AUCKLAND. – In a peculiar sight after once playing under the Australian flag and the Matildas, two players will be playing on opposite sides when the Philippines faces New Zealand Tuesday in a win-or-go-home game for the Filipinas in their Group A FIFA Women’s World Cup clash in Wellington.
They are Ferns midfielder Indiah Page-Riley and Filipinas defender Angie Beard, sportswriter Phillip Rollo of the stuff.co.nz website reported on Sunday.
Riley sent a message to Beard once it was announced that New Zealand was drawn in the same group as the Philippines.
“I guess I’ll be seeing you soon,” the message read, the story reported.
Besides playing for the Matildas, Riley and Beard were close friends and played together for two years for Danish club Fortuna Hjorring before switching nationalities, it added.
Riley, who was born in New Zealand, made her debut for the Matildas as a reliever in the second half of a 2-5 loss to Germany in April 2021, while Beard did so five months later in a 2-3 defeat to Ireland.
Riley said it was Beard, who has a Filipina mother, who helped her navigate a crisis concerning her future in international play.
“It made it easier to have someone to talk to who knew exactly what I was going through,” Riley recalled.
But their friendship will have to be set aside as the Ferns, fresh from their 1-0 upset of Norway last week in Auckland, gun for their second straight win and an outright spot in the next round while the Filipinas try to stay alive after dropping a 0-2 decision to Switzerland in Dunedin last week.
“I think it’s a surreal experience to play against one of your best mates at a World Cup. We won’t be friends on the field, that’s for sure,” Riley acknowledged, knowing the high stakes involved.
“Angie is a player I know very well and her playing on the left and me on the right, it could be a match-up. We’ll have to wait and see,” she said while showing respect for her former teammate.
“I think she (Beard) brings a lot of great qualities to the team. She’s a fast-attacking fullback so that’s definitely a threat for them,” she noted. “I hope she does well but not too well against us, obviously.”
