Staj mentioned the final 3 cuts were difficult but that is sports for you. It is the coach'es decision. We have to respect that. At least JM was invited back for pre camp. It is possible that Coach Staj might not come back after the WC so it is possible she will be called back again under a different coach but it is understandable why she feels so disappointed right now for the lost opportunity especially since she first tried out for the Philippines when she was only 14 years old and going to the WC is every footballer's dream. I am sure she is not the only one that feels the same way worldwide
One still wonders though, that even for three reserve team... Bella Passion was selected over her... and even a fourth keeper (do we really need that much?)... one can't help but speculate... and apparently, the "...healthier environment" line was already edited from "less toxic environment"
Coach Staj is no stranger to similar controversies and player complaints when he was with the Matildas despite leading them to their highest FIFA women's rankings and was even fired for it on the eve of the last WC. I guess they needed local representation so Palacios and Castaneda was included. I agree a 4th goalkeeper was not necessary but as the official Visa rep the former could not be taken out as at least an alternate.
as much as I don't want to use the word... but Castaneda and to a certain extent Palacios are the token locals... Inna though would have been the perfect representation of Filipino local footballers... she's top of mind when talking about Philippine Women's Football... someone that local kids can aspire to be... that they also have a chance to make it to the world cup even though they are locally trained... let's also accept the fact though, that one of the reasons why football isn't popular in the country is that the general public doesn't have a local player that they can relate and look-up to... as much as I wasn't a fan of Chieffy for his sometimes or most of the times selfish plays, but he was one of the reasons why at a certain time, football was popular in the country.
Filipinas World Cup kit score an 8 in The Atlantic. https://theathletic.com/4678976/2023/07/13/womens-world-cup-home-kits-rated/
A couple of friendlies have been physical affairs that have already resulted in injuries. Those are the kind of games were Ryley Bugay will be most useful on defense both while challenging in the air and on the ground.
"Filipinas started their preparations for the tournament in June in Sydney. The squad underwent daily training sessions and had closed-door tune-up matches with various teams. " Too bad we don't have news on those tune up matches probably against local Australian clubs but it looks like they are doing well and gaining confidence from interviews they have made so far.
Filipinos generally tend to be vertically challenged in World sporting events usually having one of the shortest lineups at the world leve(which is a big disadvantage for them in their favorite sport of basketball)l but not for the Women's World Cup 2023 in the sport of football. Not only do they have the tallest player in the tournament in Kaiya Jota at 1.9 meters but they are only 2" shorter than the tallest squads on average Denmark and Germany and about the same average height as Eng, the US and 14 other teams. The Philippines Kaiya Jota might only be the 4th youngest player in the tournament at 17 y.o. but apparently she is the tallest at 190 cm assuming FIFA measurements are correct. Next up is Wendle Renard of France at 187 cm and Farissa Cordoba and Casey Murphy at 186 cm. They also have the 5th youngest lineup in the tournament and with rising stars as young as 14 y.o. coming from the youth ranks joining them soon will get even younger in future tournaments.
Reina Bonta's unique background history was highlighted again by FIFA. From the red carpet to the World Cup –Reina Bonta’s mind-blowing story (fifa.com) From filmmaking to the World Cup – Reina’s mind-blowing script Published 17 Jul 2023 Nine months ago a Yale graduate was taking the filmmaking world by storm. Then she sensationally quit the industry to pursue a pipe dream. Reina Bonta’s presence at Australia & New Zealand 2023 has emphatically justified a decision many felt was reckless. The attorney general of California leapt up and punched the air, rapture rippling through his veins. Rob Bonta felt like he was 20 again, celebrating a goal for the Yale Bulldogs. The rejoice on this occasion wasn’t indebted to the passing of a legislation to assist historically-marginalised communities or prevent gun violence. It was reaction to news he’d just received via FaceTime. Rob’s daughter Reina was at the Portland Film Festival, watching the world premiere of LAHI – a movie she co-wrote, directed and produced – when she was rocketed to cloud nine. The feature, which stars professional longboard surfer and actress Tiki Willis, had won the esteemed Audience Award at the San Diego Filipino Film Festival. Reina had already interned at HBO, worked on the set of Magnum, P.I. in Hawaii, camera-operated on a documentary about endangered black rhinos in Kenya, and had her photography published by Forbes Magazine. The fact that the success was for “a glorified school project”, preposterously made while she was still studying at Yale University, however, blew the minds of all the Bontas. And it took a lot to do that to a family drenched in success. Her father was the first Filipino-American to become attorney general of 'The Golden State' – a position recently held by current US vice-president Kamala Harris. Her mother is an assemblywoman. Her grandfather was a voting-rights organiser for Martin Luther King Jr. Her grandmother, who emigrated from the Philippines after taking three weeks to reach the USA by slow boat in the 1960s, is an activist who helped unionise farmworkers. And now Reina was one of the best up-and-coming filmmakers in America with the world at her feet. What happened next is as unrealistic as a James Cameron sci-fi. Reina, to the exasperation of production companies headhunting her services, quit filmmaking. Yet it was not the end for her and scripts. When