Pick-up Match

Sanfrecce Hiroshima F.C Youth 4-0 (1-0, 3-0) Vissel Kobe U-18

The 10th Sec. of the Prince Takamado Trophy JFA U-18 Football Premier League WEST took place on Saturday 25 and Sunday 26 August, where Sanfrecce Hiroshima F.C Youth (Hiroshima) faced Vissel Kobe U-18 (Hyogo).

After concluding the first half of the season with three consecutive shutout victories, Hiroshima squared off against Kobe in their first match of the second half. As their midfielder KATSURA Rikuto (#10) mentioned, “In the first half of the season, we suffered a loss despite creating many opportunities, so we really wanted to win this match,” the team took the initiative of the match from the early minutes. In the 13th minute, Hiroshima came close to scoring the opening goal when OHORI Ryonosuke (#14) fired a shot that went off the goal post.

While Kobe gradually made their efforts to take control of the match, Hiroshima’s defence line led by YAMASAKI Taichi (#8) kept their composure to deny their opponents from threatening their goal. Their patience prevailed in the 45th minute, when SUZU Naoki (#5) delivered corner kick into the mix, which was initially blocked by Kobe’s goalkeeper, but Yamasaki was there to convert the loose ball with his header. Yamasaki later reflected on his goal, “I told Suzu to deliver a ball to the far post and that’s exactly what he did.”

With Yamasaki’s superb goal, Hiroshima took the lead just before halftime. Kobe on the other side, entered the second half with a bitter end to the first half as Coach NODA Satoru mentioned, “We conceded the goal just as we were starting to create opportunities, so that was a goal we’d like to take back.” With momentum on their side, Hiroshima went onto score another goal in the 49th minute, when Ohori converted a corner kick. From this point on, Hiroshima started to effectively utilise their through balls and long balls delivered into the space behind the opposing defenders to dominate the Kobe side.

As Katsura spoke after the match, “We managed to apply aggressive pressure from the front line. We didn’t give any freedom to our opponents in the second half,” the Hiroshima side took full control of the match with their solid defence. In the 52nd minute, WATANABE Kaito (#9) assisted Katsura’s goal to extend their lead to three goals. Katsura who has regained his confidence in the recent matches scored the team’s fourth goal in the 62nd minute to give his side a 4-0 victory. After scoring a brace, Katsura shared his aspiration, “We are not in first place, but we are in the title contention. There will be much tougher matches waiting ahead of us, but we will fight as a team to take the title.”

Coaches' and Players' Comments

SAWADA Kentaro, Coach (Sanfrecce Hiroshima F.C Youth)
I was looking forward to seeing how composed our players can play in our match today. We failed to convert our chances in the first half which allowed Kobe to find their rhythm, but our players showed great patience during that stretch. We managed to score late in the first half and grabbed another goal early in the second half, which allowed us to take full control of the match, so our timing was spot on today. However, we have no time to sit on our laurels, as we are scheduled to face tough teams in the following fixtures. I hope we can keep on playing like we did today.

DF #8 YAMASAKI Taichi (Sanfrecce Hiroshima F.C Youth)
When we faced Kobe in the first half of the season, we conceded the goal too easily, and we have been taking a great deal of emphasis on defence since then, which allowed us to keep clean sheets in our recent matches. Our team showcased a great collective effort in defence today, and I think that’s what led to our goals. We have been very vocal in our training sessions, regardless of the age, which has given us a positive vibe among the team. The more we demand from our teammates, the more we have to work hard as an individual. That positive cycle has given us the opportunity to strive higher as a team.

NODA Satoru, Coach (Vissel Kobe U-18)
With our core players missing with injuries or departing the team with duties at the national team, we were forced to place our players in unfamiliar positions and utilise the younger players, which made it difficult for our players to work collectively. Even in our build-ups, the unexperienced players were seen rushing their plays and lacked players who can settle the ball to take control over the team. When we have our full squad, we can cope with any teams, but this is the reality when we are missing a few players. This puts us in a tough spot, but I hope the players were able to learn something positive from this experience.

MF #7 YAMAUCHI Kakeru (Vissel Kobe U-18)
We managed to execute our game plan in the first half but conceded a goal in the additional time. We also conceded early in the second half, which was something we have been taking an emphasis on, so that was very disappointing. We also lacked our composure in offence, as we rushed our plays when we were getting pressured on by our opponents. As a second-year player, I wanted to play in behalf of those injured players, but I should have taken on the role to settle the ball for the team. We will feed off of this experience and make the necessary adjustments ahead of our next match.

Results of other matches

Higashi Fukuoka High School 2-2 (1-1, 1-1) Kyoto Sanga F.C. U-18
Avispa Fukuoka U-18 1-2 (0-1, 1-1) Cerezo Osaka U-18
Nagoya Grampus U-18 1-1 (0-1, 1-0) Gamba Osaka Youth
Yonago Kita High School 0-1 (0-1, 0-0) Hannan University Senior High School

Higashi Fukuoka High School (Fukuoka) managed to score the equaliser in the closing minutes of the match to draw against Kyoto Sanga F.C. U-18 (Kyoto). Cerezo Osaka U-18 (Osaka) won their away match against Avispa Fukuoka U-18 (Fukuoka) with a final score of 2-0. The match between Nagoya Grampus U-18 (Aichi) and Gamba Osaka Youth (Osaka) ended in a tie as both teams scored a goal apiece. The struggling Yonago Kita High School (Tottori) side once again failed to earn a point, after losing 0-1 against Hannan University Senior High School (Osaka).

Tournament Period：Sat. 7 April 2018 ～ Sun. 9 December 2018

Tournament Information