The 14th Sec. of the Prince Takamado Trophy JFA U-18 Football Premier League 2019 WEST took place on Saturday 21 and Sunday 22 September, where Kyoto Sanga F.C. U-18 (Kyoto) welcomed Ehime FC U-18 (Ehime) to their home field.

Pick-up Match

Kyoto Sanga F.C. U-18 1-0 (0-0, 1-0) Ehime FC U-18

After suffering a 1-6 loss to Nagoya Grampus U-18 (Aichi) last week, Kyoto’s coach TESHIMA Kazuki sent off his players by telling them to give their best efforts to reach their full potential. However, the home side struggled to pick up their pace, as their midfielder KAWASAKI Sota (#7) later reflected, “although we spent the entire week preparing for this match, we weren’t able to find our rhythm.” Kyoto utilised long balls and counterattacks to effectively create opportunities but lacked quality at the final third to convert these chances. A close opportunity was created from a corner kick in the 43rd minute, but Kyoto’s shot went off the goal post.

The second half saw the Ehime side taking control, as their coach AONO Daisuke reflected on their approach, “we lacked creativity in the first half, so I told my players to create more movements on and off the ball.” Ehime’s YANASHITA Masaya (#14) created numbers of chances by penetrating the central area, while OKADA Aoi (#13) sought for his opportunity to take shots from the right side. A close opportunity was created in the 76th minute, when MIHARA Shuma (#5) broke through the left flank and struck a shot. With the shot being deflected by the goalkeeper, Yanashita made an attempt to convert the loose ball, but his effort was blocked by the Kyoto defence as well.

With the home side showing great resilience to keep the score intact, their patience got paid off in the 84th minute, when the shot taken by KIMURA Ayumu (#6) induced a hand ball inside the Ehime penalty area. Kyoto’s ace, YAMADA Fuki (#10) calmly converted the spot kick, which ended up being the game winner, as Kyoto claimed their ninth victory of the season.

Coaches and Players' Comments

TESHIMA Kazuki, Coach (Kyoto Sanga F.C. U-18)
Both teams’ patience was being tested in this match and either side could have scored the opening goal. We lacked quality in our attacking third and struggled to create opportunities in the first half. It felt like we were still affected by last week’s loss to Nagoya Grampus U-18. We had to deal with many counterattacks in the second half, but our players did a great job to keep the clean sheet intact. We will continue to take it one match at a time, as we approach the final four matches of the season.

MF #10 YAMADA Fuki (Kyoto Sanga F.C. U-18)
We knew our opponent was going to play a five-man defence, so our offence was going to play a key role in this match. We planned on taking shots from distance to drag out our opponents, so that we can utilise our through balls more effectively. I haven’t scored a goal in a while, so I am glad that I was able to convert that penalty kick. However, we were kept scoreless in the first half, and that is an issue we must address. In order to win matches at this level, we must be more critical at the final third, so we will have to improve in that aspect.

AONO Daisuke, Coach (Ehime FC U-18)
We knew our system had a bad match against our opponent’s, so I had the feeling that we will be giving up the initiative to our opponent today. Despite giving up many opportunities to the opponent, our players showcased great persistency in defence. We managed to create some chances in the second half but didn’t have the quality to convert them. The penalty kick that determined the match was not a play out of luck, but rather a quality shot that was heading towards the goal, so our opponent had the upper-hand in this one.

DF #5 MIHARA Shuma (Ehime FC U-18)
Although we managed to create many opportunities in offence, the quality of our plays in front of the goal has been an issue since the start of the season. Our opponents at this league has shown great quality to score from distance, while we have been missing our opportunities even in one-on-one situations against the goalkeeper, and we must become more critical to win matches at this level. We did manage to show great persistency in defence today but ended up conceding a goal at the very end. It makes this loss that much tougher on us. This has been a very difficult season, as we have only won a single match thus far, but we will continue to work hard so that we can earn better our record in the remaining fixtures.

Results of other matches

Avispa Fukuoka U-18 0-0 (0-0, 0-0) Cerezo Osaka U-18
Sanfrecce Hiroshima F.C Youth 3-0 (2-0, 1-0) Higashi Fukuoka High School
Gamba Osaka Youth 0-0 (0-0, 0-0) Vissel Kobe U-18
Nagoya Grampus U-18 2-1 (2-0, 0-1) Ozu High School

The match between ninth place Avispa Fukuoka U-18 (Fukuoka) and eighth place Cerezo Osaka U-18 (Osaka) ended in a scoreless draw. Sanfrecce Hiroshima F.C Youth (Hiroshima) welcomed Higashi Fukuoka High School (Fukuoka) at home and marked their second straight victory. The Kansai matchup between league leaders Gamba Osaka Youth (Osaka) and Vissel Kobe U-18 (Hyogo) ended scoreless, as the two teams shared a point apiece. Nagoya Grampus U-18 (Aichi) won against Ozu High School (Kumamoto) 2-1 to keep their nine game undefeated streak alive.

WEST Sec. 14 Highlights

Prince Takamado Trophy JFA U-18 Football Premier League 2019

League Duration: Sat. 6 April - Sun. 8 December 2019

League Information