'We can do even more': Best yet to come for Filipina booters, says defender
MANILA, Philippines — Philippine women's national football team defender Dominique Randle said that the team has yet to show its full potential amid an already impressive showing at the 2022 AFC Women's Asian Cup in India.
In the middle of their best performance in the regional tournament in program history, Randle bared that there is more to watch out for from the Filipina booters.
"I think each [group stage] game presented a different aspect and a different strength of our team, and the funny thing is, we know that we can do more," Randle told Philippine media on Friday.
"We're still looking for one complete game and I think that's the scary part of how good we can be," she added.
The Philippines put the region on notice with their exceptional performance against their group.
They started off strong with their first-ever win against Thailand in program history, 1-0.
Then they followed it up with a gallant 0-4 stand over Australia — holding the powerhouse Matildas scoreless for the first 50 minutes of the game.
To top it all off, they played a masterclass against Indonesia to finish with a romp, 6-0.
But Randle knows there's much more they have yet to show — including a game where they get to combine all their strengths.
"Each game, we worked on different things. Thailand, we brought a lot of intensity. Australia, people saw at the first 45 minutes of how strong we can be defensively and then [last Thursday], we got to see a little bit more of our attack and our possession. But we know from our training and from our preparation that we can combine all of those things together," Randle said.
"I think we still have a lot more to show," she added.
Timing would be perfect if Sunday saw the Filipina booters' best-ever in the tournament with a win over Chinese Taipei qualifying them to the semifinals and to the 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup -- what would be a first for the Philippines ever, for either the men's or women's program.
With the hopes of a whole country on their shoulders, Randle believes they can put their best foot forward.
"I think a lot of people have called us underdogs and really written us off. But we know how strong we can be," Randle said.
"As long as we believe ourselves, and believe in our country, we can put all of those aspects together. Sunday's game is gonna be really exciting," she added.
The Philippines and Chinese Taipei kick off at 10:00 p.m., Manila time. The game will be aired live on One Sports and One Sports+ for Filipino fans to catch the action.
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