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Japan At Home

Japan Make Light Work Of Straitjacketed Ferns

by Jeremy Ruane

Former FIFA Women's World Cup winners Japan made light work of their visit to Wellington's Westpac Stadium on June 10, their 3-1 victory over the Football Ferns flattering the home team, who, much to the disbelief and disappointment of the 7,236-strong crowd - a record home gate for the national side, were confined to a defensive-minded straitjacket throughout proceedings by coach Andreas Heraf.

What the Austrian said in the post-match press conference to justify playing a 5-4-1 formation - a hitherto unknown set-up for the Football Ferns on any given match-day - quite simply beggared belief, and rightly drew widespread condemnation from pundits and punters alike.

His views can be summed up in six words - he doesn't "get" "The Kiwi Way".

Japan's way, of course, is long-established - exquisite technical prowess, precision passing, intricate movement, expressive football. They set out their stall from the outset in this match, and it took 53 seconds before a white-shirted opponent touched the ball, by which time Nadeshiko had threaded together nearly as many passes …

Yet it was the Ferns, bereft of injured regulars Ria Percival and Ali Riley, not to mention the now twice-retired Abby Erceg, who created the first opening of the match, Catherine Bott's hard work on the right earning a third minute throw-in which invited Hannah Wilkinson to cross from the by-line.

Her delivery fizzed just behind stand-in captain Amber Hearn - a proud moment for the country's most prolific markswoman, who remains just two goals shy of 300 scored in club and representative football throughout her career.

That threat roused Nadeshiko into their incisive mood, and it wasn't long before Erin Nayler was called into action, the Ferns' custodian smothering a twenty-five yarder from Yu Nakasato before grabbing a cross from the same player, after Mina Tanaka and Emi Nakajima had prised open New Zealand's defence on their left.

In the eleventh minute, Nayler produced a brilliant tip-over save to thwart Nakajima's thirty yard free-kick, before looking on with relief as Meikayla Moore made a mental note to buy herself a Lotto ticket, having cleared a cross from Hikari Takagi via her own upright from the edge of the six-yard box.

Japan's slick interchanges finally gained due reward in the seventeenth minute. A close quarters exchange between Yui Hasegawa and Nagasato rewarded Tanaka's run through the middle.

Moore got their first, however, but her clearance cannoned off the shin of the striker, looped skywards and, while it could have gone anywhere, ended up going into the one place the Football Ferns wanted it to most avoid.

A freakish opening goal, which Japan were still celebrating when Sarah Gregorius' industry earned the Football Ferns a corner straight from the kick-off. Rosie White's delivery was precision personified - right in the zone.

Japanese goalkeeper, Ayaka Yamashita, struggled to punch the ball to safety, and was mercilessly punished by Moore, who swiveled to slam home the rebound from point-blank range - 1-1, and it was harder to tell who was happier, with the exuberant scorer and the delighted crowd joyously celebrating an equaliser in just the fortieth international played by the Football Ferns on home turf.

Nadeshiko swiftly resumed their dominance of possession. Bott's vital tackle thwarted Nakasato, after Nakajima slipped her in behind the defence, while from the resulting corner, Hearn headed a Hasegawa drive to safety.

The Ferns mounted a rare raid in the 25th minute, Bott releasing Wilkinson down the right from where she cut inside on an angled run into the penalty area. Her bid to pick out Hearn with a flighted cross foundered on Aya Sameshima, whose diving headed clearance prompted Japan to take charge of the sphere once more.

Within seconds, Sameshima was up the other end of the park, tormenting Bott before picking out Tanaka with a cross which she headed over the bar. Back came the Ferns, Gregorius earning a short corner which she worked with White, whose clipped angled cross parted the hair of Wilkinson as she rose in an attempt to meet it in the 28th minute.

After Nayler kept out a Rumi Utsugi piledriver - together with Rin Sumida, she was at the heart of a lot of Japan's fine play, Utsugi and Nakasato worked an opening for Tanaka inside the area. The striker went down under Moore's challenge, but referee Anna-Marie Keighley waved away Japan's penalty claims.

There was no waving away Nadeshiko's next attack, however. Utsugi and Sumida combined to slip Tanaka in behind the defence, and she deftly tucked the ball beyond Nayler from six yards - 2-1.

The Ferns' custodian was back in action again soon after, saving at the feet of Hasegawa after Nakasato and Tanaka combined to unlock the door, something Japan were starting to do with increasing frequency.

