She won two HS Championships?
yeah that's not a good reason lol
eta: I have nothing AGAINST kurogo, but she makes a lot of errors and nakada leaving her on shows that she isn't "not tolerating mistakes"
yeah that's not a good reason lol
eta: I have nothing AGAINST kurogo, but she makes a lot of errors and nakada leaving her on shows that she isn't "not tolerating mistakes"
I think there is a difference between errors and mistakes 
I think there is a difference between errors and mistakes
I thought they were the same thing, so how do you define each?
I really don’t know, but imagine shanking a reception. That would be an error. Imagine being the first one to move towards a loose ball and then stopping. That would be a mistake.
fair enough. IDK if you watch tennis but there they have "error" and "unforced error" which is much more clear to me.
In any case I think hitting the ball into the block or out of bounds is an error.
A lot of people were being reasonable on this result but I saw btw Kurogo getting A LOT of backlash as well in Japan. 
I really don't think it was all on her...
Display MoreShe won two HS Championships? I dunno, really.
She's a good player but shouldn't be beyond getting yanked when the balance is off.
They say Defense doesn't win games. I disagree.
The reason I think it's important that this current squad can keep up their % (as compared to the Yuki trio who offered diminishing returns) is not because one of them has to be Boskovic, but because if their defense is ON, they will recycle the ball and take more swings. They need to be able to keep scoring at a decent %. That was the shortcoming of the Yuki group, they couldn't keep it up
I think it started with Manabe
- Serve
- Serve Reception
- No Mistakes
That's fine in and of itself
Manabe was incredibly data driven. Also knowing that Japan needs fewer mistakes in order to have a chance to win.
Serve reception is paramount for Japan because it allows the speed of the offense. If the blockers are not set, Japan has an advantage, albeit short in time.
If you can get the other team out of system, Japan can dig the ball and turn it into offense, hopefully ending the point.
That essentially is Japanese volleyball with the national team. They are not going to out tall you.
Sadly, the recycling of the ball numerous times, just means that as the match goes on, you become more tired and if the blocks are stopping the swings, emotionally draining. I fight this hard and nothing comes from it.
A lot of people were being reasonable on this result but I saw btw Kurogo getting A LOT of backlash as well in Japan.
People definitely had big expectations for Kurogo's scoring ability because she is capable of very strong swings however she struggles to stay composed once she loses her tempo, she's not a very patient player unlike Mayu. It's her role to help Koga keep the momentum but often times it's Koga helping her by leading the attacks. I don't think she's bad by any means but she's the type of player that needs a substitute when she's already underperforming/making errors.
I wonder how much of their VNL strategy will change. Their refusal to sub players who are already at their limit is just one of their big mistakes. But on the other hand, players they usually rely on such as Ishii also underperformed. Ishii had the whole USA-Serbia matches to improve her reception but it was still mediocre
They need to release the roster already
Ishii also underperformed. Ishii had the whole USA-Serbia matches to improve her reception but it was still mediocre
I have to come to Yuki's rescue again 
She was 0/0/0 in reception against Serbia ... I wouldn't call that mediocre 
I have to come to Yuki's rescue again
I stopped watching that match by the 2nd set because Serbia was already flaking. But would she still be able to withstand if they had their best players there as well as for teams like China. I think she should have gotten more chances especially these last 2 matches oyyy but so far her minor appearances hasn't made an impression imo
I stopped watching that match by the 2nd set because Serbia was already flaking. But would she still be able to withstand if they had their best players there as well as for teams like China. I think she should have gotten more chances especially these last 2 matches oyyy but so far her minor appearances hasn't made an impression imo
Should have stuck around. Yuki owned the third set 
I can only conclude the unwavering use of the KIK trio was to let them play together as much as possible, without consideration of a winning "strategy" for any particular match. That's OK. It's been a long strange trip 
Regarding Kurogo, I feel like hitting on the right side does not come naturally for her unlike Nagaoka.
Regarding Kurogo, I feel like hitting on the right side does not come naturally for her unlike Nagaoka.
The struggle is real for Kurogo, her precision is not as sharp or as strong as Nagaoka who can whip it to almost 90+ back then. Hayashi eases better on the right but her court time was not enough.
I saw someone mention that Mayu used to play opp during her HS days. But Kurogo has been playing as opposite in Toray.
Actually could kurogo share some of the reception burden to free up a bit of koga / ishikawa.... if their game is mostly abt pos 4 anyway.
There's a good chance the final 12 will be announced by tomorrow since Japan is about to enter hardcore promotional phase starting next week as per JOC's announcement along with the 10,000 spectator limit at every venue.
As expected ASICS (an official Olympic sponsor and superior brand to Mizuno) went big with a viral dance. Plus major exposure from Naomi Watanabe and actress Tao Okamoto promoting them on TV and talk shows. But they only sponsor the men's team.
Hinotori's promotional strategy is crap. JVA made it clear that they won't be prioritising the women's team because of the lack of an established "Star Ace". The only thing they have so far is SK-II's animated mess of an ad that everyone hates because like 10 of the players featured in it are already retired and they cut off Koga.
There's a good chance the final 12 will be announced by tomorrow since Japan is about to enter hardcore promotional phase starting next week as per JOC's announcement along with the 10,000 spectator limit at every venue.
As expected ASICS (an official Olympic sponsor and superior brand to Mizuno) went big with a viral dance. Plus major exposure from Naomi Watanabe and actress Tao Okamoto promoting them on TV and talk shows. But they only sponsor the men's team.
Hinotori's promotional strategy is crap. JVA made it clear that they won't be prioritising the women's team because of the lack of an established "Star Ace". The only thing they have so far is SK-II's animated mess of an ad that everyone hates because like 10 of the players featured in it are already retired and they cut off Koga.
Is the SKII ad an anime? a Haikyuu version? that could be good for them since anime fans will eat up anything related to Haikyuu
Is the SKII ad an anime? a Haikyuu version? that could be good for them since anime fans will eat up anything related to Haikyuu
Far from it. Like a hideous mobile quality 3d animation. I don't even feel like showing you but if you're curious you can look it up on SK-II's youtube