Takashi Hirano
Encyclopedia
Takashi Hirano is a former Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...

ese international footballer.

Club

Hirano attended Shimizu Commercial High School
Shimizu Commercial High School
is a co-educational commercial high school located in Shimizu ward, Shizuoka city, Japan. The school was founded in 1921. It has a strong soccer program and has won the All Japan High School Soccer Tournament three times...

, where he won the All-Japan High School Championship in 1991.

Hirano began his professional career in the J. League
J. League
The or is the top division of and is the top professional association football league in Japan. It is one of the most successful leagues in Asian club football and the only league given top class 'A' ranking by the AFC. Currently, J. League Division 1 is the first level of the Japanese...

 in 1993 with Nagoya Grampus Eight
Nagoya Grampus Eight
are a Japanese association football club that play in the J. League. Based in Nagoya, Aichi Prefecture and originally founded as the company team of the Toyota Motor Corp...

, winning the Emperor's Cup
Emperor's Cup
, commonly known as or , is a Japanese association football competition. It has the longest tradition of any football tournament in Japan, dating back to 1921, before the formation of the J. League, Japan Football League and their predecessor, Japan Soccer League...

 in 1995 and 1999 and the Japanese Super Cup
Japanese Super Cup
The Japanese Super Cup or is an annual one-match football competition in Japan organised by J. League and the Japan Football Association . This competition serves as the season opener and is played between the J. League Champions and the Emperor's Cup Winners of the previous season...

 in 1996, and scoring 43 goals in 213 appearances for the team. He transferred to Kyoto Purple Sanga
Kyoto Purple Sanga
is a Japanese professional football club based in Kyoto. The word "Sanga" is a Sanskrit term meaning "group" or "club", often used to denote Buddhist congregations. This reflects Kyoto's tradition of Buddhist temples...

 in 2000, and although his team won promotion from the J. League
J. League
The or is the top division of and is the top professional association football league in Japan. It is one of the most successful leagues in Asian club football and the only league given top class 'A' ranking by the AFC. Currently, J. League Division 1 is the first level of the Japanese...

 Division 2 in 2001, he played just 5 league games before moving on to Jubilo Iwata
Júbilo Iwata
is a professional Japanese association football team currently playing in the J. League Division 1 . The team name Júbilo means 'joy' in Portuguese and Spanish. The team's home town is Iwata, Shizuoka prefecture and they play at Yamaha Stadium...

.

After brief and largely unremarkable stints at Vissel Kobe
Vissel Kobe
is a Japanese professional football club, currently playing in the J. League Division 1. The team is located in Kobe, Hyōgo Prefecture. The home stadium is Kobe Wing Stadium, in Hyōgo-ku, though some home matches are played at Kobe Universiade Memorial Stadium in Suma-ku.-History:The club was...

, Tokyo Verdy 1969
Tokyo Verdy 1969
, is a Japanese professional football club, based in Tokyo, Japan, that plays in J. League Division 2.Founded as Yomiuri F.C. in 1969, Tokyo Verdy is one of the most decorated teams in the J. League, with honours including 7 league titles , 5 Emperor's Cups, 6 JSL Cup / J...

, Yokohama F. Marinos
Yokohama F. Marinos
is a Japanese association football team that participates in the fully professional J. League Division 1; the top Japanese professional football league. Having won the J-League title three times and finished second twice, they are one of the most successful J-League clubs. The team are based in...

 and Omiya Ardija
Omiya Ardija
is a professional football club which play in the J. League Division 1, and are based in Ōmiya-ku in Saitama, Japan. Its "hometown" as designated by the league is the whole of Saitama city, which is shared with neighbours Urawa Red Diamonds...

, Hirano moved to North America and signed for Vancouver Whitecaps in the USL First Division
USL First Division
The United Soccer Leagues First Division was a professional men's soccer league in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico....

 in 2008.

On September 30, 2008, Hirano was called up to the USL First Division All-League Team, and on October 12, 2008, helped the Whitecaps capture their second USL First Division Championship by beating the Puerto Rico Islanders
Puerto Rico Islanders
Puerto Rico Islanders is a Puerto Rican professional football team based in Bayamón, Puerto Rico. Founded in 2003, the team plays in the North American Soccer League , the second tier of the American Soccer Pyramid....

 2-1 in the USL1 Championship game.

On January 20, 2009 the Whitecaps announced a contract extension for Hirano for the 2009 season.

Hirano announced his retirement from the game in January 2011.

International

Hirano played for the Japanese U-19 team which competed at the 1992 AFC Youth Championship, and received his first callup to the senior Japanese national team
Japan national football team
The Japan national football team represents Japan in association football and is operated by the Japan Football Association, the governing body for association football in Japan...

 in 1997. He played two games as a substitute at the 1998 FIFA World Cup
1998 FIFA World Cup
The 1998 FIFA World Cup, the 16th FIFA World Cup, was held in France from 10 June to 12 July 1998. France was chosen as host nation by FIFA on 2 July 1992. The tournament was won by France, who beat Brazil 3-0 in the final...

.

