THE national women’s squad is excited to play in front of local fans for the first time, drawing inspiration from the hometown crowd when it vies in the 13th Asean Football Federation Women’s Championship kicking off on July 4 at the Rizal Memorial Stadium and other venues.
“I can speak on behalf of the girls on how excited we are to play in the Philippines. We haven’t had the home field crowd behind us since we have been playing abroad. I am very happy and excited to be here with the team, playing in front of our home crowd for the first time. We hope to make everyone proud. This is also my first time so everyone is honored and excited to play here,” skipper Tahnai Aniss said during an online press conference organized by the Philippine Football Federation.
The World Cup-bound Nationals arrived late Tuesday night after a two-week training camp in Europe and are set to spring into action against top-rated Australia in Group A on Monday at the heritage-rich Rizal Stadium.
This will be the Filipinas’ first tournament since bagging a bronze medal in the 30th Vietnam Southeast Asian Games in Hanoi last May.
Aside from the two teams, Thailand, Singapore, Indonesia and Malaysia are also in Group A while defending champion Vietnam, Myanmar, Cambodia, Timor-Leste and Laos are bracketed in Group B.
PFF General Secretary Atty. Edwin Gastanes said all of the matches of the Filipinas will be played at Rizal, adding details on tickets will be announced today on the PFF website.
Aniss’ excitement was echoed by Australian coach Alan Stajcic and defender Dominique Randle.
“We’re excited to compete on home soil. It has been a historic and meteoric rise for the team. It is good for them to play at home and feel a little bit of that home support. We can’t wait for a full stadium to support the team in what to my mind is a really tough group,” Stajcic noted.
Randle was ecstatic to play in front of a Filipino gallery, saying: “This was one tournament that I particularly encircled. I got to talk to a lot of relatives just to get access and get familial support now that we’re here.
“We get to channel that energy from support from our families and we can show our heart with the way we play. We’re really excited to play in front of family relatives who are unable to come and witness us live for our competitions abroad.”
Stajcic stressed that having the hometown crowd behind is important in what he reckoned as the most competitive among the two groups while getting to play the fancied Australians on the opening day of the 11-nation competition.
“There is no doubt that we are in the toughest group and get to play the toughest opponent in Australia for our first match,” he noted.
