Aya Sameshima
 Aya Sameshima playing for Japan against Sweden in the 2011 FIFA Women's World Cup semi finals | |||||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Date of birth | 16 June 1987 | ||||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Utsunomiya, Tochigi, Japan | ||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.63 m (5 ft 4 in)[1] | ||||||||||||||
| Playing position | Left back / Left midfielder | ||||||||||||||
| Club information | |||||||||||||||
Current team | INAC Kobe Leonessa | ||||||||||||||
| Number | 3 | ||||||||||||||
| Youth career | |||||||||||||||
| 1995–2002 | Kawachi SC Juvenile | ||||||||||||||
| 2003–2005 | Tokiwagi Gakuen High School | ||||||||||||||
| Senior career* | |||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | Apps† | (Gls)† | ||||||||||||
| 2006–2011 | Tepco Mareeze | 98 | (18) | ||||||||||||
| 2011 | Boston Breakers | 5 | (0) | ||||||||||||
| 2011–2012 | Montpellier | 18 | (0) | ||||||||||||
| 2012–2014 | Vegalta Sendai | 6 | (3) | ||||||||||||
| 2014– | Houston Dash | ||||||||||||||
| INAC Kobe Leonessa | |||||||||||||||
| Total | 127 | (21) | |||||||||||||
| National team‡ | |||||||||||||||
| 2008– | Japan | 52 | (2) | ||||||||||||
Honours
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| * Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 4 November 2012. † Appearances (Goals). | |||||||||||||||
Aya Sameshima (鮫島 彩 Sameshima Aya, born 16 June 1987 in Utsunomiya, Tochigi) is a Japanese international footballer. Mainly a left-sided defender, she currently plays for INAC Kobe Leonessa.
Domestic career
Sameshima played youth football for Kawachi SC Juvenile between 1995 and 2002 and Tokiwagi Gakuen High School from 2003 until 2005. In 2006 she joined Tepco Mareeze, the club owned by the Tokyo Electric Power Company.[2] During her time at Mareeze she lived in the J-Village Sports complex in Hirono near Fukushima, and like other players, she worked at the TEPCO-run Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant to earn a living whilst playing for the club.[2]
Following the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami and subsequent nuclear disaster, during which the team were in a training camp in the south of the country, the club pulled out of the L. League for the remainder of the season.[2] Sameshima then began training with the Boston Breakers in March 2011, before signing for the club permanently,[3] the first former Mareeze player to sign for another club.[4] She made her debut for the Breakers against Sky Blue on 12 June as a second-half substitute for Alex Scott,[5] becoming the first Japanese international to play for the club.[6]
On 19 September 2011, Sameshima joined French club Montpellier, joining compatriot Rumi Utsugi at the club.[7] She returned to Japan to play for Vegalta Sendai in 2012, before joining Houston Dash in January 2014.[8]
International career
After playing for the Japanese team at the AFC U-19 Women's Championship in 2006,[9] Sameshima made her full international debut in 2008 and played in the Women's Asian Cup that year, scoring the first goal in an 11–0 win over Chinese Taipei. In 2010 she played in the 2010 Asian Games, winning a gold medal as Japan won the tournament. In 2011 she was part of the Japan squad for the World Cup, playing in every match for the World Cup Champion Japanese team.[10]
Career statistics
Club career
- As of 8 December 2012
| Club | Season | League | Cup | League Cup | Total | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Tepco Mareeze | 2006 | 17 | 1 | 2 | 0 | - | 19 | 1 | |
| 2007 | 21 | 8 | 3 | 0 | 4 | 3 | 28 | 11 | |
| 2008 | 21 | 5 | 3 | 0 | - | 24 | 5 | ||
| 2009 | 21 | 1 | 3 | 1 | - | 24 | 2 | ||
| 2010 | 18 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 5 | 3 | 25 | 6 | |
| Total | 98 | 18 | 13 | 1 | 9 | 6 | 120 | 25 | |
| Boston Breakers | 2011 | 5 | 0 | - | - | 5 | 0 | ||
| Total | 5 | 0 | - | - | 5 | 0 | |||
| Montpellier | 2011–12 | 18 | 0 | 5 | 0 | - | 23 | 0 | |
| Total | 18 | 0 | 5 | 0 | - | 23 | 0 | ||
| Vegalta Sendai | 2012 | 6 | 3 | 2 | 1 | - | 8 | 4 | |
| Total | 6 | 3 | 2 | 1 | - | 8 | 4 | ||
| Career total | 127 | 21 | 20 | 2 | 9 | 6 | 156 | 29 | |
International goals
| No. | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | 31 May 2008 | Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam |  Chinese Taipei | | | 2008 AFC Women's Asian Cup |
| 2. | 20 May 2010 | Chengdu, China |  Myanmar | | | 2010 AFC Women's Asian Cup |
Honors
- FIFA Women's World Cup
- Winner, 2011
- Football at the Asian Games
- Gold Medal, 2010
- East Asian Football Championship
- Winner, 2010
References
- ↑ "Japanese Medalists in London 2012 Olympics". joc.or.jp. Japanese Olympic Committee. Retrieved 17 January 2014.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Nadeshiko Japan resumes play in U.S. friendlies ESPN, 15 May 2011
- ↑ Japan: Roster Our Game
- ↑ SOCCER/ Sameshima plays for fans, friends in disaster areas Asahi, 17 July 2011
- ↑ Breakers Draw With Sky Blue FC, Extend Unbeaten Streak to Two Women's Professional Soccer, 12 June 2011
- ↑ Breakers Add Japanese International Aya Sameshima To Roster Women's Professional Soccer, 13 June 2011
- ↑ Signature d'Aya Sameshima Montpellier HSC, 22 September 2011
- ↑ Houston Dash sign Japanese international Aya Sameshima Houston Dynamo
- ↑ News > April 2006 Bhangra Boys
- ↑ Aya Sameshima Soccerway
External links
- Aya Sameshima – FIFA competition record
- Houston Dash player profile
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