what a punch to the face, because its true

I'd bet him that at least 8 HAL clubs would beat university sides. Young and skillful players they may have, but decision making, determination, work ethic, strength and execution all factor in to young players making the step up to the pros. 

Being a Japanese uni team their work ethic and determination would not be a problem, in fact they might be better than some a-league players. Their close control and 1v1 would be good but theyd lack any creativity and their problem solving wouldnt be great

I was prepared to say “pass the salt, it’s needed in Japan” but then I read the article and yeah, nah, he’s not putting the boot in.

Yep, headline overreach line crossed.

Technically u13 girls teams would probably outdo the A league, but people need to get to grips with reality that football is about more than just technique.  Physically, athletically and tactically A league would piss all over Japanese university sides.

Also, that Mitch Duke is playing regularly in the J League, is an indictment of that league, as had tried his luck in Europe he would be home by  now.

Folks need to stop fapping over the J league, it's just another mediocre league.

Absolute rubbish! Sour grapes from Duke. Seen enough Japanese Uni football and can say it is light years behind the A-league well maybe not too far behind Wellington. These are part time athletes/ students you couldn't even think to compare.

The technical level between the Japanese and Australian players is large, so maybe he's referring it to that.

I don't think it's a surprise to hear his comments, he's seen the level over there and is comparing it to back home.

Their youth teams destroy our youth teams on most times too.. 

When people talk about the quality of international leagues it isn't because the weights are heavier overseas, or the tracks longer, or the food more nutritious

The best way to think of a football team is a classroom with a single curriculum. It suits 70% of the students. The 15% that are less intelligent will fall behind. The 15% that are bright will be bored and feel unchallenged

What we see in other leagues is a grading system. The top teams are high quality with an intense curriculum. The bottom teams are low quality and training less intense. Players can then progress through the systems until they reach the top

The A League on the other hand is single grade. There is nothing between one team and the other which is why many players have played in multiple clubs. You often hear of players like Cahill spending hours after training has finished wondering why the fuck everybody quit after half an hour of running. And as a team sport keeping up individual fitness only goes so far. There are no bigger teams to progress to or work towards

And even worse for Australia is there is nothing below the A League. Players go from part time training in an amateur league to a full time professional one size fits all curriculum that is a higher learning curve than amateur but lower than a lot of international leagues with a proper pathway

Japanese Uni leagues will have a proper learning curve and a targeted training session. So it would definitely feel a lot more organised than any A League team. And there is also a clear pathway to playing in the Japanese elite leagues and working your way to the top. I don't think Japanese uni leagues are necessarily better than taking the best 180 players in Australia and throwing them into a random lineup but they'd be a hell of a sight better than any Australian uni leagues

Yes, but at our universities some smoke cannabis, do theirs??

Read what he said and what the headline is

He refers to the young boys, talking about individual players, which is 100% true, same as the U-league in Korea, players there could easily slot into A-league rosters.

As others have suggested though, most likely our teams would beat theirs