Playing at home makes duels among Filipinas more special

The stars of the PFF Women’s Cup presented by Coca-Cola include standouts of the national team. —JONAS TERRADO

Facing teammates on the Philippine women’s football team on a club level isn’t new for Quinley Quezada.

But for Quezada, going up against fellow members of the Filipinas in the Philippine Football Federation (PFF) Women’s Cup has a special meaning.

“In the A-League (Australia’s women’s league), I played against Sarina [Bolden] and Jaclyn [Sawicki] and Jessika [Cowart] was on my team,” Quezada told the Inquirer after Friday’s press conference at the head office of title sponsor Coca-Cola in Bonifacio Global City, Taguig.

“But I think this is like a different feeling now that it’s here in the Philippines,” added Quezada, one of many national team players who signed up for some of the six clubs taking part in the domestic cup competition that began the previous weekend at Rizal Memorial Stadium.

Quezada made an impact in her debut when she scored a second-half goal that eventually gave Manila Digger a 2-1 win at the expense of Stallion Laguna, which signed up sisters Olivia and Chandler McDaniel, Sofia Harrison and Bella Pasion.

Manila Digger also got Filipinas defender Rhea Chan for the competition as the two clubs look to provide a stiff challenge to Kaya-Iloilo, the 2023 PFF Women’s League champion, which recently represented the country in the inaugural AFC (Asian Football Confederation) Women’s Champions League.

New tests

Kaya still has Filipinas captain Hali Long, who is looking to build on the recent success in her club’s bid to add another trophy.

“I think there’s going to be a healthy rivalry, being that we’re all with different clubs, which makes it more exciting, especially for the fans,” said Quezada, who joined Digger after her A-League stint with Perth Glory.

“And it’s really funny to see that even if we’re all on the national team that we can still be competitive with each other.”

Having national team players, especially those who played in the 2023 Fifa Women’s World Cup, should also give new tests for the rest of the participating clubs, namely Tuloy FC, Azzurri SC and Beach Hut.

“It’s going to be tougher for us to compete,” Tuloy striker Isabella Bandoja, last year’s joint top scorer of the Women’s League with 19 goals, admitted in Filipino. “But it’s also gonna be exciting because we’re going to face some of the national team players. We just have to do our best in trying to produce results.”

Beach Hut defeated Azzurri, 5-1, in the other match of the opening week, with Krayeza Abellar and Desiree Maybuena scoring two goals apiece. Beach Hut was eyeing win No. 2 against Stallion while Kaya battled Tuloy at press time.