Rob Bonta next got FaceTimed by his daughter, nine months after that previous call, he was left even more ecstatic. Reina was going to represent his birthland of the Philippines at the FIFA Women’s World Cup Australia & New Zealand 2023™. FIFA caught up with the classy centre-back to hear about the Walt Disney-esque fairy tale she penned with her feet. FIFA: We hear the attorney general of California was a pretty good footballer… Reina Bonta: He was – he is – an incredible football player. He played at Yale. He was their captain at one point. He led them to an Ivy League championship. He won one of the most acclaimed athletic awards at the university: the best male athlete. He’s a really formative part of my time growing up as a soccer player and a person. I was really excited and proud to play on the same field that he played on at Yale, to try and fill some big shoes because he left quite an impression there. At one point football was a dream of his. He played professionally for a bit after he graduated, he played in an early version of the MLS. But in the end his heart was calling him to law school and to a profession he’s also really passionate about. Now, as Attorney General of California, he’s very happy to be serving the state that he grew up in. He’s very happy but, yeah, football was a dream of his and he didn’t get to do everything he wanted. I think it’s awesome that he can live that dream through me in some way. I’m playing professionally and in the Philippines national team, representing the country where he was born. Was Filipino culture part of your life growing up? It was a big, big part of my life. My lola (a Filipino word for grandmother) grew up with me in my house, in a multi-generational home. All Filipinos are proud, but she’s the most proud person of the Filipino culture. She was a teacher for me about Filipino customs and values. It’s a little bit easier in California, where there’s a big Filipino population and you’re involved in a Filipino community. My lola is an activist as well – she fights a lot for the liberation of Filipinos, Filipino autonomy, and rights and justice for Filipinos in America. So that’s always been a big part of my life. Growing up, did you dream of becoming a footballer or a film director? Honestly, I always dreamed of being a professional footballer and being at the World Cup. That’s why these past weeks have felt so surreal. It’s still hard to believe this is happening. The welcome ceremony was really special. To get welcomed to New Zealand with the traditional indigenous dances was a once-in-a-lifetime experience. I’m still soaking it all in. How did you get into filmmaking? I actually started at Yale wanting to be a neurosurgeon. I was on the pre-med track. I took a film class just to fulfil a requirement. That ended up changing my life. I took a different trajectory. I majored in film at Yale. It’s something that I love. It allows me to be creative, to tell stories, to fulfil a little bit of the activism that has been so important to my upbringing with my lola and my parents. It’s something that I’m very passionate about and would like to do after my football career is over. Given the success of LAHI, how difficult was it to walk away from the industry to pursue a career as a pro footballer? I know a lot of people thought I was crazy. Pursuing a career as a football player, especially in the women’s game, is very difficult. Financially, is it sustainable? People saw a lot of success coming from the filmmaking and wanted me to ride that wave. But money’s not the most important thing to me. My parents, those closest to me encouraged me to follow my heart. I knew I couldn’t balance both. I can’t tell you that I didn’t have a little bit of hesitation. I knew what I would be giving up. I had so many amazing opportunities. But, for me, the opportunity to represent the Philippines at the World Cup made the decision easy for me. The Philippines got in contact with me when I was still at Yale about attending a camp. Nothing would be guaranteed, I knew that I would only have a short space of time to dedicate myself to football and to fight for a place in the 23. I knew I had to finish college and get my degree first, but I knew I had to give it a shot. It was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to represent the country my father, my lola were born in. It felt very meaningful. I think it took a lot of courage to pursue a football career. Being here, at the World Cup, is beyond words and makes my decision feel so worth it. After graduating from Yale you made Santos in Brazil your first club. How did that unusual move come about? I’m so grateful for it every single day. I love it so much. I gives me so much pride to represent this club, the club of Pele, of Marta, of Cristiane. I ended up there because my assistant coach from Yale, Tiffany Weimer, played for Santos. When I became committed to professional football, she looked at my profile as an attacking-minded, technical centre-back and reached out to Santos because she’s quite close with the coach. The coach watched my highlight tape and that same day offered me a spot. I couldn’t believe that I was saying yes to the Santos! I love it, I love it. You can see me beaming. I must beam every time I speak about it. How did you feel when you found out you had made the Philippines’ 23 for the World Cup? I definitely shed a few tears! (laughs) It was a very emotional moment. Such relief, excitement. It took a little while to really sink in that a childhood dream would be actualised very soon. That moment, being told I was part of the 23, is one I will remember for the rest of my life. It was funny because I FaceTimed my dad and my mom in a group call. I was crying, so there were some concerned looks! They were all confused because they didn’t know if they were happy or sad tears. I couldn’t get the words out for a little while, so they were very relieved when they finally realised they were happy tears! My father was really supportive. He said I’d earned it and deserved it. Those were important words to hear from the person who made me love the sport. Then I called my lola. She was over the