PORT MORESBY, Papua New Guinea – Japan finished top of Group B in the 2016 FIFA U-20 Women’s Championship thanks to its 5-0 win over Canada and Spain’s 2-1 loss to Nigeria on Sunday.
The Canadians, whose average roster age in Papua New Guinea was only 17.3, depart the competition with a 0W-0D-3L record.
“Our goal going into Papua New Guinea was to test our players against strong teams, and we got that playing against Spain, Nigeria and Japan; and to ensure key players in our EXCEL System that are tracking towards our National Women’s Team gained experience against various styles of international football,” said Canada head coach Daniel Worthington. “Playing three confederation champions, in the heat of Papua New Guinea, tested these players and gave us an opportunity to assess how they responded to various conditions and styles of play.”
Yui Hasegawa (26’, 51’) led the way for Japan with two goals at the National Football Stadium, while Mami Ueno (42'), Honoka Hayashi (47') and Hina Sugita (73') contributed with one each.
Six players from Canada’s starting lineup featured in last month’s FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup, while seven members of the squad can return for the next cycle U-20 cycle in 2018. Defender Emma Regan started in all three matches and is eligible to return to U-20 tournament twice more.
