Since there aren't any mods around So this year's tournament is started! Today the game between Jissen Gakuen representing Tokyo B and Fukuoka's 'veterans' Tokai Dai Go High School was played at Kokuritsu with the Tokyo team winning 2-1 in a game with a pretty dramatic ending. So here's the schedule: For short introductions of the teams participating go here: http://dogatch.jp/sports_event/soccer/highschool91th/district.html And for the highlights here: http://dogatch.jp/sports_event/soccer/highschool91th/
And here's something 'different' Take a look at the second half of the biggest today's game: Yasu vs Aomori Yamada.
The result of the day was Shimane's Rissho Dai Shonan High School humiliating Yachiyo playing at home in front of almost 10,000 spectators at Fukuari. This time thr yellow team (Rissho) rocked the stadium winning the game 7-1 with the superb finishing. J League teams offensive squads could learn from the Rissho team how to score goals as when they got into the penalty area there was probably 90% possibility that it will end with a shot on target and 80% that it will mean going back to the center of the pitch to restart the game after lost goal. The best game I've seen so far as Yachiyo isn't that bad as the result could say and the overall level of the game was very good (better than watching Emperor's Cup semis!). Meanwhile Aomori Yamada, which were favourites for many somehow managed to crawl past Tokyo's A block Shutoku. I don't know how Yamada could be still considered as a strong team by many as they barely got past Yasu with a single lucky-shot and now they had to remain on the Shutoku's MOM Onodera not scoring the final PK while still being cocky throught the game like a pro's or god-send group playing handicapped kids and shouting at them that they had screwed the fun by cutting the slow Yamada's buil up... I hope they'll get severely crushed by Seiryo tomorrow or Rissho Dai later on! The winners so far are debutants from Nagasaki lead by a famous Tadatoshi Komine and underdogs from Shiga's Shogyo HS while Asahikawa Jitsugyo High School from Hokkaido will try to again get a 'scoreless win' in the PK conest.
Really Majster ? The best game ? You didn't think that the first half was brutal ? Both teams were kicking the ball everywhere. It was so horrible (and one sided) that I stopped at half time. So far the tournament is a bit disappointing.
I haven't seen too much difference from the usual game played at Fukuari in the regular J2 season aside from the yellow team scoring lots of goals It was watchable without me sinking into the armchair after 15 minutes so that was fun enough for me. And I haven't seen every game to judge. Even though it was 7-1 Yachiyo showed some guts and were kicking back. That's how it goes. And I'm far from judging that J League U-18 teams are stronger than what HS players are showing. It's much more diverse than Emperor's Cup for sure. With Yasu's unfortunate defeat it all went downward of course. Everyone enjoyed much more watching Cerezo than Grampus back in 2010! Tell me when was the last time You've seen such a screamer in the J League as Urata scored the opening goal? Such goals pretend to be the best in PL, not a high school competition... Take a look at Sendai's Ikuei Gakuen HS - how come could you not cheer them when they don't even have a normal school to go to? Watch the games in the morning. The level should be high enough (I hope!).
I'm watching almost everything so far but as I said I'm a bit disappointed. Sure the goals were nice but there was absolutely no work in midfield, just inaccurate kicks after inaccurate kicks, without the technical or physical level of pro football (let's respect J2 a bit). Yachiyo were amazingly weak, I was surprised they made it this far. That doesn't mean I don't appreciate the good stories this tournament is providing, I take every non cynical football I can get to watch. Plus, Kyoto's Sento is a nice player.
I watched Tachibana against Shochi in the first round and Sento was quiet (not standing above other players). Koyamatsu stayed in my head much longer if we're talking about Tachibana. I haven't seen the game against Sendai (only higlights) but from what I was reading it was Tachibana's theatre and indeed, Sento produced two goals for them. And the next game against Maruoka also can't be the best indicator... And don't forget that Chiba-ken teams were most profilic in the series of previous tournaments so the pressure put on themselves by Yaochiyo was probably immense (while most people don't even think about it - but those 10 thousand on the stands were).
