the end of the season, and next week will start the second half of the season. The Rangers have the clinch for now, but everyone has an eye on Saitama Cyborgs, after they won two straight games. 

Even after winning one game, Chiba is still struggling in the end of the table. However, the team rejoiced after finding a new offensive strategy and defeating Tokyo Nitro 24-14. They still have a huge goal deficit, but told they finally are on the right path. 

Three stars of the game

 * Hatsuki Taizo (D) and ** Honda Hajime (D) - Saitama Cyborgs
Both Saitama’s games were low in scoring, result of the incredible performance of Hatsuki and Honda, both defensemen of Saitama. The fans started to call the duo the “great wall” of Saitama. Both players are enjoying the momentum.  

*** Kojima Kota (S) -Tochigi Archers
Captain of Tochigi showed the country what he was capable to do as a leader, inside and outside the court. “He’s a hell of a captain, I can assure you. He’s always working hard with our coach, and communicates the plan really well in clutch situations” told Eikawa Genki, defenseman of the Archers, to NPBL Network.

Last edited by Nark24 (7/11/2019 10:40 pm)