Pick-up Match

Ryutsukeizaidai Kashiwa   0-1 (0-0, 0-1)   Ichiritsu Funabashi High School

The Prince Takamado Trophy U-18 Premier League WEST Matchday 9 was held on Sunday 17 July as Ichiritsu Funabashi High School (Chiba) in the second place beat Ryutsukeizaidai Kashiwa (Chiba) in the 10th place 1-0, becoming the new league leader. Both teams are based in the Chiba Prefecture and are aiming to win the championship. There was a tense atmosphere at the match between these rivals. 

Both teams were cautious in the first half. However, in the 10th minute, the forward MATSUO Yusuke, a freshman at Ichiritsu Funabashi High School, took a diving header at the goal. The left back ICHIKAWA Yuma of Ryutsukeizaidai Kashiwa, on the other hand, countered by quickly passing through the defenders and firing a shot. Although the match remained scoreless after a pair of unsuccessful attempts, Ichiritsu Funabashi gradually started to gain possession. The midfielders SEKI Yamato and MIYAMOTO Yuta played superbly for Ryutsukeizaidai, Kashiwa, denying any further advances of the opponents. The first half ended in a tie 0-0.

The game stayed in the balance until the 73rd minute of the second half. New players, the skilful forward, KAWANISHI Shu of Ryutsukeizaidai Kashiwa, and the tall striker, MURAKAMI Koyu of Ichiritsu Funabashi, were introduced in attempt to change the tempo of the match. Murakami launched a header in the 64th minute. Minutes after, Ryutsukeizaidai Kashiwa advanced forward from a throw-in. Both pursuits for goal were unsuccessful.

Finally, in the 73rd minute, the opener was struck. The defender, HARA Teruki of Ichiritsu Funabashi, who switched his position from the centre to the left due to a substitution, found the forward, OTA Takaya, who moved from the right side to the centre. Hara sent a floating pass in an open space in the left side and Ota then managed to put a difficult shot into the right corner of the goal.

Since OTA had been dropped from the first team and only re-joined this week, he struck the goal with some spirit. He later commented “I was hoping to receive the ball. I guess I managed due to my strong determination. It was a difficult shot to score and I was really touched as my teammates gathered and cheered after the goal.”

In the 82nd minute, the forward Ubukata Jaral Yu from Ryutsukeizaidai Kashiwa had an opportunity to equalise in a 1-on-1 situation with the goalkeeper, only for it to go over the crossbar. Ubukata later commented regretfully that “I was thinking of a one-touch shot. As I was completely free, I could have changed my mind. It was a shame. It was my fault.’

Both teams failed to score in the closing minutes of the match. Ichiritsu Funabashi beat Ryutsukeizaidai Kashiwa with a final score of 1-0.

The first half of the League concluded this week. Ichiritsu Funabashi are in the lead, while Ryutsukeizaidai Kashiwa are at the bottom. However, there can still be upsets. More exciting games will be held after the interval.

Coach and Players' Comments

HONDA Yuichiro, Coach (Ryutsukeizaidai Kashiwa)
It was a disappointing game. We could have at least ended up in a draw. In regards to defence, I think they performed well, apart from one mistake, which allowed the opponents to score. It’s our task to increase our scoring patterns. As we have been focusing on a fast-paced attack, we tend to lack accuracy. We need to improve it. We’re in a difficult situation with points. However, I believe that we are, gradually but surely, getting better. 

ASAOKA Ryuzo, Coach (Ichiritsu Funabashi High School)
As we do not possess the technique to dominate the match by keeping possession throughout the match, we need to focus on every aspect of the game. In that regards, we performed well against a formidable opponent, who could score from our careless mistakes.

I was pleased with OTA’s goal. Despite his speed and excellent dribbling skills, he had been struggling. I had to drop him from the first team once, since his performance had gone down. However, I’d like to point out that he stayed motivated and kept practicing hard. I believe that attitude brought him that goal. It was an excellent match for him.

SUGIOKA Daiki (Ichiritsu Funabashi High School)
In the first half, we played the ideal game. We took control of the match by winning the competition for the ball. However, we did not have many goal-scoring opportunities or overwhelming attacks against the opponents. We need to improve on that. Although we are now in the lead, I’d like to play hard each and every match without thinking about our ranking. We had been unbeaten until the 5th match. One of the reasons why we couldn’t win the proceeding match, I think, was that we were content with our results. We need to stay modest until the season is over. 

Other Matches

Aomori Yamada High School   0-2 (0-2, 0-0)   Yokohama F. Marinos Youth
Kashima Antlers Youth   0-1 (0-0, 0-1)   Shimizu S-Pulse Youth
F.C. Tokyo U-18　4-0 (3-0, 1-0)   Albirex Niigata U-18
Kashiwa Reysol U-18   3-0 (2-0, 1-0)   Omiya Ardija Youth

Aomori Yamada High School (Aomori) conceded two goals in the first half against Yokohama F・Marinos Youth (Kanagawa) and lost the game 2-0.

F.C. Tokyo U-18 (Tokyo) won a sweeping victory over Albirex Niigata U-18 (Niigata), who were in ninth place, with a hat trick from the forward HANYA Yosuke. 

Kashiwa Reysol U-18 (Chiba) beat Omiya Ardija Youth (Saitama) 3-0, while Shimizu S-pulse Youth (Shizuoka) defeated Kashima Antlers Youth (Ibaraki) 1-0. 

Ichiritsu Funabashi are currently in the lead after the first half of the season. All the teams are very competitive. All but the bottom two teams are within three points of their league leader. 

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