CHONBURI, Thailand — For the Philippine women’s football team, “Mission: History” doesn’t end with a breakthrough finals stint in the 33rd Southeast Asian Games.
The Filipinas want to win it all. “Coming in, our goal was to win our final game (of the tournament) and we plan to do that,” said skipper Hali Long after the Filipinas beat host Thailand on penalties, 4-2, after a 1-1 tie at the end of extra time in their thrilling semifinal duel last Sunday.
That dramatic come-from-behind victory at the Thais’ own turf — the latest act from the squad that's been giving the country many firsts, highlighted by a stellar debut 1-0 upset of host New Zealand at the FIFA Women’s World Cup in 2023 — set it up for a shot at SEA Games glory on Filipinas’ final mission: Win it all Wednesday at the Chonburi Daikin Stadium.
They go up against Vietnam in the ultimate bat tle, determined to complete the ascension of the Philippines, for the longest time the SEA Games' football minnows, to the winners' club.
Before the bootfest here, the Filipinas’ best performance in the SEA Games was a bronze finish in 2021 in Hanoi. The Philippines also made the podium in Bangkok in 1985, finishing behind Thailand and Singapore in a three-team field.
On their way to the Last Dance, the Mark Torcaso-coached squad had to overcome major roadblocks.
A 1-2 loss to Myanmar in the Group A opener got the Filipinas off on the wrong foot but knowing no quit, they rebounded with a 1-0 nipping of the Vietnamese and an emphatic 6-0 shutout of Malaysia to secure a semis ticket.
It got a lot testier against the Thais, who dropped the Filipinas to a 0-1 hole. Pressing on, they got the equalizer via Gael-Marie Guy’s spot kick three minutes before the end of regulation, then completed the steal with conversions by Guy, Alex Carpio, Sara Eggesvik and Long in the penalty shootout.
“They haven’t stopped fighting this whole competition,” an emotional Torcaso said.
“Even after a loss in the first game, we were absolutely determined to make sure we made the gold medal match and we’re here now.”
Long also reached a personal milestone in playing her 100th game for the national team.
“It’s an unreal feeling that I’ve come this far and watching this team grow, develop, change, shift, is something I wouldn’t trade for the world and I couldn’t have done it without my teammates who have been there every second of the way and I’m really grateful for them,” the ace defender said.