Filipino women win AFF Cup for the first time

Goals: Cowart 8', Guillou 20', Bolden 89'.

Lost to Thailand 0-1 in the group stage, but the army under coach Alen Stajcic showed a completely different face in the rematch. They led 2-0 after just 20 minutes and played completely on the muscle. Thailand only launched one shot on target in the whole match and when raising the squad at the end of the second half, they received more goals to finish.

Coach Stajcic has launched the best cards he has, different from the previous meeting when Sarina Bolden, Rivera Annis or Sofia Harrison were substituted. Under the cheers of the home fans, the Philippines actively pressured and opened the scoring in the eighth minute thanks to a header by defender Jessika Cowart in the corner.

The strength of the Philippines' bodybuilding was once again promoted, similar to the 4-0 victory over Vietnam in the semifinals. It can be considered as the mark of Coach Stajcic because Thailand did not lose too much in height but still could not solve the fixed arrangements of the Philippines.

Buoyed by the early opener, the home team attacked more aggressively and from a rocking set-up, Katrina Guillou cushioned the ball close to goal, doubling the gap. In fact, the previous minutes saw Thailand's effort to win the game, but the second goal seemed to knock them out. If they had taken advantage of the opportunity better, Bolden or Annis had widened the gap for the Philippines before the break.

Thailand played well at the beginning of the second half. Chatchawan deflected off goalkeeper McDaniel's goal. But the Philippines also responded with Annis's shot and especially Quinley Quezada's shot. In the 64th minute, Somnuek took a tight free-kick from 25m, sending the ball off the post along the home team. But that's all Thailand can do.

In the counterattack, Bolden's speed and ability to press down became a powerful weapon for the Philippines. The striker had good wallwork, but his team-mates missed. Bolden's effort was rewarded with a minute left in the second half. Still from a corner, the American hybrid striker headed the net of goalkeeper Thongmongkol, sealing a bold victory for the Philippines.

Rizal Memorial Stadium opened after this goal. Since 2004, after 12 editions, the AFF Cup has had a new champion. The Philippines became the fourth team after Thailand (four times), Vietnam (three times), Myanmar (twice), Australia and Japan U23 to be crowned.

However, this is not a surprise result because with the policy of summoning hybrid players to play abroad and appointing veteran coach Stajcic, the Philippines has strengthened a lot. They made a splash at the 2022 Asian Cup and were one of two Southeast Asian teams, besides Vietnam, to win tickets to next year's World Cup.