The Philippine Women’s National Football Team suffered a 1-0 loss to Wales on Wednesday, February 15, in their first match of the Pinatar Cup in Spain.
Throughout the first half of the match, Wales were dominating the possession over the Filipinas. However, a defensive Philippine side kept the Welsh women from cracking through to find a goal.
Wales was only able to take their one-goal lead late in the first half after Dom Randle conceded a penalty after a tackle inside the box.
Despite giving Wales the lead, the Filipinas were still able to hold their own throughout the rest of the match, keeping their opponents from creating a bigger gap.
On the other side of the pitch, however, the Filipinas struggled to maintain possession and create chances to level the game. Katrina Gillou came close two minutes into the second half, but the Welsh keeper was able to hold the fort.
Throughout the remainder of the match, the Philippine side continued to search for opportunities to score, mainly from free kicks, but Wales’ defense proved to be enough to protect their slim lead to eventually walk off with the win.
In spite of the loss, the Filipinas can remain proud to have defended well against a team over 20 ranks above them.
The 52nd-ranked Philippine team will return to the pitch on February 18 for their second match of the tournament against Scotland.
Banner image from Pinatar Arena on Twitter.
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