Phl Azkals, Malditas Myanmar bound?

MANILA, Philippines - The Philippine under-23 football team and the women’s side Malditas may get to compete in the 27th Southeast Asian Games in Myanmar, after all.

This after a meeting between Southeast Asian Games task force of the Philippine Olympic Commitee and the Philippin Sports Commission and the Philippine Football Federation (PFF) proved “very positive” and opened the doors for the possible inclusion of the Azkals U-23 and the Malditas in the Phl delegation.

“It was a very positive meeting with football (officials),” chef de mission Jeff Tamayo told The STAR after yesterday’s morning meeting with PFF president Nonong Araneta and secretary-general Ed Gastanes.

PFF officials apparently convinced the task force on the qualifications of the Malditas and got the body “70-75 percent” impressed with the credentials of the Azkals U-23. The task force, according to Tamayo, will make report its findings to POC president Peping Cojuangco and PSC chairman Richie Garcia, who will have the final say on whether the two squads will go.

“Ang Malditas ang talagang may record na super ganda because of performance (Malditas have an impressive record as shown by their performance in a recent international tournament),” said Tamayo after being told of the Malditas’ upset win over higher-ranked Iran in the AFC Women’s Asian Cup Qualifiers last summer. “As far as the task force is concerned, we’re okay with the women’s team.”

As to the U-23, Tamayo said they are giving consideration to the fact that eight mainstays of the team are members of the Azkals men’s team while others are playing competitively in local leagues like the United Football League.

“If we look at the team individually, magagaling sila (They’re good). As a team, they might not have won big tournaments but as individuals, they have a number of achievements na mataas,” he said.

It also helped football’s cause that the federation head, Araneta, himself, attended the meeting and that even the Asian Football Confederation wrote the POC about the sport.

Unlike the Azkals U-23 and Malditas, however, the men’s and women’s futsal teams, are ruled out of the Phl contingent for good as they weren’t part of the initial “entry by numbers” submitted by the POC to Myanmar organizers.

“It looks promising. The meeting was very positive. From the look of things, they will recommend us subject to final approval from POC and PSC,” Araneta told The STAR yesterday.