FIL-DUTCH goalkeeper Quincy Kammeraad had an exciting debut in the 2024 ASEAN Football Federation Mitsubishi Electric Cup Championship and he hopes to keep playing at a high level in the Philippines’ coming games.
The 23-year-old Kammeraad was able to stop numerous attempts when the Philippines won over Indonesia, 1-0, on Saturday evening at the Manahan Stadium in Surakarta, Central Java.
This allowed the Philippines to take second place in Group B and arrange a semifinal meeting with seven-time champion Thailand.
The 6’1” Kammeraad came in to replace starting keeper Patrick Deyto, who got injured after a tackle from behind the fourth minute of their game with Indonesia.
Kammeraad stopped the likes of Marselino Ferdinan, Hokky Caraka and Achmad Syarif, three of Indonesia’s great scorers, with timely saves, earning him Man of the Match honors.
Of the three, Ferdinan is the most dangerous, having scored five goals for the Indonesians in his 35 caps with the team.
“I’m very proud of the team and now we gotta do everything to make it to the finals and bring the trophy home,” said Kammeraad, who is again expected to protect the net for the Philippine side when they play their semifinal game against Thailand at the Rizal Memorial Football Stadium at 9 p.m. in Manila on Thursday.
In that game, the Philippines will miss suspended skipper Amani Aguinaldo, who accumulated yellow cards in the group stage games.
Aguinaldo was shown his second yellow card in their Indonesian encounter, which saw a total of eight players handed the same violation. Indonesia’s Muhammad Ferrari was thrown out of the game via a red card.
For Kammeraad, the game was milestone as the Philippines is now a win closer to the finals of the regional tournament.
“It didn’t really sink in until I touched the first ball, where it felt surreal. Obviously, it was an amazing stadium, an amazing atmosphere to make the debut. I think keeping the clean sheet, something we haven’t done yet in this tournament, and being part of that is a good feeling. Something I will have forever with me,” said Kameraad.
