It was a hot day at the Rizal Memorial Stadium in Manila. Amidst the heat, members of the Philippine Women’s National Football Team were put through the paces by their coaches. For one particular drill, there was a coach who stood at the middle of the pitch to instruct the team’s midfielders.
Marielle Benitez took charge of the coaching for that instance. Benitez corrected the movement of the central midfielders and even the strikers. For her first time coaching at the senior level, it wasn’t so bad.
Benitez, though, very much has the credentials to coach at the senior level. She won UAAP championships in her college days at De La Salle University-Manila where she was also named captain. At the international level, she played fifty-five times for the Philippines where she also skippered the side.
“It’s a big adjustment of course”, Benitez admitted. “The Under-14 (team) it being my first campaign, I think the adjustment was getting into the system of coaching with coach Joyce (Landangan), sharing in being able to relate with the U-14 girls, pero sa ngayon yung sa senior squad yung difference is yung iba sa kanila kasi I was teammates with.”
Changing gears from being a teammate and now a coach was something Benitez needed to do. In addition to the tactics, Benitez felt that the biggest thing she could share with the players was her playing experience when it came to international play. She then noted the differences between the U-14 coaching staff she was a part of and the one she is with now.
“Coach Merle Acibar and Coach Buda naman they’re also defenders unlike the U-14 na nagsama-samang coaches which all had their specialties. You had coach Joyce as a striker, me as a midfielder, coach Patrice Impelido as the defender, coach Belay Fernando as the goalkeeper.”
“We really were able to share our experience, but of course at a higher level senior’s squad you have coach Buda who knows all the tactics. Parang yung assistance ko really mas specific sa movements of the midfielders.”
The PWNT are set to compete in the 2016 Asean Football Federation Women’s Championship to be held in Myanmar. It has been four weeks since the PWNT tryouts were first staged. From roughly fifty players, twenty were chosen to represent flag and country. For her part, Benitez expressed full confidence in the team’s midfielders.
“I can say na isa sa strengths ng team nito ang midfielders kasi kaya nila i-control yung pace ng team. And then the wingers they’re also the strength of this team, you have the speed and girls who can really cross. It’s really a matter of getting them to move together as one which is something you will be able to get in time naman.”
Come what may, Benitez should be an example for Filipino football players. Not only should one aspire to play for the national team, sharing what you’ve learned through coaching should be a goal as well. It wouldn’t be too far-fetched to say that Benitez might one day be the head coach of the PWNT.
*with reports from Mia Montayre
