Heading into its final assignment for the first round of the UAAP Season 85 Women’s Football Team, Far Eastern University was the in-form team of the tournament with three straight wins.
However, all of that came crashing down as the Lady Tamaraws succumbed to a 3-2 loss to De La Salle University last Saturday at the UP Diliman Football Field, which revitalized the defending champions’ ailing campaign.
Throughout the match, FEU players and coaches were frustrated by their lapses as well as some of the calls made by the officials. Ultimately, though, it was a bad day at the office for the Lady Tamaraws and they needed to lick their wounds after a dramatic defeat.
“The players are doing their best talaga to execute our plays but again, every time yung mental side talaga yung apektado sa amin. Especially kapag may mga trash talk or coming from the officiating, which is hindi na-ha-handle nang maayos ng mga player,” said coach Let Dimzon.
“But again, if we were able to convert lahat yung mga chances namin during the first half, I think hindi aabot sa ganito during the second half, which is naghahabol kami. It was still a good effort. Until the last minute, we were still trying to score again.”
Dimzon admitted that she and her team were caught off guard by La Salle’s adjustments throughout the match. Their pre-game preparations failed to help them counter the Lady Archers’ plays as well as their substitution patterns.
There is also the case of her players suffering from the wear and tear of the season and needing to recover quicker to be ready for the matches ahead.
“Downside talaga ng players namin is yung pressure especially (galing) sa system and rotations ng players from La Salle. We did not expect na yung number of players na iro-rotate nila and the starting,” said the former national team mentor.
“We analyzed yung previous games nila, which is the same players yung ginagamit nila sa starting, and also, yung injuries (namin). A lot of injuries even before we played against La Salle happened to players during training.”
Losing is always hard to take for any team. It is a bitter pill to swallow in the UAAP because the margin of error to reach the finals is so thin. Every point matters if a school wants to make it to the big dance.
Sometimes, though, it can be used as a springboard for more success. FEU will look to bounce back when it takes on University of Santo Tomas after the Holy Week break on April 15, 2023. With so much time to prepare and recover between then and now, it is up to the Lady Tamaraws to make the most of their two-week break.
“We need to prepare talaga. We need to strengthen our finishing. I mean lahat ng situation inside the box. We have good attacks. We have good players in front but kulang lang talaga kami sa finishing. I think yan yung kailangan naming tutukan,” closed Dimzon.