Club career statistics

|-
|1993||rowspan="8"|Nagoya Grampus Eight
Nagoya Grampus Eight
are a Japanese association football club that play in the J. League. Based in Nagoya, Aichi Prefecture and originally founded as the company team of the Toyota Motor Corp...

||rowspan="8"|J. League 1||19||4||3||1||3||1||25||6
|-
|1994||36||4||2||0||1||0||39||4
|-
|1995||50||9||5||2||colspan="2"|-||55||11
|-
|1996||29||7||0||0||14||5||43||12
|-
|1997||21||4||1||0||6||3||28||7
|-
|1998||30||8||4||0||0||0||34||8
|-
|1999||28||7||5||1||6||2||39||10
|-
|2000||9||0||0||0||0||0||9||0
|-
|2000||Kyoto Purple Sanga||J. League 1||7||1||1||0||4||0||12||1
|-
|2001||Júbilo Iwata
Júbilo Iwata
is a professional Japanese association football team currently playing in the J. League Division 1 . The team name Júbilo means 'joy' in Portuguese and Spanish. The team's home town is Iwata, Shizuoka prefecture and they play at Yamaha Stadium...

||J. League 1||3||0||1||0||0||0||4||0
|-
|2002||Vissel Kobe
Vissel Kobe
is a Japanese professional football club, currently playing in the J. League Division 1. The team is located in Kobe, Hyōgo Prefecture. The home stadium is Kobe Wing Stadium, in Hyōgo-ku, though some home matches are played at Kobe Universiade Memorial Stadium in Suma-ku.-History:The club was...

||J. League 1||28||1||1||0||5||0||34||1
|-
|2003||rowspan="3"|Tokyo Verdy||rowspan="3"|J. League 1||25||4||3||1||5||0||33||5
|-
|2004||28||4||1||0||7||1||36||5
|-
|2005||27||0||1||1||6||0||34||1
|-
|2006||Yokohama F. Marinos
Yokohama F. Marinos
is a Japanese association football team that participates in the fully professional J. League Division 1; the top Japanese professional football league. Having won the J-League title three times and finished second twice, they are one of the most successful J-League clubs. The team are based in...

||J. League 1||9||0||0||0||6||0||15||0
|-
|2007||Omiya Ardija
Omiya Ardija
is a professional football club which play in the J. League Division 1, and are based in Ōmiya-ku in Saitama, Japan. Its "hometown" as designated by the league is the whole of Saitama city, which is shared with neighbours Urawa Red Diamonds...

||J. League 1||3||1||1||0||0||0||4||1

|-
|2008||rowspan="3"|Vancouver Whitecaps||rowspan="2"|USL First Division
USL First Division
The United Soccer Leagues First Division was a professional men's soccer league in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico....

||22||1||||||||||22||1
|-
|2009||28||0||||||||||28||0
|-
|2010||D2 Pro League
USSF Division 2 Professional League
USSF Division 2 Professional League was a temporary professional soccer league created by the United States Soccer Federation in 2010 to last just one season. The twelve-team league was formed as a compromise between the feuding United Soccer Leagues and the North American Soccer League...

||||||||||||||||
352||54||29||6||63||12||444||72
50||1||||||||||50||1
402||55||29||6||63||12||494||73
|}

International career statistics

|-
|1997||5||1
|-
|1998||7||2
|-
|1999||0||0
|-
|2000||3||1
|-
!Total||15||4
|}

Nagoya Grampus Eight

  • Emperor's Cup
    Emperor's Cup
    , commonly known as or , is a Japanese association football competition. It has the longest tradition of any football tournament in Japan, dating back to 1921, before the formation of the J. League, Japan Football League and their predecessor, Japan Soccer League...

     (2):
    1995
    Emperor's Cup
    , commonly known as or , is a Japanese association football competition. It has the longest tradition of any football tournament in Japan, dating back to 1921, before the formation of the J. League, Japan Football League and their predecessor, Japan Soccer League...

    , 1999
    Emperor's Cup
    , commonly known as or , is a Japanese association football competition. It has the longest tradition of any football tournament in Japan, dating back to 1921, before the formation of the J. League, Japan Football League and their predecessor, Japan Soccer League...

  • Japanese Super Cup
    Japanese Super Cup
    The Japanese Super Cup or is an annual one-match football competition in Japan organised by J. League and the Japan Football Association . This competition serves as the season opener and is played between the J. League Champions and the Emperor's Cup Winners of the previous season...

     (1):
    1996

Tokyo Verdy 1969

  • Emperor's Cup
    Emperor's Cup
    , commonly known as or , is a Japanese association football competition. It has the longest tradition of any football tournament in Japan, dating back to 1921, before the formation of the J. League, Japan Football League and their predecessor, Japan Soccer League...

     (1):
    2004
    Emperor's Cup
    , commonly known as or , is a Japanese association football competition. It has the longest tradition of any football tournament in Japan, dating back to 1921, before the formation of the J. League, Japan Football League and their predecessor, Japan Soccer League...

  • Japanese Super Cup
    Japanese Super Cup
    The Japanese Super Cup or is an annual one-match football competition in Japan organised by J. League and the Japan Football Association . This competition serves as the season opener and is played between the J. League Champions and the Emperor's Cup Winners of the previous season...

     (1):
    2005
    Japanese Super Cup
    The Japanese Super Cup or is an annual one-match football competition in Japan organised by J. League and the Japan Football Association . This competition serves as the season opener and is played between the J. League Champions and the Emperor's Cup Winners of the previous season...


Vancouver Whitecaps

  • USL First Division
    USL First Division
    The United Soccer Leagues First Division was a professional men's soccer league in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico....

     Championship (1):
    2008
    United Soccer Leagues 2008
    The 2008 Season is the 22nd edition of the United Soccer Leagues season.The season kicked off on Friday, April 12 with two First Division games, as the Charleston Battery visited Miami FC and the Montreal Impact visited the Vancouver Whitecaps.-General:...

  • Vancouver Whitecaps Outstanding Defender: 2009
  • Vancouver Whitecaps Newcomer of the Year: 2008

External links

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