Sunday, September 28, 2008

K-League Heats Up (despite the weather)

So, the K-League soccer season is nearing its end (seven games left for most teams), and it has really started to heat up. The season has been rather disjointed as World Cup qualifying and Olympic competition (even though the South Koreans exited after the first round in Beijing) caused stoppages that prevented momentum from building during the summer months.

Dong-A Ilbo reports on a three-way standings race in which Seongnam Ilwha Chunma (seven time league champs) have moved into a tie with Suwon Bluewings, who have led the league for much of the season thanks to a record-setting 11-game win streak, and are the most popular team in the country with average attendance of about 30,000.

Seongnam and Suwon each have 41 league points, but perennial bottom-dwellers FC Seoul have quietly moved into striking range with 38 points following a 9-for-12 win streak. John Duerden writes at Soccerphile
Despite the broken rib of star striker Mota, Seongnam have barely broken their stride. Youngster Han Dong-won has chipped in with three goals in the last two games. Seongnam are looking fresh and confident while Suwon are spluttering. Worse for Suwon is the fact that bitter rivals FC Seoul are in good form and not that far behind in third.

I haven't managed to make it to a professional sports event here yet, but I certainly plan to before the soccer season ends.

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