New Delhi, September 26, 2026 (Yes Punjab News)
The India U17 women’s team suffered a 2-4 defeat against the Philippines in the first of two closed-door friendly matches at the Vagator Football Ground in Anjuna, Goa, on Saturday.
Anushka Kumari and Joya scored late goals for the Young Tigresses in the 85th and 89th minutes respectively. The Philippines, however, had already established a commanding advantage by scoring four times in the second half, in the 47th, 50th, 68th and 79th minutes.
India will face the Philippines again on Tuesday, September 29, in the second friendly as part of their final preparations for the AFC U17 Women’s Asian Cup China 2027 Qualifiers.
The qualifiers are scheduled to be held in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, from October 5 to 11. India are set to begin their campaign against Iraq on October 5, followed by matches against Syria on October 8 and hosts Malaysia on October 11.
The Philippines fixtures follow India’s two-match friendly series against Uzbekistan in Tashkent, where both games ended 0-0. The matches provided head coach Joakim Alexandersson with an opportunity to assess the new batch and work on the team’s structure ahead of the qualifying campaign.
The Goa matches against the Philippines are India’s final international friendlies before the team travels to Malaysia for the qualifiers. The AIFF had earlier confirmed the September 26 and 29 fixtures as part of the Young Tigresses’ preparation programme.
India are aiming to qualify for back-to-back AFC U17 Women’s Asian Cups for the first time after making their first-ever appearance in the knockout stage of the previous edition in Suzhou, China.
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