Coach Kang Jae-soon (60), who led the women’s professional soccer WK League Hwacheon KSPO for the first time in 13 years, smiled broadly, saying, “We have opened a new era.”
KSPO won 4-0 in the final 28th round of WK League 2024 against Changnyeong WFC at Changnyeong Sports Park in Gyeongnam on the 26th. With this, KSPO won the regular league with 26 wins, 8 draws and 4 losses (56 points), going straight to the championship match.
Founded in 2011, KSPO ranked second last year and ranked first in this year’s historic first regular league.
Hyundai Steel, which had won 11 consecutive WK League titles until last season, finished fourth and failed to advance to the playoff. A new champion emerged at the same time as Hyundai Steel, which had long ruled as the “absolute first place.”
On Thursday, the day after he wrote history, Kang received a flurry of congratulatory calls. “I’m glad we won the championship, which only Hyundai Steel used to do. I really wanted to win the KSPO, but I’m very proud of myself for that,” Kang said with a chuckle.
The KSPO, which had been in the middle for a long time, made a splash by racing to the top of the regular season league until the end of last season. However, if it had won one of the last two games, it would have been able to confirm that it had won one of the last two games, and lost the top spot in succession, and eventually failed to play in the championship game.
“I was really disappointed last year. I didn’t want to lose the championship to Hyundai Steel again this year,” Kang said. “The fact that I asked the players not to repeat their regrets from last year has been the driving force throughout the season.”
This season, KSPO was in a position to chase Hyundai Steel on the contrary, but this time, it was able to finish the race in first place by winning the final game without shaking until the end.
“The WK League has become much more level now. Other teams have caught up with Hyundai Steel as well. The victory of the KSPO this year marks the beginning of an era in which Hyundai Steel is dominating and competing together,” Kang said.
“As we see ourselves ranked No. 1 in the regular league, we will think, ‘We can do it, too.’ In addition, Hyundai Steel will be more nervous and advanced as it is, so that the entire WK League will compete better,” he added.
In addition to cutting off Hyundai Steel’s dominance, there are many meaningful achievements within the club.
“Our team motto (of the Korea Sports Promotion Foundation) is ‘talent training’ and ‘social contribution’. Maybe that’s why they all leave for different teams if they do well,” coach Kang joked. “That’s why it didn’t seem easy to win the title, but I even produced results while overcoming limitations and developing the players well.” 메이저사이트
“It is all the more meaningful that the team, the club and the front desk became a trinity and ranked first. Thank you to all the team members,” he said.
The team’s first win is helping boost morale. “I told the players that I really want to give a star to Choi Soo-jin (37), the oldest player in the KSPO who played for 11 years from 2014, and that my wish has finally been fulfilled,” Kang said.
“It’s the same for other players. It’s a big difference whether or not you try to win a championship during your career, but I’m glad that the players seem to be compensating for their hard work after a long wait. This will be a great asset for our team,” he said.