On Saturday 9 November, one day before their match against the South Africa Women’s National Team at the MS&AD Cup 2019, the Nadeshiko Japan (Japan Women’s National Team) held a training session and press conference at the match venue, Kitakyushu Stadium.

Despite getting welcomed by sprinkle of rain, the players of the Nadeshiko Japan showed up at Kitakyushu Stadium on time to conduct their training session.

While the goalkeepers went through separate drills, the field players were seen going through variety of possession drills, before the session went behind closed doors.

At the press conference held after the training session, coach TAKAKURA Asako took the podium and mentioned, “Tomorrow, we will be playing a match at this wonderful venue, Kitakyushu Stadium, against a spectacular team, who travelled all the way from South Africa, and we are very honoured to be given such opportunity.” The Japanese coach continued by sharing her take of the match, “When facing a different type of team, we must stay flexible and make the adjustments according to the given situation.”

After arriving in Japan on Friday 8, the South Africa Women’s National Team also held their training session at Kitakyushu Stadium on this day. Despite the long travel, the players showed great energy as they went through their drills with a unique rhythm, showing great form ahead of tomorrow’s match.

Following the training session, coach Desiree ELLIS and Refiloe JANE appeared at the press conference. South Africa had made their first ever Women’s World Cup appearance at the recent FIFA Women’s World Cup France 2019. Although the team finished with three losses at the group stage, the African side showcased a superb effort to play a close match against Spain and China PR.

The team has been eliminated from the Olympics qualification, but they are currently working towards next year’s Africa Women Cup of Nations. The team consists many experienced players like Jane, as their striker, Chretsinah Thembi KGATLANA is a talented player who plays for Beijing BG Phoenix in China PR. Ahead of the match, coach Ellis stated, “We hope to utilise new players and challenge ourselves at the match.”

The MS&AD Cup 2019 match between the Nadeshiko Japan and the South Africa Women’s National Team will kick off at 12:45 on Sunday 10 November at Kitakyushu Stadium.

Coaches and Players' Comments

TAKAKURA Asako, Coach of Nadeshiko Japan (Japan Women’s National Team)
Following our match against Canada, we will be facing a different type of team in a short span. This allows us to make quick adjustments and also gives us the opportunity to find new learnings. Although our opponent may present us with a unique playing style, we will make the same approach as always, and try to make the necessary adjustments on the pitch. I hope our players can make their own decisions and showcase high quality plays in the match.

GK #18 YAMASHITA Ayaka (Nippon TV Beleza)
Compared to Canada, South Africa may be ranked lower in the FIFA ranking, but their kicking ability and speed are at the top level of the world. Their players are very athletic, and we must find ways to cover their runs down the line. As the match progress, we should find out what we need to do in this match. For now, we will focus on the long balls and control our defence line to take the initiative of the match.

DF #16 MIYAGAWA Asato (Nippon TV Beleza)
While we focus on the areas we didn’t do well against Canada, we hope to showcase a better performance at the final third in this match. We had plenty of opportunities to score and could have played more aggressively to carry the ball upfront, so we will try to do a better job in our build-up plays at this match against South Africa. Although I consider myself as a left fullback, I will give my best efforts at any position.

MF #10 MOMIKI Yuka (Nippon TV Beleza)
Following last month’s match, we hope to make both our strong and weak points clear, so that we can build a foundation to compete at the world stage. We saw both positive and negative aspects in our match against Canada, but we hope to build on our playing style of holding the ball possession. Ideally, we would like to take control of the ball possession 80% of the time and showcase a dominating performance that doesn’t allow our opponent to enter our territory.

Desiree ELLIS, Coach (South Africa Women’s National Team)
We are very thankful for the warm hospitality we are receiving here in Japan. Japan and South Africa have faced each other at the 2012 Olympics where we had a great match. In terms of the players’ size and speed, we both share similar traits, and we hope to develop our team based on how Japan has developed their team. We will give our best efforts to showcase a quality match in tomorrow’s match.

MF #15 Refiloe JANE (South Africa Women’s National Team)
I would like to share my gratitude towards the warm welcome we are receiving here in Japan. I feel like the recent Rugby World Cup may have contributed to familiarise our country to the people of Japan. Tomorrow, we will be facing a very strong team, and we are expecting a tough match. This match will give us a great opportunity to find out how much we have developed as a team, so we hope to make it a positive match.

Schedule

*1 The schedule is subject to change due to the team condition, the weather, etc.
*2 With the Emperor's enthronement ceremony (enthronement parade) taking place on the same day, the kick-off time has been changed to 12:45.

MS&AD Cup 2019

Nadeshiko Japan (Japan Women's National Team) vs South Africa Women's National Team
Date: Sun. 10 November 2019 Kick-off at 12:45
Venue: Kitakyushu Stadium, Fukuoka

Tournament Information