THE Philippines drew with Bahrain, 1-1, enough for the Malditas to qualify for the 2018 AFC Women’s Asian Cup.
Sara Castaneda scored in the 82nd minute to secure second place in Group A of the AFC Women’s Asian Cup qualifiers in Dushanbe, Tajikistan.
Top finishers of the four groups earned spots to the Asian tourney.
However, second place was enough for the Malditas to also advance because Group A top team Jordan already qualified as host of next year’s tournament.
Noora Sami Aldossary put Bahrain ahead the 55th minute.
“It was a crazy match,” said Malditas coach Leticia Bautista. “It was like playing for the title. We wanted this more so we were able to bounce back and I am just thankful for the win.
“I am speechless. At halftime, I said to my players that they needed to find some composure. Bahrain also really wanted the slot and we just had to remember how we played in the last three games.”
The Malditas won their first three matches against United Arab Emirates (4-0), Iraq (4-0), and Tajikistan (8-0).
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