On Saturday 9 March, the semi-final matches of the JFA 24th Japan Futsal Championship took place at Komazawa Olympic Park General Sports Ground Indoor Ball Sports Field.

In the first semi-final fixture, Nagoya Oceans (F1) and Shrinker Osaka (F1) squared off against each other. The two had faced in the title match of the previous tournament as well as in the playoff final of the F League Division 1. The match started with Nagoya keeping possession of the ball, while Osaka anticipated for their chances to counter, but it was Nagoya's import players who made the difference in this match. In the 12th minute, the leading scorer of the 2018/2019 F League, WALTINHO netted the opener for Nagoya.

Nagoya extended their lead early in the second half, when NISHITANI Ryosuke reacted to a pass from LUIZINHO and scored in the 23rd minute. A minute later, Nishitani capitalised on a deflection off the goalkeeper to register his second goal of the match, giving Nagoya a 3-0 lead. Just as the match was seemingly going to be a lop-sided contest, Osaka started to rally. In the 25th minute, KATO Minami converted a free kick directly, followed by a goal scored by SHIBANO Sota off a corner kick to cut Osaka's deficit to one. In efforts to level the match, Osaka initiated their power-play in the closing minutes, but fell short from capturing the equaliser, sending Nagoya to the final for the second straight year.

The second semi-final match featured Tachikawa/Fuchu Athletic F.C. (F1), who were seeking for their first final appearance in 12 years, and Voscuore Sendai (F1), who were making their first ever semi-final appearance in franchise history. Tachikawa/Fuchu got on board in the second minute when JHOW capitalised on a pass from MINAMOTO Akira, who dribbled up the left side. Jhow added another in the ninth minute to give his side a two-goal advantage early in the match. However, Sendai didn’t back down easily as Alan GITAHY scored a goal in the 10th minute with the assist of HORIUCHI Michiya. Four minutes later, FUJIYAMA Shota redirected the route of a shot taken by ARAMAKI Taro to equalise the match, and Marlon SEVERO followed with a goal scored in the 16th minute to give Sendai a 3-2 lead at halftime.

Tachikawa/Fuchu, who finished third in the F1 League, picked up their intensity to start the second half. With Jhow recording his third goal of the match in the 23rd minute, OYAMA Yosuke, who has announced his retirement after this season, scored the go-ahead goal in the 32nd minute. Five minutes later, SAKAI Ryotaro converted Jhow’s pass to make it 5-3. Despite Sendai scoring a goal with their power-play in the closing minutes, Tachikawa/Fuchu managed to keep their lead to advance to the final with a final score of 5-4.

As a result, Nagoya and Tachikawa/Fuchu will take the court in the tournament final at 3 p.m. on Sunday 10 March. Stay tuned for this highly anticipated match where Nagoya will be seeking for their back-to-back triple crown, while the Tokyo side will strive to capture their first Japan Futsal Championship title in 22 tournaments, first since changing their franchise name to Tachikawa/Fuchu. Either way, history will be made at this final.

Coaches and Players' Comments

Pedro COSTA, Coach (Nagoya Oceans)
We have faced the Osaka side eight times this season, including the training matches. They present us with a great challenge every time, so we must be fully prepared when facing them. Although today’s match was a semi-final match, we entered the match as if it was the final. I have retired as a player at this tournament two years ago, so the Japan Futsal Championship final means a lot for me. We have worked all year to win and earn the title at this tournament. It will not mean anything if we cannot win the final. With our team given a better environment to play futsal, we have the obligation to win. There are certainly pressure against us, but if we can convert that pressure positively, good results shall follow.

SHIBANO Sota (Shriker Osaka)
Just as the play-off final, we lost to Nagoya by one goal. With this being my final season with Osaka, I really wanted to leave the team with the title, so it’s very disappointing. With our team seeing a transition from Coach KOGURE Kenichiro to Coach HIGA Rikarudo this season, I have been working to contribute to the team not only in offence but in defence as well. There were times during the season where I wasn’t getting enough playing time, so I personally wanted to earn better results. With players like ARTHUR on the team, Osaka had many talented players and there were lots to learn from them. I feel like I was able to broaden my ability as a player.

TANIMOTO Shunsuke, Coach (Tachikawa/Fuchu Athletic F.C.)
When we scored the first two goals, we felt like we can control the match in our favour, but we gave up the lead from our own mistakes. Despite facing a tough stretch, we managed to keep our focus and the players did a good job executing the game plan in the second half to retake the lead. We may not be the most fortunate club out there. Our players aren’t all elites, but they all consist with strong fighting spirit to make the entire team better by supplementing each other. We hope to showcase our strengths and fight hard in the final tomorrow.

UCHINO Shuma (Voscuore Sendai)
Although we managed to advance to our first semi-finals in franchise history, I honestly wanted to experience the final. I personally feel like I was able to combine well with my teammates in the first half but couldn’t quite do so in the second half. In the upcoming season, we must become able to maintain a high level of performance in order to cope against teams who are coming after us. We knew how Jhow can score many goals, and we had a plan to contain him, but it’s regretful that we couldn’t execute the plan in today’s match.

Semi-finals 3/9 12:00 kick-off
Nagoya Oceans (F1/1st) vs Shriker Osaka (F1/2nd)

Semi-finals 3/9 14:30 kick-off
Tachikawa/Fuchu Athletic F.C. (F1/3rd) vs Voscuore Sendai (F1/9th)

JFA 24th Japan Futsal Championship

Quarterfinals - Final
Tournament Dates: Fri. 8 - Sun. 10 March
Venue: Komazawa Olympic Park General Sports Ground Indoor Ball Sports Field, Tokyo

Tournament Information