The Beach Soccer International Friendly Tournament kicked-off on Friday 27 September at Okura Beach Park, Hyogo.

The tournament became the first ever international beach soccer tournament held in Japan. Two teams were invited from overseas to join this historical event, as the runners-up of the 2017 FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup Bahamas 2017, the Tahiti Beach Soccer National Team, and the runners-up of the FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup Tahiti 2013, Spain Beach Soccer National Team, joined the winner of the AFC Beach Soccer Championship Thailand 2019, Japan Beach Soccer National Team, in this highly anticipated competition.

The first fixture featured a match between Tahiti and Spain, where the Spanish side scored the opening goal from their first play of the match. The goal came when the ball was passed from Llorenc GOMEZ LEON (#10) to Salvador ARDIL NAVARRO (#11), who pierced a shot into the Tahitian goal to give Spain the early lead.

Despite conceding the opener, Tahiti kept their composure and utilised their physical advantage to create opportunities. In the sixth minute, Tahiti’s Raimana LI FUNG KUEE (#7) struck a direct shot off a lobbing pass to equalise the match. With each team adding another goal apiece in the first period, the match entered the second period with a score of 2-2.

Tahiti’s player-coach, Naea BENNETT reflected after the match, “our players looked nervous in the first period,” but as the match progressed into the second period, the Tahitian side started to take control of the match, as they scored three goals during this period, including Alvin TEHAU’s (#4) incredible bicycle kick to take a one goal lead into the third period.

After giving up the lead to Tahiti in the second period, Spain rallied back in the third period, as the Spanish side outscored their opponent 4-2 in the final period to claim the victory in the 8-7 thriller.

Following the match between Tahiti and Spain, the Japan Beach Soccer National Team held their training session at the match venue. With Chairman KITAZAWA Tsuyoshi of the Futsal Committee, who preside over Beach Soccer as well, and coach MORIYASU Hajime of the SAMURAI BLUE (Japan National Team) watching over them, the team conducted a scrimmage and shooting drills to prepare themselves ahead of their two matches scheduled on Saturday 28 and Sunday 29.

After observing the training session, coach Moriyasu, who mentioned that it was his first time watching beach soccer in real life, shared his thoughts on the sport, “beach soccer requires significant level of techniques and sense of balance. It challenges the players both physically and mentally, and I was fascinated by the dynamics of the sport.” The coach continued by leaving a message towards the Japan Beach Soccer National Team, “we hope to see great performances from the team at this international friendly tournament and at the World Cup in November. As part of the Japanese football family, let’s compete against the world together.”

The Japan Beach Soccer National Team will face the Tahiti Beach Soccer National Team on Saturday 28 at 14:00. The match will be streamed live on JFA TV.

Watch the matches at JFA-TV (Japanese website)

Coach and Players' Comments

FP #9 Naea BENNETT, Player-Coach (Tahiti Beach Soccer National Team)
Although we had limited time to prepare for this tournament, the environment surrounding this tournament in Japan is outstanding, and we feel very fortunate to be given this opportunity to play in Japan. Despite losing today’s match, this experience will certainly make us stronger, so we will stay positive about this result. We ran out of gas and lost our focus towards the end of the match, and that has contributed to the goals we conceded in the third period. We must improve ourselves in that aspect ahead of our next match and towards the World Cup. We hope to showcase a spectacular game and entertain the viewers in our match against Japan.

FP #7 Raimana LI FUNG KUEE (Tahiti Beach Soccer National Team)
It was a very tough match. Spain showcased great tempo and it was very difficult to defend against them. We also committed many careless mistakes that led to our opponent scoring goals. By facing a strong team like Spain, it allowed us to find out where we need to improve as an individual and as a team. These matches against Spain and Japan will give us a great opportunity to prepare ourselves ahead of the Beach Soccer World Cup. We will reset our minds and give our utmost efforts in our next match against Japan.

FP #14 Javier TORRES MEDINA (Spain Beach Soccer National Team)
This was a very hard match for us. Although we managed to enter the match with great intensity, we saw ourselves playing defensively as time progressed. It was difficult to adjust to this hot and humid weather, especially after the long travel. Our squad consists young players who are in their early 20s, and the team is displaying great fusion between the veterans and the young talents. In order to showcase a great performance in our next match against Japan, we will rest our body first and prepare ourselves ahead of the match on the 29th.

Schedule

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

International Friendly Tournament

Tournament Dates: Fri. 27 - Sun. 29 September 2019
Tournament Venue: Okura Beach Park, Hyogo

Tournament Information