It only took a single error for the Philippine women’s national football team to absorb its first loss in the 2022 ASEAN Football Federation (AFF) Women’s Championship.
The Filipinas suffered a 1-0 loss against Thailand on Tuesday night, July 12, at the Rizal Memorial Stadium.
Thailand’s Kanyanat Chetthabutr recorded the game’s lone goal in the 75th minute, converting on a header off a high-bouncing ball the Filipinas misjudged.
“Tough game, both teams could’ve won the game, unfortunately, one error cost us the game tonight,” Filipinas head coach Alen Stajcic said.
The national squad had several looks but just couldn’t find the bottom of the net.
“We had enough chances to win the game and they had two or three chances, we had four or five chances, probably a few more than them,” Stajcic remarked.
“We got punished by one error, that’s what happens in international football against good teams.”
Thailand ended as the Group A leader while the Philippines dropped to second and will face the winner of the Myanmar and Vietnam clash on Wednesday, July 13.
While waiting for their semifinal opponent, Stajcic just wants to give her players a much-needed break.
“I think the key is recovery,” the Australian coach quipped.
“This is brutal, this is probably the most brutal international tournament there is for women, to play five games in nine days in these conditions is something I’ve never seen before,” Stajcic added.
Filipinas will face the victor of the Myanmar-Vietnam tiff on Friday, July 15, in the same venue. – gb
