ALTHOUGH the Filipinas are heavily favored based on the result of their last encounter, newly-hired Australian coach Mark Torcaso is not taking Hong Kong lightly when they tangle today in Group E at the start of the Hangzhou Asian Games football competitions in Wenzhou, China.
“Every game is different, every tournament, every team prepares and they (Hong Kong) have new players we are looking at as well. We have to treat them with respect,” said Torcaso yesterday in an online press conference on the eve of their opening match at 4 p.m. at the Wenzhou Sports Center Stadium.
The Filipinas whipped Hong Kong 4-0 the last time they met in the first round of the Paris Olympic Games qualifiers last April in Hisor, Tajikistan.
But Torcaso, the A-League 2022 Coach of the Year, stressed the previous outcome didn’t matter considering that it was his first time to handle the national side, revealing he was still in the “getting-to-know-you” phase with his players.
“It is finding out in what areas we can improve, try to engage with them, build on the family-like environment of the past and go on from there,” he said.
Torcaso said he has confidence in his charges, who are making their Asian Games debut, stressing that “the expectations are what we set for ourselves, to be competitive as possible. We will take each game as it is and be at our best.”
Joining the Aussie mentor at the briefing was veteran defender Eva Madarang, who was glad to be back in harness after being excluded from the squad that saw action in the FIFA Women’s World Cup in New Zealand last July.
Having been with the Nationals over the past years, Madarang said she is not seeking redemption for being cut from the World Cup squad because “it’s like a family to be here so being with them again is a nice feeling.”
Torcaso rued the fact that some of those who competed Down Under in the World Cup were not around “because this tournament is not in the FIFA window so they could not be available because of the short turnaround.
“It was unfortunate and difficult to get all the commitment of the team members for this tournament because it fell outside of the FIFA window.”
But he was quick to point out that “it doesn’t affect what we are doing. We are going to be prepared as much as possible against Hong Kong.”
The Filipinas will be on a high when they go into the game, having received their $30,000 bonus for making it to the grandest stage of women’s football.
The team’s star players like co-captain Hali Long, Sarina Bolden and Sara Eggesvik are expected to dazzle their growing number of fans.
“They are fully motivated,” said Philippine Football Federation secretary-general Edwin Gastanes, who is being groomed as next the president of the association.
The Filipinas are currently ranked No. 44 in the FIFA rankings, enough to strike fear in the hearts of their rivals.
The only thorn for the Filipinas in Group E is South Korea. The other team in their group is Myanmar which is not much of a problem for the well-trained national side.