moon. My parents were happy because I was fulfilling a childhood dream, and my lola was happy about that too, but I think she was even happier than I would be representing her country. That meant everything to her. How do you think you’ll feel hearing the Philippines national anthem for the first time at a global finals? (Gasps)… You’re going to get me emotional. Chills. It’s the first time the flag will be present at the World Cup – men’s or women’s. The first time Filipinos will hear the national anthem at the World Cup. The opportunity to sing that national anthem, I’m really emotional just thinking about it. The Philippines are the rank outsiders at this tournament. What is the team’s target? We’re here to win. Every game we’re here to win. We’re approaching it with a champion mentality. We’re focussed on one game at a time – we don’t want to get ahead of ourselves, we want to stay humble. I think it’s important for debutantes like ourselves to approach the tournament with the same mentality as countries who have been here for years. The target is to win. I’m very confident in our coaching staff and our preparations. Ramona Bachmann, Caroline Graham Hansen, Ada Hegerberg, Alisha Lehmann, Guro Reiten, Ali Riley, Lia Walti… which player are you most looking forward to playing against? They’re all incredible players. I’ve always been a big Ali Riley fan – for her game and also her leadership style. I really respect and admire the way she has approached culturally having this tournament in her country. So the opportunity to play against her would be very exciting. Will we see your parents out here? You will! My mom, my dad, my brother, both of my grandmas are all coming out. I’m very excited to see them. I think it will be a very special moment for all of us. And whenever this World Cup journey ends, me, my father and my lola are going out to the Philippines to see family there. My lola’s getting older, so it will be a very special experience for the three of us. __ Her father Rob Bonta who was also a pretty good soccer player in college at Yale U and pre MLS professionally is a rising star in Democractic politics and inherited a high profile position(Atty Gen of California) formerly occupied by the current Vice President of the US Kamala Harris.
Aside from the 1-5 lost to Sweden, there was a rumor that the Philippines behind closed doors played the US unofficially and lost 0-3. The result against the US was a better score than the 4-0 and 5-0 wins by the US over NZ. earlier this year.
The Philippines lost their first match in the WC against Switzerland but they get another chance today to get their first win tonight against New Zealand. Incidentally they are also playing New Zealand in the Women's Softball WC tonight for a chance to advance out of the group stage.
And we have to give credit to @Pelefan to have always believed that this could have happened, despite many naysayers opposing him. Of course, Philippines are still far for being sure to advance from the group, but the very fact that they have the chance to do it in the last match-day shows that @Pelefan was right in arguing that it was doable: no matter what the final outcome will be, he was right that Philippines were going to be competitive.
Thanks but unlike many others here I had access to Phlippine social media info and knew what the PWNT was building and that they were adding even more players as time went by. They just needed an experienced, committed and knowledgeable coaching staff which they got just in time for the Asian Cup and more professional experience which they started accumulating last year. They would have been even more competitive if they were able to recruit Seattle Reign's Sam Hiatt and Aston Villa's Maz Pacheco along with many other pros but that is still possible for the future maybe in the Olympics or the next World Cup campaign.
I think they are. Maz just posted on social media expressing her support for the Filipinas. It probably depends upon whether the future coaches of the US and England teams will still be interested in them.
In a double heartbreak for NZ, the Philippine national women's softball team also defeated their Kiwi counterparts in the World Women's Softball Cup today 5-3 in their group stage match helping them earn a spot in the playoffs.
The success of the PWNT is helping attract sponsors to the women's game in the Philippines with Coca Cola announcing it's partnership with the PFF coming on as a major sponsor of the PFF Women's League 2023 helping provide support for local women's football clubs and promoting gender equity in sports.
Filipinas grouped with Korea, Myanmar, HK in Asian Games debut Little rest for Filipinas after World Cup as Asiad looms THE Philippine women’s national team won’t have much time to rest after the FIFA World Cup as the Filipinas will next turn their focus on the Hangzhou Asian Games. Currently in strong contention for an unlikely berth in the knockout stage of the World Cup in New Zealand, the Filipinas will have the Asiad for their next stop where football competitions start on Sept. 25 in five different venues. This marks another historic milestone for the women’s team as it competes in the quadrennial showcase for the very first time. During the competition draw held in Hangzhou on Thursday, the Filipinas ended up being bunched with region powerhouse South Korea, Myanmar, and Hong Kong in Group E. Group A will have three-time gold medalist China, Mongolia, and Uzbekistan, while Group B has Chinese Taipei, Thailand, and India. In Group C are North Korea, Singapore, and Cambodia. Defending champion Japan, the highest-ranked Asian country in the world at No. 11, leads Group D together with Vietnam, Nepal, and Bangladesh. Filipinas, Japan in win column Along with the Philippines, Japan, China, South Korea, and Vietnam are the Asian countries currently seeing action in the World Cup, with the Filipinas and the Japanese so far the only two to make it to the win column. Filipinas grouped with Korea, Myanmar, HK in Asian Games (spin.ph) As is usually the case the Philippines is grouped with Hongkong again the Asian team that they have played the most outside of ASEAN.