Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, October 27) — The Philippine national women’s football team is eyeing to continue their winning streak as they face Australia next in the second round of the AFC Women’s Olympic Qualifying Tournament on Sunday.
Sarina Bolden led the Filipinas in its victory against Chinese Taipei, 4-1, on Thursday during the ongoing tournament in Perth, Australia.
But head coach Mark Torcaso admitted that the Australian squad, which is no. 11 in the world rankings, will pose a tough challenge for the Filipinas.
“Chinese Taipei is a 38th-ranked side so for us to get a really convincing result against them was really pleasing for us to see where we’re at as a country and as a team,” Torcaso said during a virtual press conference.
“But coming up against Australia will be a different challenge and we’ll be ready and give our absolute best and hopefully make everyone proud,” he added.
This is the second tournament that the Filipinas trained for under Torcaso after he was named as the new head coach in August.
Torcaso first called the shots for the Filipinas during the recently concluded Asian Games in Hangzhou, China, where they reached the quarterfinals.
In his two months of coaching, he said he was surprised with the Filipinas’ enthusiasm on the field.
“The one thing that really surprised me about this group, is something that I’ve never seen before, is the second they walk out, before they warm up, the tunnel and the changing room is like a circus,” Torcaso said.
“They’re just screaming and so excited to be out there on the field and doing something they love.\” he also said. \”So that’s just a true representation of the culture that they’ve brought into this group.”
The Filipinas will need to finish as the top team in Group A to advance to the third round of qualifiers.
