Long itching to play

Philippine national women’s football team captain Hali Long is giddy with excitement as the AFC Women’s Asian Cup Qualifiers kicks off on 29 June in Cambodia.

Long said winning the PFF Women’s League for the second straight time gives her a big boost in morale as she and the Filipinas face Saudi Arabia, Hong Kong and the Cambodians, the host of the qualifiers, in Group G.

The 30-year-old defender was also named the Most Valuable Player of the season in the Women’s League.

“Hopefully, we can all breathe and focus on Cambodia because it’s been tight. It’s honestly been hard to be teammates off the pitch when this league has been so tight,” Long said.

“Coming off of our loss from Taipei here at home, still more growth, still digging in our pool, still kind of solidifying going into Cambodia. Hopefully, we can qualify.”

Filipino football fans are hoping for a win as the Filipinas will be competing without veterans Sarina Bolden, Katrina Guillou and Reina Bonta.

Their absence could have a major impact in their campaign as only the top teams per group will make it to next year’s Asian Cup which will be held in Australia.

Still, Long believes the 26-woman pool, led by veterans Sara Eggesvik, Chandler and Olivia McDaniel, and Quinley Quezada have enough experience to book a spot in the Asian Cup.

“We have two weeks in Cambodia. We’ll be doing our best to put on a performance and to get ourselves back to the Asian Cup,” Long said.

“It’s not an easy road. We know that each qualifier and each game is important.”

Long is also excited for another stint in the AFC Women’s Champions League with Kaya.

“Now it’s about growing, fixing our mistakes and doing the work now because we get to represent the Philippines in the Champions League. That is an honor to do once, let alone twice,” Long said.