U-16 Bhutan National Team, currently managed and coached by overseas dispatch of Official JFA Licensed Coaches LEE Song Jun (Head Coach) and HANITA Atsushi (GK Coach), held a 7-day training camp from Sunday 2 to Saturday 8 July at Seisa Sports Club in Kanagawa Prefecture.

The team had four training matches during their stay.

Training Match Results

4 July (Tue.) vs JFA Academy Fukushima U-15 0-3 (0-0, 0-3) 40min.×2
6 July (Thu.) vs Seisa Kokusai High School 0-3 (0-1, 0-0, 0-2) 30min.×3
7 July (Fri.) vs Tokyo Korean Senior High School 1-3 (0-2, 1-1) 40min.×2
8 July (Sat.) vs Mito HollyHock U-15　1-4 (0-3, 1-1) 35min.×2

The national team also spent a fruitful time by experiencing various off-the-pitch activities as well. They paid a courtesy visit to the City Hall of Hakone, participated in Japanese cultural programmes, went sightseeing in Tokyo, and watched J.League Division 1 match ‘Kawasaki Frontale vs Urawa Red Diamonds’ and Division 2 match ‘Mito HollyHock vs Roasso Kumamoto’.

Comments

LEE Song Jun, Head Coach
U-16 Bhutan National Team held their long-awaited training camp in Japan at Seisa University Hakone Campus from Sunday 2 to Saturday 8 July. In Bhutan, there are only a few youth teams and domestic transportation may not be as accessible. Thus, playing against other youth teams has become a wonderful learning experience for our national team as well as being a perfect opportunity to test their current level of football.

Not limited to football, they must have been inspired by the living environment and standard in Japan as well as their hospitality during their stay. I observed a steady progress in their performance on the pitch as well. I believe they learned many things at the same time felt disappointed by seeing the Japanese teams carrying out the match composedly with superb technical and decision-making skills and excellent team organisation. Watching two J.League matches was a wonderful experience as well. They were enticed by feeling the atmosphere inside the Japanese stadiums at first-hand and seeing the wonderful plays of the J.League clubs. We should capitalise on this experience, and not this camp end with good memories only.

HANITA Atsushi, Goalkeeper Coach
We had been planning a training camp in Japan, and it finally took place with support from the Seisa Group and the Japan Football Association. I would like to express my sincere gratitude to all the people who supported our camp. The scenery of Hakone Town where they stayed was not so different from that of Bhutan and the players seemed to really enjoy it as well.

In the four training matches during our camp, we were able to experience the high level of technique and pace of the Japanese players which we normally cannot in Bhutan. The matches also highlighted some of our problem areas–we allowed the opponents to score before we get use to their speed and style of football. We will take this experience back to Bhutan and will make the best preparation possible for the coming SAFF Championship in August and the subsequent AFC U-16 Championship Qualifiers in September. We will do our best to achieve positive results.

Kinley Dorji
First of all, I would like to express my gratitude to the JFA for their warm welcome and great support. I would like to thank the Seisa Group for hosting us as well. We also learned many things during this camp. It was an invaluable experience for us to have a chance to practise under different playing conditions. We had to get acclimatised to the Japanese climate, play on different natural and artificial turfs and compete against various opponents. We will be looking to capitalise on this experience to improve ourselves further. Lastly, I would like our thank our opponents JFA Academy Fukushima U-15, Seisa Kokusai High School, Tokyo Korean Senior High School and Mito HollyHock U-15.

Tshelthrim Namgyel
My main goal of this camp was to learn the different playing styles of Japanese players as well as the physical and mental aspects of their game. From the four training matches, I learned many things in addition to the areas I need to work on myself. Furthermore, I was able to experience the Japanese culture during our stay. Aside from the training inside the camp, we were able to visit many beautiful places in Japan, and I felt that Japan is a wonderful country. Lastly, I would like to thank the JFA and the Seisa Group for all their support.

Overseas dispatch of Official JFA Licensed Coaches