Determined to defend title

Ras Al Khaimah: DPR Korea coach An Ye Gun has spoke of his determination to lead the North Koreans to a second AFC U-19 Championship and defend the title they won so dramatically in China two years ago.
Then under head coach Yun Jong-su, DPR Korea won the 2010 tournament in a thrilling final at the Zibo Sports Centre where Jong II-gwan scored a memorable hat-trick, including the winner two minutes from time, in the decider against Australia as the East Asian sealed a memorable 3-2 victory.
And An is anxious to follow in the footsteps of his predecessor but he knows it will not be easy with matches against Jordan, Vietnam and Uzbekistan coming up and his side yet to fully acclimatise to the climate in the northern Emirate of Ras Al Khaimah.
"It's nice to play as defending champions but it will be very difficult to retain the title," An said at the pre-tournament press conference.
"The training has been excellent but there are other crucial factors like the weather condition as our players are not used to play in these types of climate.
"The journey from Pyongyang to Ras Al Khaimah has been very tiring so the players would have to adapt as soon as possible."
DPR Korea begin their title defence on Sunday against Jordan, who after booking their ticket to the AFC U-19 Championship as best runners-up in qualifying with ten points from five matches have set their sights on a top-four finish and a place in the 2013 FIFA U-20 World Cup.


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EAFF Championship Men in Hong Kong

EAFF Championship (Second round) for Men in Hong Kong :

1. Dec North Korea  vs Chinese Taipei

3. Dec North Korea vs Guam

5. Dec North Korea vs Australia

9. Dec North Korea vs Hong Kong


Winner advance to finals in South Korea in 2013

AFC U-19 Championship

North Korea`s matches in AFC U-19 Championship :

4. November vs Jordan
6. November vs Vietnam
8. November vs Uzbekistan

All matches in Ras Al Khaimah in UAE

Penalty heartbreak for DPR Korea

Baku: DPR Korea had to settle for second place at the 2012 FIFA Women's World Cup following a 7-6 penalty shootout defeat to France in Saturday's final at the Tofig Bahramov Stadium.
DPR Korea went into the match looking to claim top honours for the second time in three tournaments following their triumph in the inaugural event in 2008 as well as ensuring a hat-trick of title for Asia, with neighbours Korea Republic winning the 2010 tournament with a penalty shootout win over Japan.
However, the North Koreans found themselves a goal down 33 minutes into a first-half totally dominated by the French, with Lea Declerq slotting the ball home after latching on to a superb pass from Ghoutia Karchouni.
Having failed to muster a single shot on target in the first period DPR Korea came out strongly after the interval and got the equaliser their pressure deserved with 11 minutes remaining.
Choe Yun-gyong's long-range effort hit the woodwork but Ri Un-sim was ideally placed to convert the rebound for her tournament-topping eighth of the campaign.
The Koreans could have sealed the win in the closing stages but Choe headed narrowly wide from a corner before Ri Hyang-sim – who ultimately emerged with the Silver Ball award for the tournament's second best player behind France's Griedge Mbock Bathy – also missed from close range sending the match into a shootout, which was won by France as Ri Un-yong missed her spotkick.
It was the first time a team from Europe had won the FIFA U-17 Women's World Cup but still another impressive campaign for Asia, with the Fair Play award going to Japan, whose midfielder Yui Hasegawa picked up the Bronze Ball award as the competition's third best player.

source : afc.com

North Korea withdrew from VFF Cup

North Korea will not participate in VFF Cup in Vietnam as scheduled in late October.

Laos replacing them.

DPR Korea to final in FIFA U-17 Women' s World Cup

Baku: DPR Korea stormed into the final of the FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup 2012 after beating Germany 2-1 thanks to an opportunistic brace by Kim So-hyang at 8-km Stadium on Tuesday.
The Koreans will face off against France on Saturday for their second title after winning the inaugural edition in New Zealand 2008. Germany will clash with Ghana for the third place also on Saturday.
The Koreans started sharp as Kim’s header went just wide of the goal post in the early seconds, sending a signal of things to come. Ri Un-sim controlled possession and dictated the patterns of play with her sharp passing as the Germans struggled to get to grips of the first half.
But the Koreans’ pressure was too much to handle and Germany’s defence finally crumbled on 39 minutes as Kim got on the end of a lucky deflection and scored the simplest tap-in to give the Asians the lead.
Kim again capitalised on the confusion in the German rearguard to slot home an opportunistic goal just two minutes after the break. Germany cut the deficit in the 59^th minute when Rebecca Knaak headed home a free kick from Theresa Panfil, but that was all for the Germans.
"I am so happy today,” said Hwang Yong Bong, the DPR Korea coach. “I think our players tried their best today in this match.
“Germany has very good players on their side and they were a very strong opponent."

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Iran friendly cancelled

North Korea`s men`s NT friendly against Iran on 9. October been cancelled by Iran.

Next is VFF Cup tournament in Vietnam playing against Vietnam, Turkmenistan and Iran U22 in the end of October