Manila, Philippines – The Philippine Women’s National Futsal Team may be currently in fourth spot in the five-nation AFF Women’s Futsal Championship with a one-draw and one-loss slate, but they need two things to happen if they want to hold on to that spot or leapfrog past some of the competition.
First of all, they need Myanmar to claim a win or a draw with Indonesia.
The Burmese are currently in third spot with a 0-1-2 slate after a 2-2 draw with the Philippines, and a pair of losses, 4-2 to Vietnam and 2-1 to Thailand. They cling on to that spot with a minus-three goal difference. The Philippines is in fourth with a 0-1-1 slate and a minus-seven in goal differential. Indonesia is currently at the bottom of the standings with a 0-0-2 slate.
A win by Myanmar gives them a huge advantage in third spot for now while a draw will only give them a point; still an advantage, but not a certainty to advance.
A win by Indonesia will vault them ahead of Myanmar and the Philippines. Even a loss does not eliminate Indonesia. They hope for a favorable result against Myanmar today while wishing for Vietnam to gain a win against the host country. Should that happen, it will come down to the Philippines-Indonesia match tomorrow, November 20, for either to advance to the semifinals.
The second scenario the Philippines hopes for is a favorable result against Vietnam – tough as that may be – whether a win or a draw.
Philippines coach Vic Hermans isn’t only looking at this tournament but is also playing the long game, “What we are hoping for in this competition is for the girls to soak in the experience of top sides. We needed to learn that first hand against Indonesia. We need to learn from playing all countries. Of course, you always hope for results to be favorable whether it is difficult or not. All these will help us in our preparations for next year’s Futsal World Cup.”
Thailand is lording it over the field with three wins in three matches. The Thais are virtually in the semifinals and are looking for their seeding when they play Vietnam on November 20; the final day of the elimination round.
Vietnam is 2-0-0 and like Thailand, are looking to book that second semis slot.
