By: Jonas Terrado
AUCKLAND, New Zealand—The experience of playing high-level matches before and during the course of what has been a dream Fifa (International Association Football Federation) Women’s World Cup campaign has made the Filipinas get used to what others see as an overwhelming occasion.
“Whether it’s against Caroline Graham Hansen (Norway star) or someone from Westside California, I’m excited to play football,” Jessika Cowart said as the Filipinas face Norway on Sunday at Eden Park here with a chance to go to a place no expert had penciled them capable of achieving.
Cowart and the rest of the team’s backline composed of Angie Beard, Hali Long, Sofia Harrison and Alicia Barker are making sure they would put on a brave stand against a Norwegian side which, despite dealing with internal issues that are coming out publicly, are still favored to come away with a victory.
“It makes no difference, I’m gonna go out and play against whoever comes on the field,” added the 23-year-old defender.
‘It’s just football’
The wealth of experience it had since securing the World Cup slot at the Women’s Asian Cup seems to have made the Filipinas hardly care what’s ahead of them.
And it has shown in the two games where the Filipinas put up a gallant debut despite a 2-0 loss to Switzerland, which happened on a VAR-aided penalty call and a second-half goal.
But Tuesday’s victory in Wellington over New Zealand has obviously raised the confidence of the Filipinas and so are the expectations of those hoping to see them win—either at the 61,000-seat stadium or in viewing parties back home.
“At the end of the day, it’s just football,” said Cowart. “We’ve been playing this game our whole lives and we approach every game like that. We know our style of play, our tactics and we’re gonna stick to our guns.
“We approach every game the same way and it helps that we’ve been consistent over the last 18 months,” she added.
Simultaneous game
That doesn’t mean that Cowart and company are not being reflective of what they’ve experienced over the last week or two, which could either be stretched for a few more days with a win or a draw, plus a New Zealand loss or end with a defeat.
“It’s been really exciting,” Cowart said. “I think international football is a different beast and so we come out playing teams of much different caliber and that’s been a great learning experience for us.
“And overall, we’re all trying to soak every moment in. And what you’ve said, it’s our first time here so we’re trying to grasp everything we can.”
The New Zealand-Switzerland game will also be held at 7 p.m. local time (3 p.m. in Manila) in Dunedin and many will have to look at two scoreboards at the same time in what could be a drama-filled day.
While advancing through a tie can be a possibility, what matters for the Filipinas is the full three points.
“Whether we’re playing for life or death, or Norway, or anyone, or win or we need to draw, we’re out there to win every game,” coach Alen Stajcic said.
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