The 19th sec. of the Prince Takamado Trophy JFA U-18 Football Premier League 2022 will take place on Saturday 22 and Sunday 23 October.

EAST

Kawasaki Frontale U-18 (Kanagawa) and Yokohama F.Marinos Youth (Kanagawa) are at the top of the EAST table. Both teams have five matches remaining after this week's match, with a six-point gap between them. Whether they pull away or close the gap here is likely to be a major turning point in the title race. Kawasaki will take on 12th-ranked Kiryu Daiichi High School (Gunma). After two consecutive defeats since the league resumed, Kawasaki have regained their form with two wins and a draw in their recent three matches. Their opponents Kiryu Daiichi are in a difficult position, trailing ninth place by seven points. They are expected to face a tough battle against the leaders this week, but they desperately need to pick up points in order to survive the relegation race.

Yokohama FM will welcome Maebashi Ikuei High School (Gunma) to their home. In the previous week, they were defeated by JFA Academy Fukushima U-18 (Shizuoka) and suffered their first loss since the 10th sec. This will be a crucial match for them to get back in the title race. Maebashi Ikuei, currently in seventh place, should have some momentum after their 5-1 win over Kiryu Daiichi in the Gunma Prefecture High School showdown the previous week. It will be interesting to see if they can boost their morale going into the final stages of the season by beating one of the front-runners.

There will also be a direct showdown between 10th-placed AC Fukushima and 11th-placed Funabashi Municipal High School (Chiba) in the battle for survival. Having beaten both Kawasaki and Yokohama in recent matches, AC Fukushima will seek to ride the momentum to escape the relegation zone. In contrast, Funabashi Municipal have struggled in their last three matches, drawing one and losing two. The gap between the two sides is now five points, but if Funabashi Municipal can close the gap here, it will give them hope to remain in the Premier League. In their last meeting, AC Fukushima won 4-2. Will AC Fukushima get back at it again, or will Funabashi Municipal get their revenge?

Other matches will be played between Kashiwa Reysol U-18 (Chiba), Aomori Yamada High School (Aomori), Ryutsu Keizai University Kashiwa High School (Chiba) and Yokohama FC Youth ( Kanagawa). The match between FC Tokyo U-18 (Tokyo) and Omiya Ardija U18 (Saitama) has been postponed to Thursday 3 November.

WEST

Last week, the WEST saw the league leaders Sagan Tosu U-18 (Saga) and second-placed Jubilo Iwata U-18 (Shizuoka) both lose their matches. However, Tosu are still four points clear of second place and five points clear of third place. Tosu will now face 12th-placed Gamba Osaka Youth (Osaka). As in the EAST, it is a match between teams at the top and bottom of the table, but if Gamba Osaka can cause an upset, it will certainly stir up the league. Tosu will be looking to bounce back from their defeat and defend their top spot, while Gamba Osaka will be highly motivated to get the points they need to stay in the league.

Second-placed Iwata will play fifth-placed Riseisha High School (Osaka). Last week Iwata lost to Vissel Kobe U-18 (Hyogo) 0-5 in a top-of-the-table clash, and there is an urgent need to rebuild their defence. Their opponents, Riseisha, are on an upswing towards the end of the season, having won three in a row since the 16th sec., and it will be interesting to see if they can ride the momentum of their winning streak to accumulate more victories.

10th-placed Cerezo Osaka U-18 (Osaka) will play eighth-placed Ozu High School (Kumamoto). Last week Cerezo Osaka went toe to toe with Shizuoka Gakuen High School (Shizuoka) and took the lead for the first time in the 88th minute but surrendered the equaliser in additional time of the second half to draw the match 4-4. Nevertheless, they finally got to add a point to their tally after a six-game losing streak. They are just three points behind ninth, and four points behind eighth placed Ozu. A win this week will get them within striking distance to escape the relegation zone. Their opponents Otsu are on a three-match winning streak, with all three games coming down to a single goal. They too are near the boarder line for the survival race, making this a must win match for them as well.

Other matches include Nagoya Grampus U-18 (Aichi) against Sanfrecce Hiroshima FC Youth (Hiroshima), Higashi Fukuoka High School (Fukuoka) against Shizuoka Gakuen, and Shimizu S-Pulse Youth (Shizuoka) against Kobe.

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Prince Takamado Trophy JFA U-18 Football Premier League 2022

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

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