The national women’s football team is eyeing for more success in competitions leading up to next year’s maiden campaign in the FIFA Women’s World Cup.
Veterans Tahnai Annis and Hali Long said there’s no reason for the Southeast Asian Games, AFF Women’s Championship and Asian Games to use them merely as warm-up for the World Cup, especially with the bar raised to a higher level following a semifinal finish in the recent AFC Women’s Asian Cup in India.
“Now that we've accomplished this really high goal, we have to solidify that by accomplishing everything underneath, like the smaller competitions,” Long said in a press conference held Sunday, Feb. 6 at Seda Hotel in Bonifacio Global City, Taguig.
“And that will just solidify on a personal level and a team level and the level of our country, that we actually deserve to be there (in the World Cup),” added Long, one of the steady defenders for the Philippine squad.
Tahnai Annis, who shared the captaincy duties with Long throughout the Asian Cup, also shared that the change of mentality after clinching the World Cup spot via a dramatic quarterfinal win over Taiwan should mean that any tournament the rest of the way should be treated with equal importance.
“We’re here to dominate now, not just to not just to show up, have fun and hope that we do well,” Annis said. “I think we're moving from hope to more of a belief that we're going to continue to do well.
“So as there's no concrete goals, I know that there are subjective goals of keeping that winning mentality and keeping everyone accountable that now that we're not together, that everyone's doing what they need to do to stay fit to raise their individual bar higher.
“And I know that's really important to everyone moving forward, especially for the next competition that comes up pretty quickly,” she added.
The SEAG in Hanoi, Vietnam will be the first in the Philippines’ calendar post-Asian Cup where it will aim to at least secure a podium finish after placing fourth in the 2019 edition held on home soil.
Next is the pandemic-delayed AFF Women’s Championship which the Philippines is scheduled to host in July before heading to Hangzhou, China for the Asiad in late-September.
Most of the ladies, including those based abroad, arrived this weekend from India following their Asian Cup campaign. Coach Alen Stajcic went back to Sydney but is slated for negotiations with the Philippine Football Federation with regards to a contract renewal.