Sat, Dec 15, 2001 page16

• N Korean underdogs cut `Steel Roses' down to size

  END OF AN ERA For 15 years Chinese women ruled the Asian soccer championships until a gritty North Korea beat them 3-1 yesterday to set up a final against Japan

  • By Gavin Phipps / STAFF REPORTER
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  It was a day when fancy soccer was upstaged by sheer grit and determination in the semifinals of the AFC Women's Soccer Championship yesterday when North Korea defeated China 3-1 and Japan edged South Korea 2-1.

  The results mean that North Korea and Japan will face off in tomorrow's final.

  

  North Korean defender Yang Kyong-hui, center, clears the ball as China attacks during yesterday's semifinal in Taipei. In a major upset, the North Koreans defeated the reigning champions 3-1 to set up a final against Japan.

  PHOTO: LU CHUN-WEI, TAIPEI TIMES

  Several thousand soccer fans braved the icy winds that whipped through Taipei's Chungshan Stadium to watch the remaining four teams battle it out for the chance to raise the 2001 AFC trophy.

  

  While the Falun Gong members who unfurled banners in the stands during China's previous matches were absent yesterday, a group of local fans could be seen waving the Chinese flag in a show of support for the championship's favorites.

  But in a stunning upset North Korea ended China's 15 year undefeated run in the biannual championship with a highly charged 90 minutes of aggressive soccer.

  North Korea were clearly out to win from the whistle and within the opening five minutes the Korean forwards had pushed the "Steel Roses" well into their own half on five occasions.

  China should have capitalized on two occasions after being awarded a couple of free kicks, both of which were only meters from the Korean penalty area.

  With China playing classy, tight and accurate soccer it was against the run of play when in the 20th minute an unmarked Pak Kum-chun eked the ball over the line from close range to put North Korea ahead.

  One down, China aggressively went looking for an equalizer. But whenever the Chinese became dangerous in the penalty area, they were denied by Korean goalkeeper Ri Jong-hui.

  While China attempted to break down the Korean defense with close-range sorties, the Koreans took to using the long ball. The tactic paid off in the 36th minute when Jin Pyol-hui found herself with only the Chinese keeper to beat. Making no mistakes, Jin doubled the underdog's advantage.

  Even with two goals down, the Chinese remained in control of the game and Sun Wen (孫雯) managed to pull a goal back three minutes before halftime.

  And when the referee blew the whistle after 45 minutes, it still looked as if the "Steel Roses" were going to be victorious.

  Obviously some stern words had been spoken in the Chinese dressing room by coach Ma Yuanan (馬元安) during the break, as China heaped on the pressure and shut out North Korea from the start of the second half.

  However, numerous attempts to break the Korean defense failed and the game settled into a mid-field clash in which the fancy footwork of China was stifled at every turn by a less tactical but very determined North Korea.

  Relying on six defenders, Korea might have been under manned up-front, but sticking to the long ball the two Korean forwards found themselves unmarked and within sight of a goal on half a dozen occasions.

  A horrendous error by China's defense left Korean Jin Pyol-hui with no one to beat but the Chinese keeper in the 68th minute. Dribbling the ball around the stranded keeper, Jin hammered home North Korea's third.

  Try as they might, the "Steel Roses" couldn't break the Korean defense. And when the referee blew the final whistle China's players made a quick beeline for the dressing room while the Koreans stood on the pitch with looks of disbelief on many of the players' faces after their 3-1 drubbing of the favorites.

  Japan 2, South Korea 1

  In the first of yesterday's semifinals, Japan battled it out against South Korea in an evenly matched game that saw Japan beat South Korea two goals to one.

  In a match that seesawed for much of the opening 20 minutes, Japan's Kobayashi Yayoi opened the score in the 10th minute with a volley from outside the penalty area.

  A combination of tight defense and respectable marking by the Japanese quickly saw off South Korean advances and the match reverted to a hard fought mid-field battle.

  When in the 27th minute Korea was awarded a free kick on the edge of the penalty area, Lee Ji-eun hammered the ball into the back of the net to restore equilibrium.

  As the opening 45 minutes came to a close, the Koreans continued to pressure Japan but to no avail.

  The South Koreans continued to prove the more aggressive of the two sides as the second half got off to a very fast start, but later deteriorated into a mid-field melee.

  Then, with little more than a minute to play, a mad scramble in the Korean box left Japan's Otani Mio with little work to do but nudge the ball into the net a meter from the goal-line.

  She made no mistakes and kicked Japan into the final.
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