is a Japanese former professional

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby ...

who played as a

right-back In the sport of association football, a defender is an outfield position whose primary role is to stop attacks during the game and prevent the opposition from scoring. Centre-backs are usually positioned in pairs, with one full-back on either s ...

. He earned 38 caps for the Japan national team between 1994 and 2003, including three games at the 1998 FIFA World Cup.Japan National Football Team Database
/ref>

Club career

Narahashi was born in Chiba on November 26, 1971. After graduating from Chiba Eiwa High School in 1990, he joined Fujita Industries (later ''Bellmare Hiratsuka'', ''Shonan Bellmare'') playing in the

Japan Soccer League , or JSL, was the top flight association football league in Japan between 1965 and 1992, and was the precursor to the current professional league, the J.League. JSL was the second national league of a team sport in Japan after the professional ...

Division 2. In 1992, Japan Soccer League was folded and the club joined new league

Japan Football League The also known as simply the JFL is the 4th tier of the Japanese association football league system, positioned beneath the three divisions of the J.League. The league features fully professional teams that hold J.League associate membership a ...

. The club won the champions in 1993 and was promoted to J1 League. In 1994, the club won Emperor's Cup. In Asia, the club also won

1995 Asian Cup Winners' Cup The winners of the 1995 Asian Cup Winners' Cup, the association football competition run by the Asian Football Confederation The Asian Football Confederation is the governing body of association football, beach soccer, and futsal in som ...

. Narahashi moved to Kashima Antlers in 1997. The presence of Jorginho at Kashima propelled his decision to move as he aspired to learn the trade under the Brazilian international full back. In 2000, the club won all three major title in Japan; J1 League,

J.League Cup The is a Japanese football (soccer) competition organized by J.League. It has been sponsored by Yamazaki Biscuits (YBC) of Yamazaki Baking (formerly Yamazaki Nabisco) since its inception in 1992. It is also known as the or (Levain is one of Y ...

and Emperor's Cup first time in J.League history. The club won J1 League three times,

three times and Emperor's Cup two times. From the mid 2000s, his opportunities to play decreased. At the end of the 2006 season, Kashima announced that they wouldn't renew his contract. Narahashi returned to Bellmare in February 2007 but was released in August 2007. On February 1, 2008, he announced his retirement from professional football.

International career

On September 27, 1994, Narahashi debuted for Japan national team against Australia. He competed with

Hiroshige Yanagimoto is a former Japanese football player. He played for Japan national team. Club career Yanagimoto was born in Higashiosaka on October 15, 1972. After graduating from high school, he joined Mazda (later ''Sanfrecce Hiroshima'') in 1991. He played ...

for regular of right side-back. Yanagimoto got hurt in 1997, Narahashi became a regular. At

1998 FIFA World Cup qualification 1998 was designated as the ''International Year of the Ocean''. Events January * January 6 – The ''Lunar Prospector'' spacecraft is launched into orbit around the Moon, and later finds evidence for frozen water, in soil in permanently s ...

, Japan won the qualify for 1998 FIFA World Cup first time in Japan's history. In 1998, he played in all three matches at 1998 World Cup. After

2002 FIFA World Cup The 2002 FIFA World Cup, also branded as Korea Japan 2002, was the 17th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial football world championship for men's national teams organized by FIFA. It was held from 31 May to 30 June 2002 at sites in South Korea an ...

, in October, Narahashi was selected Japan by new manager Zico for the first time in four years. He was also selected Japan for 2003 FIFA Confederations Cup, but he did not play in the match. He played 38 games for Japan until 2003.

Career statistics

Club

International

Honors

Individual * J1 League Best Eleven: 2001

References

External links

* *
Japan National Football Team Database
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Narahashi, Akira 1971 births Living people Association football people from Chiba Prefecture Japanese footballers Japan international footballers Japan Soccer League players J1 League players J2 League players Japan Football League (1992–1998) players Shonan Bellmare players Kashima Antlers players 1998 FIFA World Cup players 2003 FIFA Confederations Cup players Association football defenders Footballers at the 1994 Asian Games Asian Games competitors for Japan