The Filipinas kept their dream of reaching the 2026 AFC Women’s Asian Cup knockout stage alive with a crucial 2-0 victory over Iran on Sunday at Robina Stadium in Gold Coast.
Sara Eggesvik opened the scoring in the 29th minute with a precise right-footed strike. Initially ruled offside, the goal was later confirmed after a VAR review, giving the Filipinas the lead.
Chandler McDaniel, who came off the bench in the 62nd minute, sealed the win in the 82nd with another clinical right-footed finish.
“Obviously, we got a result, and that was the most important thing for us,” said coach Mark Torcaso. “We wanted to get the win. We probably could have won the game by a lot more.
“We had a lot of chances in the first half that we needed to be a lot more clinical with, but we’re praying and hoping that the two goals are enough so we can get out of the group,” he added.
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After a challenging Group A campaign that included 3-0 and 1-0 losses to top seeds South Korea and Australia, the Filipinas currently sit provisionally in second place among third-placed teams, with three points and a minus-2 goal difference.
Their advancement now hinges on the remaining group stage results, as only the two best third-placed teams across Groups B and C will progress to the knockout round.
“The girls fought really hard today. Again, after the last couple of days, with recovery and the travel still in the bones a little bit since Perth, but the girls still fought extremely hard tonight,” Torcaso said.
“I’m so proud of everyone, and I hope everyone back home in the Philippines is proud of our girls because they fought so hard for the country tonight, and they brought us into a really good position to advance to the final eight of this tournament, and we’re really proud and excited for them,” he continued.
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With the Taegeuk Ladies and the Matildas already secured as the top two seeds from Group A, the Filipinas must now wait anxiously for other results to determine both their fate in the tournament and their ongoing bid for 2027 FIFA Women’s World Cup qualification.
Attention now shifts to Group B, where Uzbekistan faces Bangladesh tomorrow at 5:00 PM (Manila time).
Should Uzbekistan leapfrog the Philippines in the standings, the Southeast Asian Games gold medalists will then hope for a favorable outcome when Japan faces ASEAN rival Vietnam on Tuesday at 5:00 PM.
