THE Philippine Women’s National Football Team kicked off their 2025 ASEAN Women’s Championship—MSIG Serenity Cup campaign in dominant fashion, cruising past Timor Leste in their opening match on Thursday night.
Playing at the Viet Tri Stadium in Vietnam, the Filipinas overwhelmed their opponents with a decisive 7-0 victory. It was a strong statement as they began their title defense as reigning champions of the tournament.
The Filipinas wasted no time, scoring three goals within the first ten minutes to take early control. With five different players finding the back of the net, the scoring spree only grew from there and the rout was on.
Pure Dominance
Quinley Quezada broke the deadlock in the 7th minute, reacting quickly after her initial shot was blocked to send the ball past keeper Gorette Da Costa. Just a few minutes later, Hali Long made it 2-0.
Long sprinted past the Timor Leste defenders and connected with McDaniel’s corner via a powerful header. The Filipinas dominated early on. Their fast start put them in command. Timor Leste found it hard to respond.
Quezada found the net again in the 32nd minute. She controlled a pass from Inday Tolentino with her chest before striking. Her left-footed effort sliced through three defenders. The ball flew past the goalkeeper for her second of the match.
Timor Leste came out stronger after the break. In the 55th minute, Godelivia Martins stole possession from Isabella Alamo. She unleashed a solid right-footed attempt inside the area. But Olivia McDaniel made a sharp save. The backline then cleared the threat.
Just two minutes later, Tolentino swung the momentum back to the Filipinas. She slipped past her defender on the right flank. From just outside the area, she fired a shot. It flew beyond Da Silva’s reach. The score climbed to 5-0.
Tolentino added another goal in the 64th minute. This time, she took advantage of a miscue from the keeper. Da Silva misjudged a cross from Schinaman. The ball fell to Tolentin, who promptly scored her second.
The Filipinas struck again after another defensive lapse. Debutant Adelaide Wyrzynski didn’t miss her chance. Da Costa failed to collect a cross from Charisa Lemoran, and the ball spilled out, Wyrzynski fired it into the open net, a composed finish marked her debut goal.
Who’s Next?
The defending champions put on a commanding performance, controlling 68% of the possession and recording 15 shots on target throughout the match.
The emphatic win placed the Philippines at the top of Group B in the MSIG Serenity Cup, sharing the lead with Myanmar, who earlier edged Australia’s Under-23 squad with a 2-1 victory.
“Overall, I think it was pretty good. We got the goals that we wanted to get, and we definitely could have gotten more,” skipper Long said after the game.
“There’s just more growing and learning, but I’m really proud of the group that we put out today and all the subs that came off the bench with really good energy,” she went on to say.
The Filipinas impressed in their opening match, but they’re now bracing for a tougher test on Sunday, August 10, when they face Australia’s Under-23 team at the same venue.
“[We’re] looking forward to looking at that game and seeing what kind of results we can pull out with the next two teams,” Long said of their next assignments.
