The 2022 JFA U-18 Women’s Football Final, which will determine the true number one U-18 women’s team in Japan, was held at Sanga by KYOCERA Stadium on Monday, September 19.
final
JFA Academy Fukushima 3-2 (first half 1-2, second half 2-0) Jumonji High School
JFA Academy Fukushima, runners-up in the 4th Japan Club Women’s Youth Football Tournament (U-18) at the XF CUP 2022 in August, and Jumonji High School, runners-up in the 2022 All-Japan Inter-High Sports Tournament (Inter-High) in July. The final was a heated match that we can’t take our eyes off until the end.
AC Fukushima took the lead. In the 8th minute, midfielder TANIKAWA Moeko stole the ball from a high position on the right side and dribbled past in the middle. “In the semi-final game against Daisho Gakuen High School, we didn’t have many shots in the first half, so in today’s game, the whole team called on each other to aim for goals in the first half.” , was decided in the left corner of the goal, and got off to a good start.
After conceding the goal, Jumonji High continued to have the ball in AC Fukushima’s hands, but in the 19th minute they stole the ball from midfield and moved it down the right side. Midfielder MIYAKE Manhiro sent in a high-placed cross with a one-two, and striker JIHARA Rihona headed it in front of goal to bring the game back to the start. In the 29th minute, Ujihara captured the ball, with AC Fukushima’s surging strength being disrupted by his well-placed press. I poured it into the unmanned aim as is and managed to reverse.
AC Fukushima, whose formation was reversed, corrected their fighting style at halftime. “As we were late, we said to ourselves ‘we can still do it’ and we all shared the feeling of never giving up. Starting with the new players, we decided to increase the action and to to be more and more aggressive. was there.” This is what midfield captain Hayashi Manaka is talking about.
“In the second half, we were able to move the ball without rushing, and when we had gaps, we were able to play football,” Tanigawa continued. I continued to distribute balls to striker MATSUKUBO Makoto, who continued and waited. for a chance. Then, in the 51st minute, they stole the ball with their coordinated defense from the front line, and Matsukubo on the right side sent it to striker Itamura Mao in the middle. In the end, Tanigawa scored directly off a stray ball that hit a defender to bring the game back to square one.
Immediately afterwards, in the 54th minute, he stole the ball in his own half and passed it to Tanigawa, who quickly moved behind Jumonji’s defense line. Itamura, who had a free run in the game, made it 1v1 with the goalkeeper and calmly scored into the right corner of the goal to make it 3-2. In the late game, Jumonji High attacked fiercely, but they continued to defend tenaciously until the end, and AC Fukushima managed to come back from behind to become the first champion.
Coach/Player Comments
Takafumi Yamaguchi, coach (JFA Academy Fukushima)
When I saw the video of the semi-finals, I felt that (Jumonji High School) was a team that would pose a big obstacle to our goal of being number one in Japan. The players repeatedly challenged and covered while forming a tight field. We were lucky to score the first goal, but we made a lot of mistakes and conceded two goals, but we managed to stay calm and get into the second half. If we were able to turn the tide, it was because we regularly kept the ball firmly and attacked several times, exploiting the gaps. It was a very popular game.
MF #6 HAYASHI Aika (JFA Fukushima Academy)
In the club’s youth tournament (XF Cup), the team finished second as a team, and I think everyone was very frustrated. I used my frustration as a springboard to train for this tournament. While enjoying the game against the High Athletic Federation team, which we usually can’t do, we shared with the team that we would do our best to turn summer frustration into strength. I’m very happy because I won today and got over my frustration. Through the two games of the U-18 championship tournament, I was able to meet different types of players.
General Manager Takayuki Ishiyama (Jumonji High School)
Jumonji is full of players who failed the JFA Academy and WE League academy when they were in 6th grade. There are a lot of players who enter high school because they can’t be promoted (to club teams). However, I could see some issues such as ball control while moving and passing speed, so I want to use them in the future. There is still no championship (All Japan High School Women’s Soccer Championship), there is only the championship. We finished 2nd in the Inter-High and the Final, so I want to do my best to ensure that the efforts of these young people lead to results.
MF #10 Hatsuna Noguchi (Jumonji High School)
AC Fukushima was really good technically, so we thought we were going to win with running power and team power. However, I lost in terms of football technology. At the next championship, I will do my best to win until the end. There were cheers even at the inter-high school, but this tournament the team was united by the cheers. Everyone’s support led to great power, so everyone was able to show their maximum power in the (semi-final) Cerezo Osaka Sakai Girls, which led to victory. After all, I thought the support power was very good.
Conference Schedule: September 17, 2022 (earth) to September 19 (month and celebration)
Venue: Kyoto/Sanga Stadium by KYOCERA
Click here for tournament information
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