THE Philippines settled for fourth place in the Girls Division of the 2018 Street Child World Cup after losing to England yesterday in Moscow, Russia.
After a 1-1 draw in both squads’ first encounter in the group stage, England finally found its groove and beat the Philippines, 2-0, in the bronze medal match.
“I think we’ve done very well on the pitch, as well as off it. In 2014, our girls reached the final and lost to Brazil 1-0, so to lose to Brazil in the semifinals, again 1-0 to Brazil, was a bit of a shame, but the girls gave their best and they did very well. It’s the kind of game that sometimes they will win, sometimes we will win, and it just happened to go that way this time. Our girls have given their best efforts and we’re proud of their teamwork and attitude,” team manager Roy Moore told SunStar Cebu. “It’s really showing the potential for Women’s Football in the Philippines if it’s organized in the right way. The talents are growing and they just need support. That goes to the heart of our motto: when we show we care, everybody wins. Because when we show we care for these girls, they will give their best. When we show we care, we invest in kids from poor communities and they will develop and give so much more back to our country. They’re an investment for our future.” The Philippines beat India 6-0 in its opening match and settled to a 1-1 draw with England to advance into the quarterfinals. The Philippines then beat Mauritius, 1-0, in the quarterfinals before losing to Brazil, 0-1, in the semifinals.
The Philippines Street Child World Cup squad, sponsored by Nivea, has two Cebuanas in the roster: Trisha and Margie.
“Margie and Trisha are from Cebu. They study at RTU currently, and they’ve been an integral part of the team. Very friendly with the other girls, they’ve given their best in training, and they’ve been a fantastic part of the team.” (EKA)