Thailand became champions of the AFF U-15 Girls tournament after outclassing the Philippines, 6-2, in the final, Saturday night. Yet the gallant campaign of the young Filipinas has brought hope for the future of Philippine football.
The Southeast Asian powerhouse set the tone early, dominating possession and easily dispossessing the Pinays, culminating in a 12th minute goal by Ploychompoo Somnonk.
The girls immediately fought back, cancelling the Thai lead six minutes later after Myria Garcia created space for herself at the top of the box for her fourth goal of the tournament.
But Thailand quickly responded when their speedy winger Somnonk struck again four minutes after. Eight minutes later they extended their lead via Trinity Parascandola.
The Pinays were desperate for a break and found one minutes after halftime, when Viviana Cera made a wild run for Garcia’s through pass that resulted in her fourth goal in competition.
But it was all Thailand from there, as they pounded the Philippine defense with three more goals afterwards, which reinforced their position as top dogs of Southeast Asian football. Somnonk, who scored a brace, was named player of the match.
A wistful Marielle Benitez remained magnanimous in defeat.
“It was unfortunate that we did not make it this year but I think I’m very happy with the overall performance of the girls. You saw the game, they gave everything they had on the pitch. I can definitely say that all the girls whether on the pitch or on the bench, throughout the tournament, gave a hundred percent,” the mentor shared.
She continued to praise her wards for the fight that they had given Thailand despite being down, before conceding the ASEAN neighbors were just on a different level.
“You can see that these girls are mentally strong, [against Myanmar] they bounced back. They did the same thing today but siguro we just couldn’t maintain it. Thailand came out as a stronger and better team tonight and there are a lot of things for us to learn from tonight’s match,” she added.
Benitez is confident that there is something special with this team, and that it will only be a matter of time before they go all the way.
“Two years in a row you’re in the finals, two years in a row you win silver, there’s a lot of potential in this team. It’s history in the making. There really should be more programs and plans to keep them together because the potential of this team is huge,” she asserted, hopeful that the team will peak in time for the AFC U-16 Asian Qualifiers next year, which is a stepping stone to the FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup in two years’ time.
Such programs could materialize soon, with reports circulating that the Philippine Football Federation will be holding a youth league for girls within the year. This will help prepare members of the U-15 national team pool prepare for the next international tournaments of their age group in the coming years.
Until these programs become a reality, together with better preparation for the national teams, the first-time head coach thinks expectations have been met.
“For a five week training camp, I think winning silver is a pretty good result,” Benitez proudly shared.
