Filipinas eye SEA Games breakthrough

MANILA, Philippines — FIFA Women’s World Cup qualification: Done. Asean women’s championship triumph: Done.

Now the history-chasing Filipinas train their sights on something that’s never been done before in the Southeast Asian Games – win the football gold for the Philippines.

The Pinay booters begin their hunt for the elusive mint tonight in the Group A opener at Phnom Penh’s Army Stadium against Myanmar at 7:30 p.m. (8:30 p.m. Manila time).

It’s going to be a rough road for sure with defending champion Vietnam and traditional contenders Thailand and Myanmar itself out to keep the established order in SEAG women’s football.

Filipinas coach Alen Stajcic, whose team took the bronze last time in Hanoi, is tempering his expectations.

“We’ve had a grueling schedule over the 15 months, played a lot of football. We’re improving all the time in trying to catch up to countries like Vietnam and Thailand. You know how tough that is in this part of the world. But we’re here now and we’re really looking forward to the tournament,” he said.

Stajcic brought the core of the Asean-winning crew to the Cambodian capital for this tough mission.

“Vietnam are the favorites to win this tournament. We’re just growing at the moment and we know we have a long way to go to catch up,” said Stajcic.

“Vietnam, Thailand and Myanmar have been strong for a long time. We respect that they have better history. Hopefully, this tournament will show that we’ve closed the gap even more. Over time, we want to keep progressing not just in Southeast Asia but also in the world.”

After Myanmar, the Filipinas face Malaysia on May 6 before the Vietnamese on May 9. They need to finish in the Top 2 to advance to the crossover semifinals.