The Philippine National Women’s Football Team is back at the FIFA Women’s World Cup!
The Filipinas secured the trip to Brazil after a 2-0 win against Uzbekistan in yesterday’s AFC Women’s Asian Cup play-in for the World Cup at the Robina Stadium in Robina, Australia.
Angela Beard opened the Filipinas’ strike account in the 47th minute after missing two opportunities earlier. Jackie Sawicki provided the insurance goal in the 52nd minute and the final score. Both goals were assisted by Jael Guy.
This will be the second consecutive time the Filipinas will be representing the country and the South East Asian Region as well (as of the moment) in the World Cup. From New Zealand, the Filipinas are bound for Brazil next year.
Congratulations to the Filipinas, Coach Mark Torcaso, the coaching staff and all the other members of the team. Credit should also be given to former team Manager Jeff Cheng, whose vision and efforts to assemble the best possible players continue to impact the Filipinas until now even after leaving the team. I would like to thank all the Malditas, who worked hard even when nobody was taking the team seriously then. And of course to coach Ernest Nierras and others whose names I forgot to mention.
Salamat din pala, Kevin Conejos!
The current leadership of the Philippine Football Federation should also take a bow. They, too, deserve the recognition. And they have to thank the Filipinas, again, for lifting the federation for the nth time.
Can’t wait for the PR to come out. And I’m just being sarcastic, just to be clear.
Which brings us to the next question. Can the Philippine Men’s National Football Team continue this football high with a win against Tajikistan 11 days from now?
Earlier this week, the PFF released the 23-man lineup that will be flying to Dushanbe for the all-important game against the Tajiks in the Asian Cup qualifiers.
On paper, the team is strong and has a good chance of taking the full three points against the host. Equally intriguing will be the presence of Raphael Obermair, the Paderborn O7 winger. Much hype and ink have been spent on Obermair ever since I can remember. The long wait is apparently over for Obermair to play for us. I even coined a term for him and other high-profile players, who are taking their sweet time before actually agreeing and literally showing up wearing the country’s colors.
Nevertheless, The Designated Kit Man is very happy to see two familiar names on the list. I have known Patrick Deyto and Daisuke Sato since their Global FC days. I practically saw them grow up on and off the football pitch. They were youngsters then, now they are the more senior players, the OGs, in the current squad littered by young but hungry players.
For Deyto, being called back to the national team is both vindication and redemption. Vindication because of the long work, the steadfast determination and the sacrifices he went through after suffering an injury while, ironically, playing for the national team. Redemption, because he has another opportunity to play for the flag and country.
“I’m looking forward to being back with the team. I’m equally excited to see my old teammates and of course, playing with the new ones that I haven’t played or trained with,” Deyto said
Deyto admits he knows what is at stake in the game against Tajikistan. More than the qualification to the tournament proper, Deyto says the result will impact the team’s future in the next few years. The game at the Hissar Central Stadium on the 31st means a lot to him too personally.
“During my rehabilitation, I just wanted to get better. I just wanted to be able to do the simple things before. Just like walking or running properly without pain. After a few months, I focused on my rhythm and performances before finally returning to the game,” he explained.
But for the moment, he is relishing the fact that after more than a year of sacrifices and buckets of sweat and tears, he will get another opportunity to change the way he exited the pitch the last time around he manned the space between the posts for the national team. Deyto suffered a leg injury against Indonesia during the group stage of the AFF Mitsubishi Electric Cup last December 2024.
He says his family was the main reason why he never lost the faith. “Tasha was there to help me everyday especially when I can’t even walk.”
Beating Tajikistan on its home turf might seem a big order for the team. Despite this, Deyto remains optimistic.
“We are in the best position or the best situation to succeed. Personally for me, there is no pressure. I’m just happy to be back and I want to contribute in any way I can,” he added.
According to sources, most of the players called for national team duties will fly to Turkey from March 20-22. The team will have a camp starting on the 25th before flying to Dushanbe on either the 28th or the 29th. The whole team is expected to be present on the 30th or a day before the match against Tajikistan.
Stay safe. Stay happy peeps!
For comments or questions, you can reach The Designated Kit Man at erel_cabatbat@yahoo.com or follow his account at Twitter: @erelcabatbat
