Fil-Aussie defender Angie Beard played her first official game on Philippine soil on Tuesday, facing Chinese Taipei.
Fil-Australian Angie Beard has been with the Philippine women’s national football team for some time, but Tuesday marked her first-ever official match on home soil, as the Filipinas faced Chinese Taipei in a 0-1 loss at the Rizal Memorial Stadium.
While it would’ve been sweeter with a victory, the 27-year-old’s mood wasn’t dampened as she experienced the love of the hometown Filipino crowd in its fullest at the stands of the iconic RMS, with upwards of 3,000 fans coming out.
Speaking to media after the match, Beard said that she was happy to finally get to experience what the other Filipinas have been used to by now.
“Yeah, it’s massive, [playing here in Manila]. I think I’ve missed out on a big treat here in the Philippines, it’s always good to be home. It’s always good to be in our country with our fans,” said Beard.
“I’m super grateful. I know all the girls really appreciate everyone who shows out in person or on the livestream. It’s an incredible feeling.”
Beard had joined the Filipinas just prior to the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup where the team made history as the first Philippine team to ever qualify for the competition. They highlighted their campaign with a win over hosts New Zealand thanks to a goal by Sarina Bolden.
Now two years removed, the Filipinas played their first home game in three years.
For Beard, it was nothing short of exhilarating to finally share the space with Filipino fans in an official match. She previously joined camps and intra-squad friendlies in the Philippines.
“Like I said before, it’s crazy. I love it so much. I love the noise, I love the drums. I love the girls that walk out with us. I love just… Anyone can come, anyone can come support us. We love everyone, we hope that everyone loves us.” said the Fil-Australian.
“We want to represent the people, the country, the flag as best as we can and we put our heart and soil into the game. So we hope the fans do the same for us,” she added.
Despite her excitement in playing at home, Beard and the rest of the Filipinas now must face a quick turnover as they prepare for the AFC Women’s Asian Cup qualifiers slated next month in Cambodia.
After taking a tough loss against Chinese Taipei with a number of players missing, Beard is hopeful that the team learns from the defeat and gets back some missing pieces by the time that the ball gets rolling.
[READ: Filipinas stumble against Chinese Taipei in rare home friendly]
“Yeah, I think, we’re lucky enough to have the training game on Friday [against Chinese Taipei] to just test a couple of things out. We have a lot of new girls in so it’s always good to expand the pool. But I also think that we’ve got a couple of girls at home resting some little things that we wanna bring back in and make sure that the team’s at full strength whether it’s the Starting XI, the bench, everyone,” she said.
“And I think yeah, moving forward, trying to be defensively as compact as we can, and scoring goals. I think, yeah, we’re missing a bit of that tonight but I think at the end of the day, we’re making forward steps, we’re getting fitter, we’re getting faster, we’re trying our best to play best as best as we can with the football that we play.”
The Filipinas begin their campaign at the AFC Women’s Asian Cup qualifiers against Saudi Arabia on Sunday, June 29.