The quarterfinal contests of the 28th Prince Takamado Trophy All Japan Youth (U-15) Football Tournament were played on Friday 23 December at a few different locations in Ibaraki Prefecture.

Pick-up Match 1

Cerezo Osaka U-15　1-3 (1-0, 0-3)　Shimizu S-Pulse Junior Youth

The first match held at K’s Denki Stadium Mito was between Cerezo Osaka U-15 (Kansai 3) and Shimizu S-Pulse Junior Youth (Tokai 1). Both teams competed hard for the initiative of the match, putting pressure on each other up and early. Shimizu acquired a few corner-kicks in a row four minutes into the match, but Cerezo Osaka became more aggressive and started taking the control. In the 22nd minute, Cerezo took the ball from Shimizu trying to build up their attack, and immediately went onto their own offence. YOSHIDA Yuji received a quick feed from OKUMURA Jin and laid it in for the match opener for the Osaka side.

After finishing the first half with one goal deficit, Shimizu attempted to come back early in the latter half. With effective distance between their players to avoid the Cerezo defence, they went toward Cerezo’s goal by incorporating long feeds as well. In the 44th minute, they tied the match when YAMAZAKI Ryosuke put the deflection of KAWAMOTO Riyo’s midrange shot to the back of the net. Then four minutes later, HAYASHI Koki quickly gave Shimizu the first lead of the match by heading in a well-targeted left corner-kick by MARUYAMA Yutaro. Furthermore, AOYAMA Taichi’s left-footed shot off a cross ball from the right extended the Shimizu’s lead to 3-1 another four minutes later. Although Cerezo Osaka tried to change the course of the match by using substitutions and changing the formation, the scoring opportunities were hard to create. The score remained unchanged until Shimizu came out victoriously with a spot in the final four.

Match Details (Japanese version only)

Pick-up Match 2

Tokyo Verdy Junior Youth　1-2 (0-1, 1-1)　Shonan Bellmare U-15 Hiratsuka

In the second match at the K’s Denki Stadium Mito, Tokyo Verdy Junior Youth (Kanto 1) took on Shonan Bellmare U-15 Hiratsuka (Kanto 7). Tokyo Verdy, who had just won the first division of the Kanto regional league, moved the ball around to look for open space. On the other hand, Shona, who, despite in the second division, had been showing a great campaign in this tournament, kept running around well both offensively and defensively backed by outstanding stamina. The first goal of the match was scored by Shonan in the 35th minute. A loose ball from a cross from the right was picked up by OKUTSU Reita on the other side, who struck a fierce shot with his left foot into the right side of the net.

Against Tokyo Verdy going for an equaliser, Shonan also did not stop attacking. After a few highlight plays by both sides, the match saw the next goal also scored by Shonan. In the 63rd minute, NAKAMURA Ryuga, who had been utilising his body in post plays, shock off defenders by one-two combination on the right side. He then composedly outsmarted the goalkeeper by directing a scoop shot into the goal. Tokyo Verdy, with two goals down, used up all the substitutions by the 79th minute, trying to accelerate their offensive tempo. The efforts partially materialised and tallied one back through a free-kick, but they ran out of time only to see Shonan advance to the semi-finals.

Match Details (Japanese version only)

The semi-final contests will be held on Monday 26 at Ajinomoto Field Nishigaoka (Tokyo) to determine two clubs going on to the final.

Coach's and Players' Comments

NISHIO Ryuya (Cerezo Osaka U-15)
It was good early on, but we kind of lost our momentum during the half time, and I think that’s why we lost. We got too excited because we scored a goal against such a good team, and we lost our poise. The opponents didn’t miss it and that’s where they were better than us. This tournament is the last tournament for the third graders and we thought how we came together as a team was important. This has been a tournament where I learned a lot not only football plays but also lessons about who we are as a person.

YAMAZAKI Ryosuke (Shimizu S-pulse Junior Youth)
I have been able to score in this tournament, so that’s good as a forward. In the first half, it didn’t go as well as we wanted, and during the half time we talked about how we could change it. We didn’t run enough, we didn’t look around enough and we were too far apart from each other. So we tried to share how we wanted to play. It was good that we tied the match as soon as the second half started. We have allowed the opening goal in the past two matches so far, so how we start off matches will be a key from this point on.

Jose Antonio, Coach (Tokyo Verdy Junior Youth)
We couldn’t play to our strength and it turned out to be a difficult match. When we possessed the ball, we thought too long, and we were vulnerable to the opponent’s pressure. We didn’t make enough side changes, either. We were too uptight and we didn’t see the pitch enough. But my players were trying very hard to do what I expected them to do. They have improved greatly in the past year. The kids have a lot of potential.

NAKAMURA Ryuga (Shonan Bellmare U-15 Hiratsuka)
They were the opponents we had never beaten before, so we were so determined when we came out. I think this win was possible because all the players on the team including the guys who didn’t make it to the bench and also the supporters came together as one team. I hadn’t scored any goal before this match, but in this one, I scored one goal and helped my team win. So I am very happy. We won today, but we have some improvements to make such as the point that we didn’t communicate very well late in the match. So we correct that before the semi-final and we will be ready for the next match. We have a good feeling that we will be able to keep winning.

28th Prince Takamado Trophy All Japan Youth (U-15) Football Tournament

2016-12-17(Sat.)～2016-12-28(Wed.)
First Round～Quarter-finals：Various Stadiums in Ibaraki Prefecture
Semi-finals～FinalAjinomoto Field Nishigaoka(Tokyo)
Tournament Information
Fixtures and Results (Japanese version only)