Japan Coaching Education Trip: Part 2
“There’s still a huge gap between the Japanese level and the top world level–we need to figure out how to bridge that gap.”
Those were the words of Kenji Kato, the Chief Coach at JFA Academy Sakai, one of five national academies run by the Japanese Football Association, and the one 16 coaches and directors from NorCal Premier Soccer visited during the second part of their two week trip to Japan in search of bettering the beautiful game back in Northern California.
For years, the JFA Academy Sakai has played traveled to California to play friendlies against NorCal’s girls PDP sides, the most recent coming earlier this month, but for the first time in nine years, NorCal found itself in JFA territory as the academy hosted those 16 coaches and directors at their sprawling, 20-plus field complex just outside of Osaka.
It’s through complexes like this that Japan hopes will help turn it into one of the best teams in the world, capable of winning a men’s World Cup by 2050.
Unlike as is typical in the United States with private facilities, the JFA host more than just their own for trainings–the morning after the NorCal coaches arrived, they were able to watch first team training from J1 League club Albirex Niigata.
Due to the amount of snow in the more northern city of Niigata, Albirex were able to move their entire training camp to the facility to be more productive before winter ended.
Additionally, several youth clubs and high school teams would arrive throughout NorCal’s stay, all using the facility to better themselves on the best possible pitches.
Following the training, NorCal attended a brief lecture from Kato, who explained the philosophies of the JFA Academy Sakai and the overall JFA youth setup.
Through the organization, there are four national facilities, three of which cater to players ages 13-15 who stay throughout the week to train and go to school before returning home on the weekend to play for their club teams.
“Because the players go back to their homes on the weekend,” Kato said, “there needs to be an understanding between the club staff and the JFA coaches.”
Fortunately, this is less of an issue in Japan, as the philosophies of the JFA preach a holistic approach stressing the importance of teamwork and happiness.
The fourth, considered the most prestigious, is a full-time boarding school for U13-U18 players just outside of Tokyo.
The JFA Academy Sakai, which only features girls, has seen 117 players graduate from its program since its inception in 2003, 111 of which played in high school, two who moved onto the more prestigious academy, two who played professionally in Europe, and 19 who play in the top two divisions in Japan.
Players selected for the program are picked after an extensive trial process that also includes an interview to make sure that the player has the right personal qualities as well as one with the athlete’s parents to ensure that there is the right familial support for the player to thrive while living away from home for the majority of the time.
And because the JFA Academy Sakai don’t participate in a league and only occasionally play friendlies, the selections are purely quality based and don’t take into account any positional needs.
Sometimes, because they can only take roughly 12 players each year, there will be an entire age group without goalkeepers.
Furthermore, the players are provided with ample support off the field including English language classes, manners seminars, job interview preparation, private tutoring, nutrition seminars, and others.
“We only have them for three years, so we always have to think about how we can help set them up for future success,” Kato said. “The students are able to invest those years in really thinking about what they want to do in the years to come.”
After the lecture, Kato led a team training that featured two of NorCal Premier Soccer’s Player Development Program athletes, who just happened to be on vacation in Japan at the same time.
Sofia Nguyen of Bay Area Surf and Kate Maggio of PSV Union each joined in with their Japanese counterparts in a technical session held at the same massive complex.
“It was an amazing experience playing with the JFA players, the coaches and players welcomed us and made us feel like a part of their team,” Nguyn said. “I loved how they were not only teammates but treated each other like family. We got to see how they all lived together and tended to their daily duties and responsibilities. On the pitch, they played at a very fast pace, supporting and trusting one another. They are all very talented individuals and it was a great learning experience which I hope to bring back to the US.”
Added Maggio: “It was such a fun and memorable experience playing with the JFA girls. They were so welcoming and kind to us, especially when we were struggling to understand Japanese. Though we come from different cultures, it was great to see that soccer is a universal language. Their dedication and love for soccer was inspiring and it was great to share experiences and learn from each other.”
