On Saturday 12 January, day one of the JFA 24th U-15 Japan Futsal Championship take place, where the futsal national champions of the U-15 category will be determined. The tournament was held at Mie Prefectural Sun Arena, and the heated competition featured many high-level matches.

Teams were divided into four groups with four teams each in the first round, where they will play in a round robin format. Day one featured the first two matches from each group. The tournament saw close competitions throughout the groups, as none of the teams clinched the final round after two matches were played.

In Group A, it was Assist Junior Youth (Hokushinetsu2/Fukui) who came out as the group leaders after two matches played. Following their 1-1 draw against the host team, Tsu Rapid FC (Mie), they managed to enter their second match with great momentum against one of the tournament favourites, Malva Ibaraki FC (Kanto1/Ibaraki). Within the first six minutes, Assist Junior Youth captured two goals to take the initiative of the match. Despite allowing Malva Ibaraki to create many opportunities, the Fukui side managed to win the match with a score of 5-2. After losing to Malva Ibaraki 1-9, FC Trioni (Tohoku/Aomori) registered their first national tournament victory with a 2-1 victory over Tsu Rapid.

In Group B, the defending champions, Brincar FC (Tokai1/Aichi) showcased their ability to win close matches. In their first match against J Field Okayama FC (Chugoku/Okayama) where the match was tied up at 1-1 at halftime, Brincar FC picked up their pace in the second half to capture a 4-2 victory. The second match was against Kofu Legends U-15 (Kanto2/Yamanashi), where the match was once again tied at halftime, but with the help of TSUBOYA Shu’s back-to-back hat-trick performance, the Aichi side won the match 5-0 to register their second victory of the day.

Brincar FC will face F-Three U-15 (Hokushinetsu3/Niigata) in their third group stage match. The Niigata side has won against the national tournament regulars, Nagaoka JYFC, at the Hokushinetsu qualifiers to qualify for their second straight national tournament. Despite dropping their first match 1-2 against Kofu Legends U-15, the team bounced back by overwhelming J Field Okayama with a score of 12-2, keeping their hopes alive to advance to the final round.

Group C saw F-Three Junior Youth (Hokushinetsu1/Niigata) taking the top pot, with their win against Kawasaki FC (Kyushu/Fukuoka) 5-2 in their first match, followed by a 3-3 draw against Ladcao Shiga U-15 (Kansai2/Shiga) in their second match. In the other match played at this group, Tomakomai Elsole FC (Hokaido2), who won their first match, allowed Kawasaki FC to rally back from two goals down to give them the come-from-behind victory, making the competition at this group tight as well.

It was Kochi Junior High School (Shikoku/Kochi) who led the pack in Group D, as they captured a 2-0 victory over Dream FC (Kansai1/Osaka)2-0, followed by a 3-0 win against Tomari SC (Hokkaido1) to get one step closer to advancing to the next round.

Day two of the tournament will take place on Sunday 13, where the first round will conclude. Following the first round, the final round will be played among the top 4 teams on 14 Monday.

Coaches and Players' Comments

SHIMAYA Yuki, Coach (FC Trioni)
We are enjoying ourselves in our first national tournament appearance and the players are gaining priceless experiences. We looked very stiff in our first match and ended up losing by a huge margin, but our opponents had the upper hand at the individual level in that match. They were few steps ahead of us in terms of speed and physical strengths. We expected that we will need a total team effort in the second match, and we were able to showcase our strengths of having a strong bench. As the representative of Aomori prefecture and the Tohoku region, we are glad that we were able to earn a win. Although we are primarily a football team, we hope to share the joy of futsal at Aomori prefecture.

MIDORIKAWA Taketeru, Coach (Malva Ibaraki FC)
The first two goals we conceded early in the match turned out to be a major factor. We entered the match poorly and we didn’t make good decisions in the fifty-fifty situations. Those aspects along with our lack of intensity cost us the match. We conceded too many unnecessary goals that led us to a negative spiral. Although we created more opportunities than our opponents, it doesn’t mean anything if we can’t convert them. However, we are still in contention to advance through to the final round, so we will compete until the very end.

YOSHIDA Jinpei (F-Three U-15)
We entered last year’s tournament with the goal to win the national title but failed to achieve that goal. Ever since, we have worked hard with a strong intention to take down the title whatever it takes. We looked nervous in our first match and failed to play our normal game which cost us the match. However, we managed to reset our minds and fight through the second match. We will face the defending champions tomorrow. If we lose, our tournament will be finished, so we will give our best to win the match and advance through to the final day.

MORIMOTO Minoru, Coach (Kochi Junior High School)
I wasn’t expecting such performance, so I was very surprised. We are primarily a football team, but we implement many aspects of futsal in our trainings, so maybe that has led us to earn good results at this tournament. Despite this being our sixth tournament appearance, we have never made it to the final round, so we hope to make it through. This year, we have many players with great techniques and tactical understandings. We will do our best to recover from today’s matches and play with composure tomorrow.

MATSUI Takumi (Kochi Junior High School)
I am glad we were able to win two straight matches. I remember watching the third-graders playing in this tournament when I was in first-grade, and I always envied playing here. However, I was not satisfied with my performance today, as I tended to rush my plays and turned over the ball many times. I will make the adjustments tomorrow. I have been playing both as a pivot and a fixo, but I personally like to play upfront. We hope to win our match tomorrow and advance through to the final round. After I graduate, I will advance to Kochi High School and strive to become a professional football player.

Highlights from Day 1

JFA 24th U-15 Japan Futsal Championship

Tournament Dates: Sat. 12 - Mon. 14 January 2019
Tournament Venue: Mie Prefectural Sun Arena

Tournament Information