Second against third and fourth against fifth in men’s SV.League this weekend

Anohter five double headers in the men’s Daido Life SV.League are coming up in Japan this weekend, with the duels between the second and the third and between the fourth and the fifth in the current standings falling in the spotlight.

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Tokyo Great Bears, who are in third place on a 5-3 win-loss record and 13, will host JTEKT Stings Aichi, who are second on 7-1 and 19, a point short of table leaders Osaka Bluteon. In an attempt to catch up, Polish striker Maciej Muzaj and his teammates will welcome the mighty squad around Japanese setter Masahiro Sekita to the Yoyogi National Stadium 2nd Gymnasium at 15:05 local time (06:05 UTC) on Saturday and at 14:05 (05:05) on Sunday.

While Tokyo’s five-game winning streak was interrupted by a straight-set loss to defending champions Suntory Sunbirds Osaka last Monday, Aichi have now extended their victorious run to six consecutive matches. Last season the two clubs met four times claiming two wins each, with Great Bears celebrating in the first matches of the two double headers and JTEKT taking revenge in the second.

In another big duel between neighbours in the table, fourth-placed Wolfdogs Nagoya will entertain fifth-placed Nippon Steel Sakai Blazers at the Entrio in the closing matches of both competition days, starting at 15:35 (06:35) on Saturday and 14:35 (05:35) on Sunday. While Sakai, who had started the season with four consecutive wins, followed up with four losses in a row, Nagoya put an end to their four-game losing streak last weekend by registering two wins at Nagano Tridents. Each of the two teams stands on 4-4, but Wolfdogs edge ahead with 14 points against only 12 for Blazers.

Nagoya are also on a 12-game winning streak in the head-to-head history against Sakai. The last time Blazers beat Wolfdogs dates back to November 2021.

The competition weekend will open with a match between the first and the last in the pack. Table toppers Osaka Bluteon will take on their hosts, bottom-placed Voreas Hokkaido, at the Recruit Staffing Rick&Sue Asahikawa Gymnasium on Saturday at 13:35 (04:35), and then again on Sunday at 13:05 (04:05). Osaka lead the standings on 7-1 and 20, while Voreas trail bottom on 1-7 and 4.

Defending champions Suntory Sunbirds Osaka, who stand sixth on 3-3 and 11, will travel to Toray Arrows Shizuoka, who are in eighth place on 2-6 and 7. The two games at the Koryo Arena on Saturday and Sunday will start at 14:05 (05:05).

Nagano Tridents, who are second from the bottom, in ninth place on 1-5 and 3, will host seventh-placed Hiroshima Thunders (4-4, 11). The matches at the ANC Arena will get served off at 14:05 (05:05) on Saturday and at 13:05 (04:05) on Sunday.

Men’s SV.League 2024-2025 5th leg:
Nov 9, 13:35 local (04:35 UTC): Voreas Hokkaido v Osaka Bluteon
Nov 9, 14:05 local (05:05 UTC): Nagano Tridents v Hiroshima Thunders
Nov 9, 14:05 local (05:05 UTC): Toray Arrows Shizuoka v Suntory Sunbirds Osaka
Nov 9, 15:05 local (06:05 UTC): Tokyo Great Bears v JTEKT Stings Aichi
Nov 9, 15:35 local (06:35 UTC): Wolfdogs Nagoya v Nippon Steel Sakai Blazers
Nov 10, 13:05 local (04:05 UTC): Voreas Hokkaido v Osaka Bluteon
Nov 10, 13:05 local (04:05 UTC): Nagano Tridents v Hiroshima Thunders
Nov 10, 14:05 local (05:05 UTC): Toray Arrows Shizuoka v Suntory Sunbirds Osaka
Nov 10, 14:05 local (05:05 UTC): Tokyo Great Bears v JTEKT Stings Aichi
Nov 10, 14:35 local (05:35 UTC): Wolfdogs Nagoya v Nippon Steel Sakai Blazers

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