Filipinas just fall short against favored Matildas in opener
The Philippine women’s football team made sure it wouldn’t end up losing to a crack Australia side to open the AFC Women’s Asian Cup without putting up a gallant stand.
That, however, doesn’t mean that a 1-0 setback to the Matildas to begin the qualifier for the 2027 Fifa Women’s World Cup should be a cause for the Filipinas to be satisfied after gaining a moral victory.
“As well as we did, I think we’re still unhappy with the result,” keeper Olivia McDaniel said following the outcome at Perth’s Optus Stadium on Sunday, where the Filipinas gave themselves a chance to sneak in a draw despite conceding an early goal.
McDaniel’s effort to prevent Chelsea star striker Sam Kerr from producing the opening goal in the 14th minute went for naught as the host Matildas were able to go ahead before a good-sized home crowd.
Australia appeared to have doubled the lead minutes later, though that was disallowed because of an offside that was ruled through VAR.
The Filipinas kept the scoreline intact, but the elusive equalizer eluded them until the final whistle.
“We wanted to come away with something, whether a tie or a win, so we’re not happy with that,” said McDaniel.
The shot-stopping hero of the Filipinas’ gold medal triumph at the Thailand Southeast Asian Games last year did tip her cap to the effort the team put out, something she would like to carry in the next two matches.
Both games are now crucial, though.
They travel to the Gold Coast for their matchup with South Korea on Thursday, before playing Iran the following Sunday in the same city.
Their goal is to either secure a top two finish, guaranteeing the Filipinas a berth in the knockout stage or as the best third placer from the three groups. That would give them the chance to secure one of the six berths for the World Cup in Brazil.
“I mean, we didn’t concede in the last 45. That’s all I care about,” McDaniel said. “We’re just gonna look to get better and better each game. But it just makes them even more important.
“We got to come away with some wins in the next games so we can get ourselves out of the group,” she added.
