The Philippine national floorball squad made history when it advanced to the finals of the 2024 Asia-Oceania Qualifications late Friday at the Philsports Complex in Pasig City.
Coached by Noel Alm Johansson, the Nationals shocked Australia in the semifinals, 5-3, to secure their spot in the finals and seal a historic appearance at the IFF World Championships in Malmö, Sweden from 7 to 15 December.
They are clashing with Southeast Asian powerhouse Thailand in the gold medal match at press time.
On the other hand, Australia will join the Philippines and Thailand in the prestigious world tourney after hammering a 4-3 victory over Singapore in the battle for third.
But making it to the biggest and most prestigious floorball event in the world wasn’t easy.
Leading by a single goal, 4-3, with five left, the Filipinos had to bank on penalty kicks to thwart the taller, heftier Australians.
Goalkeeper Patrick Nessbo anchored the Filipino defense by frustrating the Australian attack led by twins Daniel and Tomas Gartner before Melvin Alm Mendoza secured the victory in the dying seconds with a goal off a crucial assist from Lucas Werelius.
“We faced two significant penalties late in the game, and we have been dealing with too many penalty calls against us throughout the tournament,” the 23-year-old Nessbo, who plays for Hertzoga BK, said.
“So, we’ve been honing our box play, and I believe today it paid off as we really put in our effort in executing it.”
Aside from the Philippines, Thailand and Australia, also seeing action in the World Championships are Canada, Finland, Latvia, Slovakia, Czech Republic, Switzerland, Slovenia, Denmark and defending champion Sweden.
