Young Filipinas Alexa Pino, Jael Marie Guy, and Mallie Ramirez are all headed for their first AFC Women’s Asian Cup as the Philippines go for another FIFA Women's World Cup slot.
The Philippine women’s national football team is heading into the final phase of its preparation for the upcoming AFC Women’s Asian Cup in Australia where the team eyes another shot at the FIFA Women’s World Cup.
While a veteran core makes up most of head coach Mark Torcaso’s 26-woman roster, there are also some fresh faces that will be new to this level of competition.
But with a good mix of both, the Filipinas have grown to learn from each other as they look to once again make history.
[RELATED: Mark Torcaso admits Filipinas’ road to World Cup ‘tougher’ the second time around]
Youngsters Alexa Pino, Jael Marie Guy, and Mallie Ramirez were all given a litmus test with the national team late last year, where they helped the Filipinas clinch a historic gold medal at the SEA Games.
Now with a bigger challenge ahead, they are looking towards their older teammates to get used to the mounting pressure.
“The veterans, the people who have been there for a long time, they've been great role models for us and they've shown us what it's like to be leaders and be true representations of our country,” Pino said.
“It's just been amazing to have access to that and just to talk to them and train with them and just be a part of the team itself.”
All three Filipinas were part of the months-long training camp heading into the Women’s Asian Cup, where they will open their campaign against host country Australia.
“We're really excited because this is going to be a very big tournament for the Philippines after coming from the SEA Games where we made a statement," said Guy.
"We've just been working really hard and I think that all of our preparation is going to be worth it and show when we play.”
Rising to the occasion
Despite their relative young age, Pino, Guy, and Ramirez have already proven themselves for the national team.
In the SEA Games, Pino dazzled with a hat trick in the Filipinas’ 6-0 beatdown of Malaysia.
Meanwhile, Ramirez scored twice in the group stage – once against Myanmar in a loss, and again against Vietnam in a 1-nil win.
For her part, Guy came up big in the semifinal, scoring the equalizer against Thailand to force extra time and penalty kicks – where she also netted a goal in penalty shootout.
She also scored a PK in a penalty shootout vs. Vietnam during the gold medal match.
While they continue to take in all the lessons from their teammates, all three players acknowledge that they also have to play their part in vying for the Philippines’ second straight appearance in the World Cup.
“Obviously being younger we have high expectations from the veterans and the coaching staff," said.
"Always having high standards for each other and for ourselves is really important for us and I think the SEA Games, like Jael said, [is where we] made a statement for ourselves and I think we're going to continue doing that in the Asian Cup.”
[RELATED: Jackie Sawicki hopes Filipinas carry SEAG gold momentum into World Cup bid]
The Filipinas are already in Perth where they will conclude training before facing Australia on Sunday, March 1, to kick off their group stage campaign.
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Luisa Morales is a sports writer with a special interest in promoting women’s sports.
Her coverage highlights include the UAAP, PVL, Southeast Asian Games, and the FIBA World Cup. She also follows Alex Eala, the Philippine women’s national football team, and mixed martial arts.