The rising sons snatch first point

Co-hosts Japan earned their first ever World Cup point on Tuesday when they shared four goals with Belgium in 16 scintillating second half m...

Co-hosts Japan earned their first ever World Cup point on Tuesday when they shared four goals with Belgium in 16 scintillating second half minutes in a 2-2 group H thriller.

Roared on by a nearly hysterical crowd, Junichi Inamoto’s superb 68th-minute goal looked to have clinched a historic win for Philippe Troussier’s side until Peter Van der Heyden equalised with 15 minutes left for the Belgians. Earlier, Takayuki Suzuki had wiped out Marc Wilmots’s 57th minute overhead kick for Belgium.

… but the Chinese debut spoilt

Kwangju: Tiny Costa Rica spoiled China’s World Cup debut on Tuesday, beating the world’s most populous nation 2-0 to top Group C ahead of Brazil.
Thousands of Chinese fans who travelled to South Korea for the historic game saw their team hang on in a scrappy first half before going down to two goals in four minutes.
Striker Roland Gomez grabbed Costa Rica’s first with a curling left-foot strike in the 61st mnute. Centre-back Mauricio Wright scored the second, finishing off a neat move from a corner with a stooping header at the front post in the 65th. (Reuters)

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With four minutes left Inamoto thought he had settled it after a snaking run in the box finished with the Japanese forward chipping the ball home deftly but the referee ruled the goal out for an earlier foul. Van der Heyden had been at fault for the Inamoto goal which did count but Belgium will not be completely happy with a point from a match they expected to win.

At one stage, though, after the second Japanese goal, they could have been overrun by their inspired opponents as the near sell-out crowd shouted them on. (Reuters)

Dominic A LeBlanc, the Minister of Public Safety, said, "The promotion of violence is never acceptable in Canada." (PTI Photo/ File)

Khalistani outfit SFJ threatens to ‘siege’ Indian consulate in Canada

India2 hr ago

Khalistani outfit Sikhs For Justice has called for a "siege" on the Indian consulate in Canada on September 18, accusing them of running a spy network to target Khalistan supporters. The group has also threatened the Indian consulates in Canada and released a poster with a target on the face of the Indian High Commissioner.

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