The 28th All Japan High School Women's Football Championship final took place at Noevir Stadium Kobe on Sunday 12 January, where Fujieda Junshin High School (Tokai2/Shizuoka) clashed against Kamimura Gakuen High School (Kyushu1/Kagoshima).

Final

Fujieda Junshin High School 1-0 (0-0, 1-0) Kamimura Gakuen High School

The match between Fujieda Junshin and Kamimura Gakuen started as a well balanced match, as the two high school giants exchanged blows from the first half. In the 16th minute, Kamimura’s captain, KIKUCHI Maria, struck a shot from distance to threaten the Fujieda Junshin goal. Two minutes later, TSUKADA Akiko connected with Kikuchi’s cross to strike a volley shot, but her attempt was saved by Fujieda Junshin’s goalkeeper MATSUI Rio.

With momentum on their side, Kamimura Gakuen applied aggressive pressure from the front line to force turnovers and effectively utilised the width of the field to take control of the match.

A close opportunity came towards the Kyushu side in the early minutes of the second half, when Kikuchi responded to a through ball sent by MIZOKAMI Kana to face the goalkeeper one-on-one, but they were not able to capitalise on this golden opportunity.

With their defence showing great persistence to keep a clean sheet, Fujieda Junshin started to pick up their pace in the second half. Their patience was paid off in the 60th minute, when IKEGUCHI Kyoko sent a sharp cross towards the goal. Despite the effort made by Kamimura’s goalkeeper to parry the ball, the delivery carried enough momentum to find the back of the net, giving Fujieda Junshin the lead.

In efforts to level the match, Kamimura Gakuen utilised their substitutions to add layers to their offence. With Kikuchi leading the offensive line, Kamimura made numbers of attempts to score the equaliser, but Fujieda Junshin showcased a tenacious effort to protect their lead, as time ran out to give the Shizuoka side their fourth national title, second in three years.

Coaches and Players' Comments

TATARA Kazuyuki, Coach (Fujieda Junshin High School)
We struggled against the opponent’s intensity in the first half, but our players did well to keep their composure. Their patience was paid off in the second half and we were able to walk away with this victory. I feel like we were really able to showcase our resilience. We lost at the first round in last year’s championship and this summer’s Inter-High School Championships, but we never lost our faith to make it this far. I wanted our team to become a team that can win matches by 1-0, and today we really showed our maturity. This team has gone through many hardships, but it was all paid off with this victory.

NAGAE Ibuki (Fujieda Junshin High School)
This was a very tough match, but we kept communicating with each other to keep our composure. With (Ikeguchi) Kyoko scoring the goal for us, we were committed to keep the clean sheet. Although there were some close opportunities created by our opponent, our goalkeeper made some spectacular saves and we were able to show our resilience. We weren’t able to take the initiative in the matches played during the summer, but we have made great improvements since. I feel like we were really able to mature as a team.

TERASHI Yuta, Coach (Kamimura Gakuen High School)
We applied aggressive pressure from the first half, but our players never stopped running throughout this match. That is why it was important to score a goal while we had control over the match in the first half. We have worked on our offence since summer, but we couldn’t find ways to crack open the opposing defence today. Fujieda Junshin showed us what it’s like to be a winning team. We managed to execute our game plan but fell short from capitalising on our opportunities to score goals. However, I am very proud of our team’s overall performance throughout the championship. We are a suburban team, but I am confident that we were able to show our colour and entertain the crowd. It’s very disappointing that I couldn’t let them win, but the players should be proud of their achievement.

KIKUCHI Maria (Kamimura Gakuen High School)
We were determined to win, but Fujieda Junshin was the better team today. We really wanted to take the lead during the first half, but we failed to convert our chances while we had momentum. It was a tough journey, but I was given a precious opportunity to wear the arm band at the national championship. It’s disappointing that I couldn’t lead our team to win the title, but I hope the younger players can feed off of this experience to win the title in the future.

The 28th All Japan High School Women's Football Championship

Tournament Dates: Fri. 3 - Sun. 12 January 2020
Tournament Venue: Miki Sogo Bosai Park Athletic Field (Miki, Hyogo), Goshikidai Sports Park (Sumoto, Hyogo), Ibuki Forest Football Ground (Kobe, Hyogo), Noevir Stadium Kobe (Kobe, Hyogo)

Tournament Information