And they did it again on the stroke of half-time. After a long-range free-kick from White was gratefully gloved by Yamashita, Japan raided down

the right before Sumida checked inside and clipped the most gloriously angled, flighted and measured "buffet ball" into the penalty area.

Ghosting in between defenders was Tanaka, who gleefully helped herself, heading the sphere beyond the stranded figure of Nayler to complete her first half hat-trick in some style. But what a ball from Sumida … sublime!

Buoyed by the half-time introduction of Katie Bowen, the Ferns began the second spell in positive fashion, and following a cleared White corner, debutant Sarah Morton played the ball back into the danger zone, where Steph Skilton flicked it on towards Hearn. Yamashita anticipated the threat well, however.

This apart, it was more of the same - Japan dominance, New Zealand submissiveness, the defensive shell into which coach Heraf cocooned his charges making it a particularly hard watch for those of us used to the never-say-die qualities the Ferns usually produce without hesitation.

Today, through no fault of the players, they weren't allowed to produce them, not so much by Japan's tactics as their own. It meant that when they did get the chance to break forward, the likes of Gregorius, Hearn, Wilkinson and, later, substitute Paige Satchell, were ploughing a lone furrow, support from team-mates negligible in nature because of the restrictions under which they were operating.

To see a team which has been so competitive against Japan in recent matches reduced to playing in the manner an island nation tends to adopt when taking on the Football Ferns in Oceania fixtures … New Zealand is better than this. So much better than this.

Nayler was right behind a Sumida effort in the 55th minute, and nine minutes later produced an outstanding save to prevent Nadeshiko scoring from the move of the match.

A devastating one-touch interchange of passes involving Narumi Miura, Tanaka, Hasegawa and Nakajima resulted in Tanaka getting in on goal again. This time, Nayler diverted her shot onto the post, off which the ball rebounded to Miura, who could only steer her reactionary shot into the side-netting with the goal at her mercy.

The only attack of note which New Zealand mustered in the entire second spell materialised two minutes later, and featured Bowen's driving run from inside her own half through the middle of the park towards the edge of the 'D'.

At this point, she linked with Hearn, who instantly brought Gregorius into play. Lurking on the far post in anticipation of a cross was Wilkinson, but her speedy team-mate - who was afforded a fantastic reception as she left the field late on - didn't spot the run of her Norwegian-based colleague, and the opportunity was lost.

Nineteen minutes from time, Nayler got lucky when she spilled a Nakajima drive, only for the ball to rebound straight back to her off an incoming Japanese player. Four minutes later, Miura wasn't far away with a fiercely struck twenty-five yarder.

With ten minutes left, Bowen earned the Football Ferns a free-kick. Annalie Longo - a surprise to see her named as a substitute, but given the tactics chosen, perhaps not - delivered the ball into the danger zone, where Yamashita punched it off the head of Rebekah Stott.

Sumida clearly used her hand to control the sphere, but neither referee Keighley nor her assistant spotted the infringement, which took place just inside the penalty area. A Ferns goal at this point would have made things interesting, but the reality was the scoreline flattered them - Japan could have won by a far greater margin than 3-1.

Indeed, they bid to make it 4-1 late in the match, Miura and fellow substitute Yuika Sugasawa combining to present Nakajima with the chance to let fly. Her piledriver cannoned to safety off Bott, who was fortunate to escape being booked for persistent infringement late in the match - her temperament continues to be a cause for concern in an environment which calls for cool heads under pressure.

Japan certainly put New Zealand under plenty of it throughout this friendly encounter, the host nation's first game on home turf for three years. Those who attended the event were understandably frustrated by what unfolded, as their heroines weren't allowed to play to anything like their potential courtesy a tactical straitjacket which made sense only to the coach.

How well Nadeshiko played, however. Wonderful, inventive, intuitive, uninhibited football, the sort we all look forward to seeing the Football Ferns being allowed to play again against opponents of this calibre - provided they're afforded the chance to do so.

Football Ferns: Nayler; Bott, Moore, Stott, Skilton (Anton, 88), Morton; Wilkinson (Satchell, 75), Hassett (Bowen, 46), White (Longo, 69), Gregorius (Steinmetz, 90); Hearn (Rolston, 83)

Japan: Yamashita; Takagi (booked, 23) (Shimizu, 46), Kumagai, Miyaki, Sameshima (Ariyoshi, 46); Sumida, Utsugi (Miura, 60); Nakajima, Hasegawa (Kawasumi, 69), Nakasato (Sakaguchi, 46); Tanaka (Sugasawa, 78)

Referee: Anna-Marie Keighley

Road To France & Tokyo