The Philippine Women’s National Football Team suffered their first setback after a string of strong performances, falling to the Chinese Taipei Women’s National Team, 1-0, in a friendly match yesterday, June 3, at the Rizal Memorial Stadium.
Saki Matsunaga netted the lone goal in the first half, gifting Chinese Taipei the narrow victory in what was a tightly contested match.
Short-range lead
The Filipinas came out pressing hard from the first whistle, showing early intent with multiple attempts on a goal and energizing the crowd of 3,312 spectators. Starting with veteran forward Chandler McDaniel, who nearly opened the scoring in the 10th minute, the national team mainstay found herself unmarked in the yard box, but failed to get a clean strike off under early pressure. The home side continued to probe, with midfielder Sara Eggesvik and forward Megan Murray combining in the 14th minute for a short-lived chance near the corner. Just four minutes later, Eggesvik once again saw herself in a promising position, clashing with Chinese Taipei goalkeeper Yu-Ting Wang inside the box that left both sides empty-handed.
Eggesvik initiated a midfield build-up in the 20th minute, threading a pass to Jaclyn Sawicki, whose attempt to organize a central play was quickly broken up by Taipei’s backline. Defender Angela Beard also joined the attack with a cross from the touchline, but the play was called off. Beard remained active down the left flank and was involved in a physical challenge with Taipei’s Chen Jin-Wen that briefly halted the momentum of both teams.
Against the run of play, Chinese Taipei struck first in the 27th minute, as midfielder Matsunaga pounced on Eggesvik’s blunder, launching the visitors to a 1-0 lead. Following the goal, Taipei began to build confidence, testing the Philippine backline’s speed and alertness with a flurry of short-range efforts. The Filipinas attempted to respond with urgency, including a strong header sequence that turned into a forward push. However, guest keeper Wang was always quick off her line to intercept and deny the Filipinas the equalizer they were seeking.
Referee calls and stoppages disrupted the Filipinas’ scarce rhythm late in the first half, while Taipei looked increasingly dangerous on the break. Despite two minutes of added time, the Philippines could not find any solid opening, heading into the halftime break trailing, 1-0.
Defensive stand holds
At the start of the second half, the Philippines brought in Paige McSkwigan, aiming to turn the tides and gain momentum over Chinese Taipei. The Filipinas came out aggressive, testing the Taipei goalkeeper early within the first two minutes and pressing high up the field. Building from the back, they began to link up and maintained solid passing sequences, pushing Taipei to scramble on defense.
Despite their efforts, occasional miscommunications allowed Chinese Taipei to attempt a breakaway. However, Katana Norman of the Philippines quickly recovered, intercepting and turning the play in the opposite direction. In the 60th minute, a sharp through ball by Chinese Taipei led to a tense one-on-one with O. McDaniel, but the defense composed themselves to keep the scoreline intact. Shortly after, Kaya Hawkinson was subbed in for Norman at the 64th minute to maintain energy on the wings. Chinese Taipei momentarily celebrated after finding the net from a free kick, but the goal was ruled offside.
The Filipinas continued their push, entering the Taipei box multiple times with clever passing and forward runs, but struggled to land the final touch as Taipei’s backline held firm. Janae DeFazio showed a creative play in the 70th minute, making a dangerous cross into the middle, but the Chinese Taipei keeper reacted first. Still fired up, DeFazio led a blazing counterattack, yet multiple attempts by the Filipinas were blocked. In the final moments, Juliana Parker replaced Sawicki at the 90+4’ mark, as the Philippines fought hard to defend in the last few minutes. Despite a spirited second half and several opportunities in the final third, Chinese Taipei came away with the victory on the Filipinas’ turf.
While the 1-0 loss would not affect the standings, the friendly served its purpose for the Filipinas: testing combinations, gauging younger players, and fine-tuning strategy ahead of more critical fixtures. “I told the girls that this was a really good performance, especially in the second half,” said Coach Mark Torcaso. “If we deliver like that—those 35 minutes of intensity—against teams like Hong Kong, Cambodia, or Saudi Arabia, we’re going to win. I truly believe that. They need to be proud of their progress. This is the level we want to reach, and it’s what we want to bring to the country.”
The Filipinas will return to action on June 29 as they face the Saudi Arabia Women’s National Football Team in the AFC Women’s Asian Cup Qualifiers. The kickoff is scheduled for 5 pm, with the match tentatively set to take place in Cambodia.
