FOR Sarina Bolden and Olivia McDaniel, their match against Chinese Taipei on Monday in the 2022 AFC Women’s Asian Cup perfectly reflected the true Filipino spirit.
How Philippines showed trademark Pinoy resiliency
Down 3-2 in the penalty shootout after conceding a goal that tied their quarterfinal contest at 1-1, the Philippines stayed focused and never gave up with Bolden and McDaniel serving as central figures in all of it.
Cameras showed Bolden expressing words of encouragement towards her teammates during those anxious moments of the penalty shootout and it led to McDaniel coming away with two crucial saves while helping her own cause by scoring a goal to tie the shootout.

Then, Bolden struck in the sudden death with a laser of a shot for the win, enabling the Filipinas to play in the World Cup next year for the very first time.
“I know I said it before but it’s just that passion. Filipinos are resilient. It’s legendary,” said Bolden, reflecting a day after that historic win over Chinese Taipei hailed by Filipinos everywhere. “No matter what, you will see Filipinos working so hard and putting their heart, their souls into everything that we do. I think that’s what you saw that day.”
“You saw girls overcommunicating, yelling, screaming, no matter where they were. That’s just how Filipinos do it. We are loud. We are proud. We are going to work hard and we are going all the way to the end,” said the Santa Clara, California-born striker who is also playing in the Japan pro league.
McDaniel can certainly relate to that Filipino spirit.
“Growing up in a Filipino household, always loud all the time. I think my brother is probably the loudest to be honest. Not even just being loud but it’s the fight and the grit. I think that we as Filipinos have. It’s just insane. We did not stop. I think that’s truly a part of our character and personality on this team. It reigned true for us last night,” said McDaniel.
Bolden and McDaniel became the heroes of the match after bouncing back from missed opportunities and miscues of their own including McDaniel conceding the equalizer in the 83rd minute.
“Just an overwhelming rush of emotion and happiness,” said Bolden. “Just proud of everyone involved in this process. When it was solidified that we won, it was just the most magical feeling I could ever feel. I don’t think I’m ever going to forget everything. It was just everything was happening and I felt it all in that moment.”
“For me, I think there was just a sense of we have to do this,” McDaniel said. “There is no way we weren’t going to win the game in any way. It was just a sense of either you are winning this or you are not going home. I just felt like it wasn’t a sort of pressure, just a sense of pride for the whole team. The weight of them on my shoulders and thinking that we worked so hard these past four months together non-stop, I just want to do it for them and for the country.”
Get more of the latest sports news & updates on SPIN.ph