The teams for the final four round of the 27th Prince Takamado Trophy All Japan Youth (U-15) Football Tournament are set. The participating teams have played close, competitive battles from the first round.

Yokohama F Marinos Junior Youth (Kanto 3) and Kyoto Sanga F.C. U-15 (Kansai 1) put up a high-level contest playing against each other in the first round. Kyoto scored a goal first, but Yokohama kept their composure and gradually drew the momentum. F Marinos rallied to win 3-1.

JFA Academy Fukushima U15 (Tokai 3) defeated Yokohama 2-0 in the second round. Fukushima completely shut Yokohama down while they also overwhelmed the opponents in the number of shots. “We deepened our confidence with the win,” Fukushima's SAKUYAMA Hiroki said after the game. In their quarterfinal game against Avispa Fukuoka U-15 (Kyushu 3), Fukushima took the initiative for the majority of the game and posted a 3-1 win.

Albirex Niigata U-15 (Hokushinetsu 1) and Cerezo Osaka U-15 (Kansai 2) played a hard-fought battle in the first round as their game entered extra minutes. But Cerezo's KOMATSU Kaiki scored a game-winner in the stoppage time of the first half in the extra minutes. Boosted by the victory, Cerezo crushed Oita Trinita U-15 (Kyushu 2) 7-0 in the second round, and cruised past Nagoya Grampus U15 (Tokai 1) 3-0 in the quarterfinals. Nagoya looked good as they combined for 10 goals scored in the two games they played, but their quest for the first national championship in five years ended up not being achieved.

The reigning runnerup Vissel Kobe U-15 (Kansai 5) defeated Kataller Toyama U-15 (Hokushinetsu 3) and SSS Junior Youth (Hokkaido 2) to advance to the final eight. But they weren't able to avenge the championship loss as they fell to Gamba Osaka Junior Youth (Kansai 3) in the quarterfinals. For Gamba, HARADA Retsushi and ADACHI Tsubasa have racked up six and four goals, respectively, to lead the team, which have scored 13 up until this point.

Montedio Yamagata Junior Youth Shonai (Tohoku 3) have advanced as they defeated Shonan Bellmare U-15 Hiratsuka (Kanto 7) and Sagan Tosu U-15 (Kyushu 1) after penalty shootouts for the two games in a row. Kashima Antlers Junior Youth (Kanto 6) edged Shimizu S-Pulse Junior Youth (Tokai 2) after a penalty shootout in the second round as well, while they posted a come-from-behind win with a pair of goals from set plays in the quarterfinals against Yamagata.

The two semifinal matches will be held at Ajinomoto Field Nishigaoka in Tokyo on 26 December. JFA Academy and Cerezo will play with a first championship game berth at stake, while Kashima and Gamba will look for a resurgence. The Osaka teams who showcase their offensive strengths, JFA Academy who have a solid team chemistry, or the mentally-resilient Kashima – they will put up can't-miss contests until the very end.

Prince Takamado Trophy All Japan Youth (U-15) Football Tournament

2015-12-19 (Sat.) - 12-28 (Mon.)
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