On their sixth day in Palembang, Indonesia, Coach TAKAKURA Asako gave her players a day off, in consideration of their conditions.

With the team given four days in between matches, the decision was made as the players were starting to feel the fatigue. The players have gradually gotten used to the athlete’s village and each player spent their time in various ways to refresh themselves ahead of their match against the Vietnam Women's National Team. Some players were seen spending their time on the pitch to conduct training, some left the athletes’ village to check out the nearby grocery store, while some players stayed at their rooms to relax, as each player had their way of spending the rare day off.

On this day, the Opening ceremony of the Asian Games was held in Jakarta. With the team stationed in Palembang, the players of the Nadeshiko Japan were not able to attend the ceremony, but more players were showing up at the athletes’ village. The increasing numbers of athletes became more and more evident as the food court was getting crowded in the busy hours while the number of volunteers and security has increased dramatically as well. These changes have given the players in Palembang a sense that the Asian Games has finally begun.

The Nadeshiko Japan’s second match of the Asian Games will take place on Tuesday 21st August with a kick-off time of 17:00 Japan time.

Players’ Comments

MF #7 NAKAJIMA Emi (INAC Kobe Leonessa)
I am glad that we managed to win with a clean sheet in our first match of the tournament. At a personal level, I would like to be keener to score more goals, be more creative in the final third, and heighten the quality of my final passes. We will now face the Vietnam Women's National Team, who I have an impression from our last encounter that they utilise their counter attacks very effectively. We still have time before our math against Vietnam, so we will watch their tapes to analyse their plays and share all the information between the players to keep ourselves on the same page.

MF #14 HASEGAWA Yui (Nippon TV Beleza)
In our first match, our opponents gave us enough space so that we can receive the ball in a way we liked to and utilise the direct plays effectively. In our next match against Vietnam, we need to come up with more variety in our attacks and score goals. The Asian Games has finally begun, and I saw fireworks at night. I have been given the opportunity to meet with new people from different countries and athletes competing in different sports at the athletes’ village, giving me a unique experience none like the other tournaments.

Schedule

*Local Time
*The schedule is subject to change due to the team condition, the weather, etc.

The 18th Asian Games 2018 Jakarta Palembang

Tournament Dates:Sat. 18 August - Sun. 2 September 2018

【Women's】Group Stage
1st Match Thu. 16 August 20:30 [Japan Time] vs Thailand
2nd Match Tue. 21 August 17:00 [Japan Time] vs Vietnam

Tournament Information