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Football: Pinatar Cup an eye-opener, Filipinas co-captain says

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Levi Joshua Verora Jr.

<div class="embed-wrap"><figure data-feedback="fb:likes,fb:comments"><img alt="National women" s="" football="" team="" stars="" Hali="" Inna="" Palacios="" and="" Shai="" Del="" Campo.="" Photo="" from="" the="" src="https://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/2023/sports/03/02/dsc00502-football_-pinatar-cup-eye-opener-filipinas-co-captain-says.jpg"/><figcaption>National women&#x27;s football team stars Hali Long, Inna Palacios and Shai Del Campo. Photo from the PFF</figcaption></figure></div>MANILA – Philippine women’s football national team co-captain Hali Long admits that the Filipinas’ recent Pinatar Cup campaign in Spain was an “eye-opening experience.”The Philippines was competitive in their 0-1 loss to Wales and 1-2 setback versus Scotland, but were dominated by eventual champion Iceland, 5-nil, to wound up with a winless stint in the four-nation tournament in San Pedro del Pinatar.“What hurt the most was that the games, you can feel at some point they&#x27;re all winnable. We felt we could have more possessions, more opportunities, so to feel that we can win the game,” the Kaya FC defender said.<ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/sports/03/01/23/womens-world-cup-trophy-to-inspire-next-generation-pff">PFF hopes FIFA WWC Trophy Tour inspires next generation of footballers</a></li></ul>Although disappointed, Long knows the Filipinas could have fared better.“We felt kulang or bitin. That&#x27;s the most disappointing part for us. It&#x27;s in ourselves to win. We just have to keep learning and pushing and maturing with the game as we grow,” she said.In its recent preparation matches, the national squad has had numerous close results, including draws to Costa Rica and Chile, and a slim loss to New Zealand.As the Alen Stajcic-coached Filipinas continue to gear for the most prestigious women’s football competition in the planet, the 28-year-old Long is hopeful the team would use its Pinatar Cup experience to toughen up for what is expected to be a more difficult road towards the World Cup.“I think the point of the Pinatar Cup was to expose us to those higher-level European teams. We faced teams who didn&#x27;t even qualify for the World Cup,” she noted.“It was a very big honor and opportunity but it came with a lot of responsibility. So now we have to put our heads down and keep working because it&#x27;s obviously not going to be any easier than the Pinatar Cup.”Up next for the Filipinas will be the 32nd Southeast Asian (SEA) Games in Cambodia, which opens in May.<ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/sports/03/01/23/look-filipinas-get-glimpse-of-world-cup-trophy">LOOK: Filipinas get glimpse of World Cup trophy</a></li></ul>Long thinks it will be an opportunity to raise the bar for themselves, given they have won the 2022 AFF Women’s Championship and claimed a historic bronze medal in the previous edition of the regional meet in Hanoi, Vietnam last year.“(The) SEA Games is always such a big event for Southeast Asia. Even if it&#x27;s not in a FIFA window, I don&#x27;t want any of my teammates or supporters to look past it,” she mentioned.“We have a variety of competitions this year, so everyone saw what we did in the last SEA Games, winning our first medal, so of course, we have to keep pushing and setting the bar higher.”Long and selected members of the Filipinas are currently in town to grace the FIFA Women’s World Cup Trophy Tour’s Philippines leg scheduled from March 1 to 2.The festivities gave them a chance to reflect on the ongoing journey, but also motivated them to maintain a no letting-up attitude with just months left before the World Cup’s kickoff in July.<ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/sports/multimedia/photo/03/01/23/fifa-womens-world-cup-trophy-tour-makes-stop-in-ph">Filipinas take selfie with FIFA Women&#x27;s World Cup Trophy</a></li></ul>“We can go there and make our country proud, (and) we don&#x27;t want this to be a one-time showing in the World Cup,” said Long, who is determined to see the Filipinas qualify regularly for the once-in-every-four-year international meet.The debuting Philippines is in Group A of the World Cup along with the Netherlands, Switzerland, and co-host New Zealand.The Filipinas qualified for the tournament through the 2022 AFC Women’s Asian Cup, which allotted five outright tickets for the continent to the World Cup. They beat Chinese Taipei in a memorable penalty shootout to make history.<div>RELATED VIDEO:</div><figure class="op-interactive"><iframe height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/aKXHLI4-OYw?enablejsapi=1" width="560"></iframe></figure><div class="iwantbar">Watch more News on <a href="https://www.iwanttfc.com/#!/browse/Genres/News/tag_id_genres/id_news" target="_blank">iWantTFC</a></div>

Philippine women’s football national team co-captain Hali Long admits the Filipinas’ recent Pinatar Cup campaign in Spain was an 'eye-opening experience.'