Six matches, including quarterfinals and semifinals, were held on the third day of the 1st All Japan Youth (U-18) Futsal Championship presented by BallBall on Saturday 30 August, deciding the finalists.

The final will be between Nagoya Oceans U-18 (Tokai 1/Aichi) and FC Seiwa (Tohoku 1/Miyagi). Yasu High School Football Club (Kansai 2/Shiga) will take on Sangawa High School Football Club (Shikoku/Kagawa) in the third-place playoff.

The games of the final round were closer than ever and two of the quarterfinals went to penalties in a tense atmosphere at the Sumida City Gymnasium.

FC Seiwa leveled the match against Thank FC Kuriyama U-18 (Hokkaido 1) in the last 13 seconds, building up positive momentum for them, and won on penalties. Sangawa got through to the semifinal on penalty kicks after equalising the game despite limited goal-scoring opportunities against Teikyo Nagaoka High School Football Club (Hokushinetsu/Niigata).

The game between FC Seiwa and Sangawa was back and forth with the score 4-4. After 38 minutes, Tanno Yuji from FC Seiwa struck the goal that decided the match. The other semifinal, between Nagoya and Yasu, was also a very tight match. Nagoya stretched their lead in the second half and got through to the final.

The final and the third-place playoff will be held on the last day of the championship on Sunday 31 August at the Ota-City General Gymnasium. It is difficult to guess who can take the title - Nagoya, who aim to be a champion futsal club team, or FC Seiwa, who have great individual skills such as dribbling. This memorable first champion will be decided very soon.

Semifinal

Nagoya Oceans U-18 4-2 Yasu High School Football Club

FC Seiwa 6-4 Sangawa High School Football Club

Comments

Ono Ichiro, Head Coach (Thank FC Kuriyama U-18)
It was a tough match. We couldn’t avoid many of our fouls, as the players of FC Seiwa had high individual skills. Although we sustained our lead, we felt pressed with their positive momentum when they leveled the match. Through the championship, we have realised what we need, including improving individual skills more and adjusting our game according to our reading of the situation. It was a very good and meaningful experience for us.

Furusawa Toru, Head Coach (Teikyo Nagaoka High School Football Club)
I’m really devastated about losing at the quarterfinal, as we aimed at becoming the best in Japan. The players have improved through these four matches. So I wish I could let them play two more games at any cost. Just like eleven-a-side football, you cannot waste any goal-scoring opportunities. As most of the players are second-year students, we’d like to come back to participate again next year.

OISHI Naoki (Fujii Gakuen Sangawa High School Soccer Club)
Seiwa FC we played against in the semi-final had many skilled players and very quick transition between offense and defence, so we allowed a goal to them. We try to create our rhythm from our defence, so as a goalkeeper I want to dedicate myself more to it, fire up my teammates from behind and help our team win. Today I made mistakes and I didn’t have good combination with my teammates. I will make adjustments and be ready for the third-place match. Definitely we want to finish third and go home.

TANNO Yuji (Seiwa Gakuen FC)
The semi-final was a very tough match. Every time we scored, they scored back again. But in the end, we could score the match-winning goal. In that situation, I got a pass (on the right), and I couldn’t see the goal very well, but I fired it. Throughout the tournament, our families and teammates have given us big cheers from the stands and they have been our driving force. We lost two matches in the group stage, but we have come this far. We will enjoy the match tomorrow and try to win.

JFA-TV

Quarterfinal

Semifinal Nagoya Oceans U-18 vs Yasu High School Football Club

Semifinal FC Seiwa vs Sangawa High School Football Club

The 1st All Japan Youth Futsal Championship presented by BallBall

Date: Thu. 28 Aug to Sun. 31 Aug.2014
Venue: Sumidaku Sogo Taikukan (Sumida City Gymnasium) and Otaku Sogo Taiikukan (Ota-City General Gymnasium)
Event information - match fixtures,etc.(Japanese version only)