MANILA – The Philippine Girls Under-15 National Team settled for a fourth place finish in the AFF U15 Girls’ Championship after a 1-0 loss to Vietnam at the Institute of Physical Education in Chonburi, Thailand.
A well-taken free kick from Tran Nhat Lan in the opening half gave the Vietnamese the advantage it never relinquished to salvage at third place finish in the week-long tournament.
Vietnam had the most offensive play early on with midfielder Nguyen Thi Nhu Quynh setting it up. They could have gone ahead in the 13th minute but they were foiled by Philippines’ defense.
Vietnamese’s persistence paid off in the 36th minute when the Philippines’ keeper failed to make a clean save from Nhat Lan’s freekick that came off the underside of the crossbar and into goal.
The Philippines became aggressive in the second half in a bid to equalize but just could not find a way through the Vietnam backline ably marshaled by captain Le Thi Bao Tram.
“I am quite pleased with the win as I thought that after four straight matches, the girls would be really tired and not motivated but they did well,” said Vietnam head coach Nguyen Thi Mai Lan.
Meanwhile, Thailand has once again emerged as champions in the tournament after defeating Laos via penalty shootout, 5-3. Both teams ended the regulation on scoreless draw./PN
