Sanfrecce Hiroshima and surprise-package Montedio Yamagata took the top 2 spots which gives automatic promotion to J1 next season, while Vegalta Sendai finished 3rd. Vegalta will meet Jubilo Iwata in a play-off to decide who get's to play where next season.
Sanfrecce have been a truly dominant force this season, cruising through the league winning an impressive 31 out of 42 matches. It was clear long ago that they would be qualified for J1 next year, and they should be able to perform there as well with their current squad. Montedio Yamagata surprised everyone by taking 2nd, and with a relatively modest squad they've done wonders this season. In my opinion they need some re-inforcements next season if they want to stay up, but I doubt they will do any worse than Yokohama FC last season and Consadole Sapporo this year.
Vegalta Sendai snatched 3rd just ahead of Cerezo, who despite an impressive final run missed out on promotion for the 2nd year running. Vegalta just missed out on 3rd 3 seasons in a row before this one, and although they are not qualified for J1 yet, one feels it's about time they get back to where many people mean they belong. The play-off against Jubilo will be tough though, but in recent years it's the J2-teams that have triumphed most often in those matches.
The biggest disappointment in J2 this season must be Avispa Fukuoka's performance. Predicted to be a promotion-contender, they for long looked no better than Ehime FC or Tokushima Vortis. After a rough start they looked a bit better near the end of the season though. Cerezo's 4th is also a disappointment, as they were tipped to be Sanfrecce's toughest rival for 1st.
Among the positive surprises Montedio Yamagata comes out first. Also Thespa Kusatsu looked really good for a while, but a poor end to the season saw them finish 9th. Small-fries liked Mito,Gifu and Roasso all sparkled at times, but in the end they couldn't keep up with the bigger teams. For next year, 3 new teams will join J2, which should only improve the competitiveness for the league, and with that also make it harder for teams to be promoted.
J2 - final round results:
Vegalta Sendai Thespa Kusatsu 1-0
V: Sekiguchi 68'
Cerezo Osaka Ehime FC 2-1
C: Sakemoto 64', Kaio 65''
E: Ego 51'
FC Gifu Sagan Tosu 1-0
G: Katagiri 44'
Montedio Yamagata Mito Hollyhock 1-0
M: Kitamura 22'
Sanfrecce Hiroshima Tokushima Vortis 3-0
S: Morisaki 67', Sato 84', Stoyanov 88'
Avispa Fukuoka Shonan Bellmare 3-1
A: Havenaar 37', Suzuki 49', Okubo 61'
S: Sakamoto 67'
Yokohama FC Ventforet Kofu 0-0
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