When all things seem lost, that is the time individuals rise above themselves to become heroes. Perhaps taking destiny into their own hands, members of the Philippine Women’s National Football Team managed to climb out of the rabbit hall to head into the promised land of FIFA World Cup 2023 qualification with their backs against the wall.
The PWNFT’s meteoric rise in the AFC Women’s Asian Cup 2022 makes it easy to forget how much so many people – from players, coaches and boosters – invested in it as they sought to get that one major result to breathe life into Philippine football, specifically a sector that has so much potential but laid in dormancy.
The Rebirth of a Program
These past few years saw the Filipinas grow step-by-step as they ventured into their different international campaigns. After a 15-year drought, coach Buda Bautista steered the country into sealing a ticket into the AFC Women’s Asian Cup 2018 with a fine qualification campaign the year prior with three wins, one draw and one loss in five matches.
Come the tournament itself, Frenchman Rabah Benlarbi took charge and he was able to lead the team to an opening-day win marked by a winning goal from Sarina Bolden.
Competing against the continent’s finest teams, though, after so long in the wilderness did not come easy as losses at the hands of Thailand, China and South Korea soon followed but there was a realization that the distant dream of one day joining the FIFA Women’s World Cup may not be that far-fetched as long as certain things aligned.
Getting Closer and Closer to Glory
And then 2019 arrived and it was FEU football legend Let Dimzon’s turn to lead the country. A multiple-time champion in the UAAP, Dimzon knew that she had a big year ahead of her with the AFF Women’s Championship 2019 in Thailand and the SEA Games 2019 on home soil on the horizon.
For the first time in history, Dimzon was able to lead the Philippines into the knockouts of the AFF Women’s Championship on the back of lopsided wins against Singapore, Timor Leste and Malaysia. A clash against Vietnam in the semi-finals beckoned and the Filipinas folded 1-2.
Ultimately, the Filipinas were able to secure fourth place in the competition, which provided optimism for the SEA Games.
With a podium finish the target on home soil, Dimzon’s version of the PWNFT went into striking distance of accomplishing that goal when it took on Myanmar in the third-place play-off – only to concede twice in the final hurdle after initially gaining the lead thanks to Quinley Quezada’s 57th-minute strike.
The number of near-misses was draining in itself but the core that consisted of goalkeeper Inna Palacios, defenders Hali Long, Eva Madarang, midfielder Sara Castaneda, and forwards Bolden and Quezada to name a few remained loyal to the cause and persevered with the program despite the odds being stacked against them.
Finding the Right Formula
Photo from PFF
Fast forward two years later and the gang was back together just in time for the qualification campaign for the AFC Women’s Asian Cup 2022. Veteran coach Marlon Maro was put in charge of the team by the Philippine Football Federation amidst the widespread derision from local football fans.
Maro may have his doubters and stirred some controversy when he voiced his opinion that the long-time moniker of the team, ‘Malditas’, should be phased out but he was able to get the job done. Powered by goals from midfielders Tahnai Annis and Camille Wilson, and forward Chandler McDaniel in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, the Filipinas secured wins against Nepal and Hong Kong to book a ticket to the big dance.
After that, though, came the mother of all surprises. From an outsider looking in, Maro became a temporary placeholder for an international coach who brought unquestionable success to his home nation. On October 26, 2021, the PFF announced that Australian Alen Stajcic was appointed as the new head coach of the PWNFT.
Stajcic, who led Australia to wins in the FIFA Women’s World Cup 2015 and 2016 Rio Olympics and played a key part in the development of top Australian players like Sam Kerr, took the unenviable task of guiding the Philippines into qualifying for the FIFA Women’s World Cup 2023 hosted by Australia and New Zealand.
Amidst the circumstances brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic, Stajcic, his staff, and the PFF were able to form a talented pool of players and prepared them for the gigantic task ahead through a training camp in Irvine, California. The difficulties ahead did not faze Stajcic, who unbeknownst to the rest of the world, was ready to shock it in India.
Seizing Continental Recognition at Last
(C) AFC
Going into the AFC Women’s Asian Cup 2022, expectations were not high considering the Philippines was only able to muster four wins out of 32 matches in its all-time record in Asia’s biggest competition. Things, though, can change in an instant and they did when the Filipinas were able to beat Thailand for the first time in history thanks to Chandler McDaniel’s goal.
It was easy to just disregard the result as first game luck but there was something unique about how the PWNFT conducted itself on the pitch. Using what looked like to be a 4-4-2 formation, there was a very disciplined backline led by Long and newcomer Dominique Randle, two banks of four that were hard to penetrate and remained compact in the middle, and conservative pressing from the forwards.
The acid test, though, came against Stajcic’s home nation of Australia and, despite the 0-4 drubbing, the Filipinas proved they were the real deal as they were able to hold the gates until the 50th minute. A ticket to the knockouts was sealed for the first time soon after thanks to a mouth-watering 6-0 win against Indonesia, which was highlighted by Annis’s two long-range strikes.
Into the Promised Land
(C) AFC
In what felt like a cup final already, the Philippines took on Chinese Taipei to seal a ticket into the FIFA World Cup 2023. By this time, excitement was growing amongst local sports fans.
An independent group, the Philippine Women’s Football Association, mustered support from famous personalities in and out of the local football community to raise awareness for the match. The PFF also bought block time on free TV station One Sports to bring the game to the masses.
Come the match itself, Quezada was able to give the Filipinas the lead just after halftime off an assist from newcomer Katrina Guillou. Just when it looked like the Philippines was set to seal a narrow 1-0 victory, Chinese Taipei found a way back through Zhou Li-Ping’s wonder strike.
Penalties were then needed to settle the winner and despite Castaneda and Annis converting their spot-kicks, misses from Long and Jessica Miclat put the PWNFT in serious danger of losing. Up stepped goalkeeper Olivia McDaniel, who performed two fine saves and converted one of her own to give the Filipinas the lead in sudden death.
Bolden then stepped up to take the pivotal spot-kick and, despite missing one against Indonesia beforehand, was able to put the ball at the back of the net. Bedlam then ensued that everyone from the Philippine bench celebrated wildly at their achievement of bringing the country into the FIFA Women’s World Cup
New Frontiers
(C) AFC
With all the emotional high coming off a historic win, it is easy to forget that the Filipinas are set to compete against South Korea in the semi-finals of the AFC Women’s Asian Cup 2022. Whatever happens in that game, this edition of the PWNFT will return home as heroes and Stajcic and his staff are already honorary Filipinos in the eyes of local football fanatics.
The current crop has made themselves heroes almost out of nowhere and their reward is the chance to enter new worlds. Come what may in the future, this result has changed everything down the line.
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