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The Star
3 hours ago
- Sport
- The Star
It's girls vs women – coach admits gulf in class after thrashing by Japan
PETALING JAYA: 'What really happened? If you watched the game, you knew what happened. It was girls vs women.' That was the blunt assessment from Malaysia's Under-20 women's team coach Cameron Ng after his side's crushing 16-0 defeat to Japan in the AFC Women's Asian Cup 2026 qualifiers at the Cheras Football Stadium on Friday. 'We were just not at the right level. We had a game plan but could not execute it. They were much better than us. Japan were a much stronger team than us,' he said. 'Maybe we gave too much respect in the beginning but the difference was vast. We never planned for 0-16. We wanted to minimise mistakes and be competitive but the first goal made us panicky.' From the opening whistle, Japan's dominance was overwhelming. Anon Tsuda opened the floodgates in the fourth minute before going on to score three more goals (23rd, 30th and 60th) in a ruthless display. Mao Itamura and Asako Furuta each netted hattricks, so did So Kijoma while Sawa Tsuge and Yuka Kurimoto added further strikes to complete the rout. Malaysia, still developing at the youth level, found themselves pinned back for most of the match and unable to mount any meaningful attacks. 'This is a painful lesson to learn. I know the girls will take the lessons today - it's a wake-up call,' said Cameron. 'If we want to mount a challenge, we need to be a lot better. We need to get a higher level of players and start working much earlier, not when they are 20 but much earlier. We have to work with the age group sides and raise the level.' The coach admitted that tactical tweaks including a switch to a five-player defence midway through failed to stem the tide. 'No matter what game plan we have, it's difficult against opponents like this. I'm a new coach but this is a learning process for players and coaching staff.' Malaysia had earlier lost 3-0 to Iran in their opening Group F match. They will close their campaign against Guam at the same venue on Sunday.
The Star
a day ago
- Sport
- The Star
Malaysia's U-20 women's team faces defeat in AFC qualifiers
PETALING JAYA: Malaysia's women's football team endured a humiliating night as they were thrashed 0-16 by Asian giants Japan in their Group F match of the AFC U-20 Asian Cup 2026 qualifiers at the Cheras Football Stadium in Kuala Lumpur on Friday (Aug 8). Japan's dominance was clear from the opening whistle. Anon Tsuda opened the floodgates in the fourth minute, and what followed was a relentless attacking display that left Malaysia's defence scrambling throughout. Tsuda went on to score three more goals (23rd, 30th and 60th minutes) in a sensational individual performance that epitomised Japan's clinical finishing. Mao Itamura added a hat-trick of her own (14th, 16th and 34th) while Asako Furuta joined the scoring spree with a superb treble as well, netting just before and after half-time (45th, 46th and 94th). So Kijoma also found the net three times (53rd, 59th and 89th) while Sawa Tsuge (64th) and Yuka Kurimoto (69th and 78th) piled on the misery for the home side, taking the tally to an eye-watering 16 goals. The young Malayan Tigress squad, still developing and gaining international exposure, struggled to create any good chances going forward and were pinned back for the majority of the match. This result marks one of the heaviest defeats in recent memory for the Malaysian women's youth team. Malaysia earlier lost to Iran 3-0 on Tuesday. The team led by Cameron Ng would complete their group fixture by taking on Guam at the Cheras Football Stadium on Sunday.