The ending of this awesome Sakuyo - Toko makes me wanna hang myself. Sakuyo make a great second half, tie the game towards the end and appear to be pushing for a winner until they change the keeper at the last minute, probably because he's a better PK stopper. Last play, long throw and a Toko Gakuen player collect the ball to beat the new keeper with a low shot. How ironic.
http://www.tokyo-sports.co.jp/sports/72728/ Nobuhiro Takeda's article stating that there aren't too many players 'with guts' thanks to the fact that... coaches can't use corporal punishment and can't reprimand their pupils harshly. Aside from the fact it's banned in theory rather than real life (I can't imagine a coach anywhere around the world not yelling something like 'What the ******** did you with the ball there!' as HS students know how to curse well and that's probably the time when they're using such words most frequently) he had a perfect timing with another discussion about corporal punishment in Japanese schools after the recent suicide of the basketball player in one of the Osaka's HS... Of course I could understand corporal punishment in the classes if a student lies or did something wrong to the others, comes late or skips some classes but I don't understand what it has to do with the sports. We're not aboard Yamato where disipline could save your live and lives of another tens of people and was probably the most strict in the history of modern Japan (many of the crew members - even more friendly officers - hated Japanese Navy's battleships because of that discipline and enjoyed more familiar living on smaller ships in 50+ heat than Yamato's air-conditioned halls). But damn, what's the point in punishing your student who tried his best on the pitch? And what's the link between getting strong character and punching someone in the head if couldn't do better? Or maybe some teachers slapped him too hard in his school days and now he's writing such stupid articles like that one...
You shouldn't understand corporal punishment that is not administered by the parents though. A stranger hitting you is just violent and traumatic. His assessment of the situation is probably right but there is no remedy, it's up to the individuals.
None Probably Dude probably voted for Ishihara at the last elections The "guts" thing is sort of real though, so I feel him, but it is not solved at all with that, and infact it has nothing to do with that.
They couldnt hold the most important high school game of the year, which was a 2PM afternoon kickoff in the exact center of downtown Tokyo, on January 14. And that despite the efforts of 5000+ people who showed up three hours early to try to shovel the snow off the pitch and make it playable. But dont worry. There wont be ANY problem with holding matches in Yamagata, Niigata or Matsumoto in early February, once the fall-spring season is introduced. Sepp Blatter said so, therefore it must be true. Trust me . . . .
Hey, but it's pure fun to play in the snow! I agree that it doesn't have too much in common with the games on the normal pitch but it's fun! At least it's good that there isn't a single player in those two teams affected by the 'sentaa shiken' in Saturday. But with the remodeling of the Kokuritsu it won't be the matter in a few years. Matsu, don't pretend to say that's usual weather because semis were played two days earlier in perfect conditions. And if they would decide to play the game today it would be the first final played in the snow since Higashi Fukuoka (with Motoyama) and Teikyo (with Koji Nakata) and Fukuoka winning the three big titles in a year for the first time in history.Of course I'm not a fan of autumn-spring season. And don't make this delayed game a symbol of something For now... good old yameroooo yameroooooo akiharu kaisaaaiiiii
I used to play in the snow, absolutely love it, haha. Everything changes and good shoots are a pain but it's mad fun
Lets not try to kid ourselves about what "usual weather" means in different parts of the country. In downtown Tokyo, 10cm of snow may be an extremely rare event, but in parts of Tohoku and Hokkaido, when the weatherman forecasts 10cm of snow for the next day, everybody makes plans to go somewhere and take advantage of the rare "break in the weather." This is the thing that always makes me laugh when I hear some fool claiming that it isnt such a big problem. All that proves is that the person in question has never lived in a part of Japan that gets a lot of snow. Anyone who knows what REAL snow is like doesnt even ASK whether a fall-spring season is possible. The army of shovellers they brought out couldnt clear away 5-10 cm of snow in three hours! I know of places in Niigata, northern Nagano, Akita, Yamagata and Hokkaido where 5-10cm of snow can fall in just a few MINUTES. I admit, playing football on a few cm of snow can be an interesting experience. But playing football in a few FEET of snow is like trying to hold swimming races in 10cm of water. Anyone who has woken up in the morning to see something like this doesnt talk about silly things like a fall-spring season.
Oh one more thing. Judging by the games I expect High School from Kyoto to take the trophy, unless the defense does some weird stuff again, I have laughed hard on several occasions because defending was so dreadful all around but some teams are especially "special" in that department and Kyoto's team fits the bill
Over here (MLS) we have a Spring Fall season. The climate in my part of Canada is comparable to Tohoku Japan, hot summers to insanely cold with high snow accumulating Winters. The mere thought of fall spring season is a laugh.