Two remaining quarter-finals of the 39th Empress's Cup All Japan Women's Football Tournament were played at Yurtec Stadium, Sendai on Sunday 19 November, and all four semi-finalists of the competition were decided.

Pick-up Match 1

NOJIMA STELLA KANAGAWA SAGAMIHARA（Nadeshiko Division1/Kanagawa）4-3（3-1, 1-2）Waseda University（Kanto/Tokyo）

In the first game at Yurtec Stadium Sendai, NOJIMA STELLA KANAGAWA SAGAMIHARA from the Nadeshiko League Division1 met Waseda University, who beat INAC KOBE LEONESSA (Nadeshiko Division1/Hyogo) and prevented them from winning three consecutive cup titles.

It was an ideal start for Waseda University who scored an early goal in the 14th minute. After receiving a neat pass from NAKAI Hitomi, MURAKAMI Maho directed a shot to the lower right of the goal and gave her side the lead. However, it didn’t take long for Nojima Stella who conceded a goal against the run of play to come back and level the match. YOSHIMI Natsuki fired in a cross from KAWASHIMA Haruna on 20 minutes.

Nojima Stella settled down after the first goal and claimed the first lead in the game in the 38th minute. HIRANO Yuka got to the loose ball inside the box and quickly passed it to MINAMINO Arisa, who calmly netted a goal-ahead goal for her team. Now with momentum on their side, Nojima succeeded in doubling their advantage one minute later. ISHIDA Minami fired in a shot from range on 39 minutes, before the Sagamihara club took a two-goal cushion 3-1 at halftime.

Nojima Stella added some more breathing room in the second half, when Minamino met Ishida’s cross with a header and extended the lead 4-1 in the 62nd minute.

The game looked as if it were beyond the reach of Waseda University, but they came back strongly and attacked relentlessly for the remainder of the match. KAWANO Juri successfully met a cross from KUMAGAI Shioka and scored their second in the 70th minute, and NAKAMURA Mizuki fired in their third after being played through by Kawano. With still 20 minutes to play, Waseda was now only trailing by a single goal.

However, Nojima Stella showed their pride as a team from Nadeshiko League Division1 by defending tenaciously against the university counterparts and kept them from equalising the match to edge a highly contest match 4-3. Waseda University performed extremely well considering that they had a tighter schedule from playing additional matches of the Kanto University League concurrently. After the game, Nojima Stella coach KANNO Masaaki praised the Waseda players, ‘they worked hard and played well despite their tough match schedule’.

Match Report (Japanese version only)

Pick-up Match 2

URAWA RED DIAMONDS（Nadeshiko Division1/Saitama） 1-1（0-0, 1-1 ext.0-0, 0-0 PK5-3）MYNAVI VEGALTA SENDAI LADIES（Nadeshiko Division1/Miyagi）

Two Nadeshiko Division1 teams, URAWA RED DIAMONDS LADIES and MYNAVI VEGALTA SENDAI LADIES, squared off against each other in the second game. In the first half, Urawa Reds attacked with NAOMOTO Hikaru orchestrating several threatening chances, while Vegalta Sendai looked to score by exploiting the space behind the opponents’ defensive line. However, both sides protected their goal well and went into halftime scoreless.

The game stayed in the balance until the 53rd minute of the second half, but Vegalta Sendai’s Caitlin FOORD was shown her second yellow card and the Sendai club were forced to compete for the remainder of the match with one fewer women on the field. Urawa with a numerical advantage broke the deadlock in the 66th minute. Substitute SUGASAWA Yuika reacted to a free kick from Naomoto on the far side and scored a opening goal with her right foot.

Urawa looked as if they would sustain their lead and edge a tough game 1-0, but the added time goal had levelled and taken the match to overtime. After earning a free kick just before regulation, Vegalta Sendai’s YASUMOTO Sawako was illegally taken down during a goalmouth scramble and was awarded a penalty kick. She then took the spot-kick herself and calmly netted into the net to tie the game 1-1 on 90+1 minutes. The unexpected turn of events had forced the Urawa club an overtime contest.

Both sides were kept scoreless in extra time and the match went to a penalty shootout. Sendai’s third kicker Nishikawa’s shot hit the left post, while all five kickers of Urawa Reds converted from the spot. Urawa defeated the Sendai club by winning 5-3 win on penalties and grabbed a spot in the semi-finals.

Yasumoto, the last-minute scorer for Sendai to tie the game, had commented, ‘we competed until the end as a united team along with all the supporters’. Despite their loss, the fans cheered their local Sendai club for all their relentless efforts they put in until the end of the game.

Match Report (Japanese version only)

Coach's and Players' Comments

MINAMINO Arisa (NOJIMA STELLA KANAGAWA SAGAMIHARA)
I struggled to display my playing style from the beginning of the match, and I was thinking of contributing to the team’s win by netting one into the net. We were determined to win and displayed our brand of football as we took on the challenge from the university side as a team from the Nadeshiko Division1. In regards two goals I scored, all I needed to do was just react to those excellent passes. Those were team efforts, but still it was great that I scored a brace. It’s the first time for Nojima Stella to reach the semi-finals. We are now aiming at making new history for the team by winning the championship as well.

MURAKAMI Maho (Waseda University)
I thought it’d be difficult to break through the middle, but since we had quick players on both sides, we decided to exploit the space behind the opponents’ fullbacks. I collected a deflection from a shot and saw an opening to the right side of the goal. I aimed there and had an outside spin which could have curled wide to the right of goalpost, but fortunately it went into the net. After scoring and trailing only by a single goal in the second half, we felt we could win the game, but the team including myself could not capitalise on the chances and level the match. The team and I have to improve the accuracy of our shots and be more clinical at our finishes.

ISHIHARA Takayoshi, Coach( URAWA RED DIAMONDS LADIES)
We were confident that we could play out a tough game, but Sendai displayed their competitive spirit as well. It became a really difficult game for us. However, we played with composure and handled the game really well, and showed our strong determination to win the match at the end. This has proven to me that the team have made significant progress this season as well. I must also note that Sugasawa who scored a goal just after coming off the bench had made an excellent preparation before she got on to the pitch. I knew that we fought really hard for the entire 120 minutes, and advised my players to relax and enjoy the penalty shootout. I must say that they responded well and secured a win as well.

YASUMOTO Sawako (MYNAVI VEGALTA SENDAI LADIES)
Frankly speaking, I’m gutted with the loss. We were really aiming to win the Empress's Cup this year. We managed to counter-attack by putting pressure on the opponents from upfront. We had a difficult time after one of our players was sent off, but the team performed superbly as a united team. When I scored a goal, the time was almost up and I was determined to level the match and take it to extra time. Honestly speaking, I was quite relieved when I successfully converted the penalty kick. I believe each one of us needs to improve her skills to win a championship. We will be looking to raise our level of football even more next season as well.

Tournament Period：28 October 2017(Sat.)～24 December 2017(Sun.)
First Round　Sat. 28 and Sun 29. October
Second Round Fri.3, Sat. 4 and Sun. 5 November
Third Round　Sat. 11 and Sun. 12 November
Quarter-finals　Sat. 18 and Sun. 19 November
Semi-finals　Thu. 21 December
Final　Sun. 24 December

Tournament Information