Filipinas drop their first game in the AFF Women’s Championship against Thailand, 1-0, dipping to second place in Group A standing
The Philippine women’s football team suffered their first loss in the AFF Women’s Championship 2022 as they fell to Thailand, 1-0, on Tuesday, July 12, at the Rizal Memorial Stadium.
A defensive miscue between starter Dominique Randle and substitute Sofia Harrison allowed Thailand’s Kanyanat Chettabuhr to head the ball past goalkeeper Olivia McDaniel at the 74’ mark.
Thailand will then enter the semis with an unbeaten record with four wins and one draw for 13 points, topping Group A with 13 points and a +12 goal difference and eliminating third-ranked Australia in the process.
Philippine head coach Alen Stajcic shuffled his starting lineup once again with only two players, Jessica Miclat and Hali Long, retaining their respective spots from the previous match.
The national squad had one trick left in their sleeve as coach Stajcic subbed in top striker Sarina Bolden, as she surprisingly came off the bench for their last match, in the last ten minutes of regulation but not enough to create a goal.
"We have the chances to win and we didn't take it. We got punished against good international opposition. That's what happens in football. We got to bounce back next game," Stajcic said after the match.
The game, however, was quite a non-bearing match for the Filipinas as they safely secured a semifinal berth last Sunday in its win against Indonesia with 12 points and a +14 goal difference.
Only the top two teams in each group will advance to the Final Four and are in wait for their opponents for the next round.
On Friday, the national team will face the winner between Group B top teams Vietnam and Myanmar which are bound to face a knockout match on Wednesday, with both teams tied with nine points each.
Tags: #football, #AFF, #Thailand