CHONBURI—The triumphant Filipinas are looking to leverage their historic run at the 33rd Southeast Asian (SEA) Games as a crucial momentum-builder and confidence-booster for their next major challenges.
The Pinay booters made history for the Philippines by ending the duopoly of Vietnam and Thailand in women’s football, securing their SEA Games coronation with a thrilling 6-5 victory on penalties over Vietnam, following a scoreless draw after 120 minutes.
“We’ll enjoy this one, we have to enjoy this one because it’s been a long time coming for this country to win the SEA Games,” said coach Mark Torcaso. He added, “We’ll rest a little bit and then we have to get ready for the Asian Cup.”
The squad is now focusing on the AFC Women’s Asian Cup, scheduled for March next year in Australia. This continental meet is critical as it serves as a pathway to the 2027 FIFA Women’s World Cup in Brazil. In the Asian Cup, the Filipinas are grouped with the host Boomers, South Korea, and Iran in Group A. To advance to the quarterfinals, they must finish in the Top 2. The four quarterfinal winners will earn a direct entry to the World Cup, while the four losers will contest two additional spots in play-in matches.
Torcaso expressed strong belief in his determined squad of veterans and young talents, feeling that “more big things are coming.” He noted, “We saw how disciplined our girls can be against good teams and I truly believe that we can do that against Australia or South Korea and Iran and I truly believe that we can do something special there as well and go to another World Cup.”
Reflecting on the SEA Games performance, Torcaso concluded, “The most pleasing thing for me this competition (SEAG) was we showed that we’ve got a group of players here, both experienced and young players that are ready to fight for our country right from the start of the game to the end of the game, even penalty shootouts.”
