The fourth sec. of the Prince Takamado Trophy JFA U-18 Football Premier League 2022 is about to take place on Saturday 23 and Sunday 24 April.

EAST

Aomori Yamada High School (Aomori) are the only team in the EAST with a perfect 3-0 record. Last week they won against Omiya Ardija U18 (Saitama) 1-0, thanks to the 31st minute goal scored by WATANABE Rai (#2). Although they have not had an overwhelming victory thus far, they have kept clean sheets in all three matches. Their opponent, JFA Academy Fukushima U-18 (Shizuoka) have shown an uptick in their form since their 1-4 loss in the season opener, losing 1-2 in the second week, followed by a 1-1 draw against Kawasaki Frontale U-18 (Kanagawa) last week. If they can continue with the trend, they may be able to earn their first win of the season against the league leaders.

In Chiba, Ryutsu Keizai University Kashiwa High School (Chiba) and Kashiwa Reysol U-18 (Chiba) are set to square off in the Kashiwa derby. Ryutsu Keizai Kashiwa are coming off a win over Yokohama F.Marinos Youth (Kanagawa), thanks to the late heroics of KASHIMOTO Shin (#6), who scored the game winner during additional time. Impacted by the pandemic, the Reysols have only played one match thus far. Their only match came in the second sec. against Yokohama FC Youth (Kanagawa), where they lost 1-3, so the players are certainly hungry to play their second match and improve their record.

Two sides from Kanagawa, second place Kawasaki Frontale and third place Yokohama FM, are scheduled to go head-to-head this week. Playing in their first Premier League campaign, Kawasaki have kept an undefeated record with two wins and one draw thus far, and they will certainly be keen to remain undefeated. Yokohama FM on the other hand, have scored the most goals in the EAST with 12 goals. Their ace UCHINO Kotaro (#9), who leads the scorer ranking, will try to lead his side to victory in the Kanagawa derby.

Elsewhere, Yokohama FC and FC Tokyo U-18 (Tokyo) will face each other in Yokohama, Kiryu Daiichi High School (Gunma) will host Funabashi Municipal High School (Chiba), while Maebashi Ikuei High School (Gunma) will square off against Omiya.

WEST

Plenty of intriguing matches await in the WEST as well. Two sides from Shizuoka will clash this week, as Shizuoka Gakuen High School (Shizuoka) and Shimizu S-Pulse Youth (Shizuoka) are scheduled to go head-to-head. Shizuoka Gakuen have started their first Premier League campaign with three consecutive victories. Led by TERAURA Tsurugi (#11), their offence have shown plenty of firepower, scoring multiple goals in each match. Shimizu on the other hand, started off the season with back-to-back losses, before recording their first win of the season against Riseisha High School (Osaka) last week. They will try to turn things around by winning against the league leaders and bring their record back to even.

Third place Sagan Tosu U-18 (Saga) will face sixth place Vissel Kobe U-18 (Hyogo). Tosu have won two matches with a score of 3-0 but lost a match 0-2 in between. They will try to win back-to-back in order to gain momentum early in the season. Kobe on the other hand, started their season with a 4-0 victory over Gamba Osaka Youth (Osaka), but lost two consecutive matches since. Having conceded five goals against Cerezo Osaka U-18 (Osaka) last week, their key to success will lie on whether they can bounce back defensively.

Riseisha will welcome Nagoya Grampus U-18 (Aichi) to their home. The Osaka side won their season opener against Sanfrecce Hiroshima FC Youth (Hiroshima) in the second sec. and came close to earning a point against Shimizu last week. They will try to win and regain their momentum at home. After starting the season with back-to-back wins, Nagoya suffered a heart-breaking loss by conceding to Jubilo Iwata U-18 (Shizuoka) in additional time of the second half. They will be keen to bounce back and return to their winning ways.

Elsewhere, fixtures between Ozu High School (Kumamoto) and Hiroshima, Higashi Fukuoka High School (Fukuoka) and C. Osaka are set to be played, while the match between Iwata and G. Osaka has been postponed.

Prince Takamado Trophy JFA U-18 Football Premier League 2022

League Duration: Sat. 2 April - Sun. 4 December 2022

League Information