Tokushima Vortis have narrowly missed out on promotion to the top division of Japanese football, after losing the last round of promotion playoffs against Shonan Bellmare.
After finishing fourth in the regular J2 season, they got past both Ventforet Kofu and Montedio Yamagata to set up a playoff against the side which finished 16th out of 18 in the J1 League last season.
Due to the format of the playoffs, the 1-1 away draw Tokushima managed against Shonan Bellmare wasn’t enough to book a ticket to the top flight for next season.
Ricardo Rodriguez’s men will be disappointed that they weren’t able to overcome the hurdle once again, but can take pride in how far they have come from their disappointing 11th-place finish in the league last season.
Meanwhile, this victory is an impressive one for a Shonan Bellmare side which was widely tipped for relegation.