PHL Women’s football squad demolishes Tonga in friendly match

By Leobert Julian A. de la Peña

The Philippine Women’s National Football team continued to roll and overpowered Tonga, 5-0, in a friendly match set as part of their preparations for the upcoming 2022 Southeast Asian Games.

Head coach Alen Stajcic and his wards picked up where they left off and dominated the Tongans for the whole 90-minute span.

The power duo of Anicka Castaneda and Eva Madarang led the Filipinas’ offensive onslaught after both booters scored respective braces that capped off their flawless victory.

Castaneda kicked off her goal party after 15 minutes of action and followed it up with a beautiful looping goal in the 57^th minute.

Meanwhile, Madarang put the icing on the cake and found the back of the net in the second half of the clash, specifically in the 71^st and the 85^th minute.

Before the duo scored braces for team PHL, it was Carleigh Frilles who drew first blood and delivered the goal 13 minutes after the whistle.

Tonga attempted to claw their way back in the second half when they started to gain more offensive possessions but the better PHL defense halted their plans.

The win against Tonga marked coach Stajcic and the Filipinas’ fourth-straight friendly match win before the 2022 SEAG starts this May.

Stajcic and his crew decided to set up a bunch of friendly matches for their remaining one month of practice as preparation for the prized sports tournament to be held in Hanoi, Vietnam.