SPORTS in Philippine Daily Inquirer

 

July 28, 2023

A powerful header from Sarina Bolder took New Zealand's keeper out of the picture.  (Reuters)

Hey there sports fan, If someone told you a week ago that on the third match day of the Philippine women's football team in the Fifa Women's World Cup, the squad would still be playing for something, you might have laughed. Or, if you agreed, it would be based on pure optimism and blind faith more than anything else. After all, the Filipinas are the lowest-ranked squad in Group A and are playing in the sport's biggest stage for the first time. And yet, here we are.  When the team battles Norway on Sunday, the team will be battling for a spot in the last 16. This gutsy group of gals are playing to extrend what has already been a dream stint in front of the eyes of the world.  There were clues scattered all over the loss to Switzerland that the Filipinas are not in New Zealand merely to bask in the World Cup spotlight, a privilege they earned with a dramatic victory over Taiwan in the qualifiers last year. In that 2-0 defeat, the team had the audacity to go out and celebrate the match's first goal, courtesy of a sublime strike by Katrina Guillou.  Yeah, so the offside flag nullified that goal eventually, cutting short the rapture of the team and its supporters. But Guillou firmed up the team's belief that it was capable of magic. And ta-daaa: The Filipinas pulled one memorable rabbit out of the hat. Sarina Bolden converted a pass by Sara Eggesvik into a country's core memory, blasting in a header that knocked down New Zealand's goalkeeper for a 1-0 lead over the tournament cohost. And then, amid a desperate fight by their foes, Olivia McDaniel made sure that the score would hold until the final whistle. That brings us to Sunday. The Philippines will need another epic shocker against a past champion—one groping for form amid injuries and team turmoil, but a powerful squad nevertheless—to qualify to the knockout rounds.  Will they succeed? The smart money is on Norway. It is hard to imagine the Filipinas bringing down such a collection standouts (or even holding them to a draw, which would still allow the Philippine to advance if coupled with a Switzerland win over New Zealand). But then, a week ago, it was difficult to believe too that on its third match day in the World Cup, the national team would still be playing for something. And yet, here we are.

Olivia McDaniel was a lifesaver for the Filipinas. (AFP)

Meanwhile... It's going to be a bit difficult to talk about anything outside of the Women's World Cup. How about a trivia question? Japan scored two goals in the span of two minutes against which World Cup foe? The answer, in a bit.   Also, let me just leave you with this: Remember how, before the tournament started, Filipinas defender Hali Long said the team was playing for more than just match results? The most capped player of the team said the Filipinas wanted to be examples of making dreams come true.   Well, their message is being heeded by young girls who also made their mark on the pitch, more than 17,000 kilometers away from the World Cup floodlights.  What we're up to next: On Sunday, our eyes will be everyone else's will be: On the match between the Philippines and Norway for a spot in the next round. We will have more features and updates straight from New Zealand, where Inquirer's football guru, Jonas Terrado, is currently following the exploits of the country's heroines. Number of the Week: 1-0 A score that will be forever etched in our hearts. Need I say more?

QUOTE OF THE WEEK “I’ll remember this moment, forever. For the rest of my life.” —Sarina Bolden, Philippines forward, on her first World Cup goal,and the country's first win on the sport's biggest stage.

The answer to the question above? Costa Rica. There are more trivia questions on our weekly sports quiz which you can access by joining our Viber community, which also featres the freshest sports updates. Fo Buy the Inquirer at newsstands, subscribe to our digital edition, Inquirer Plus, visit our online site and follow us on socials (Twitter: @inquirersports; FB: facebook.com/inquirersports) for more stories and updates—or to send us questions or suggestions of stories you'd want to read. Have a great and safe weekend! See you next Friday. Francis Francis T. J. Ochoa is the Sports Editor of the Philippine Daily Inquirer. For comments, suggestions and questions, hit him up on Twitter (@ftjochoaINQ).