![Members of the Gilas Pilipinas Women's team during an open practice with the men's team on Thursday.](https://sports.inquirer.net/files/2023/09/IMG_0102_Gilas-mens-and-womens-open-practice_Gilas-womens-620x413.jpg)
Members of the Gilas Pilipinas Women’s team during an open practice with the men’s team on Thursday. –MARLO CUETO/INQUIRERnet
Hardened by a pair of tournaments in the past two months, head coach Pat Aquino believes his forwards will make the most of their debut at the 19th Asian Games.
“The girls really want to play. Especially since this is our very first appearance at the Asian Games. They want to represent the country well,” he told the Inquirer on Wednesday afternoon shortly after training at the Aero Center in Quezon City.
“The Jones Cup and the Korea stint were great metrics for us heading into the Asian Games. We wanted our new players to gain experience because many of them are new to what we do. So those tournaments gave us something heading into Hangzhou,” he added.
The women’s squad includes regional powerhouses Japan, Kazakhstan and Hong Kong in Group B, which will take place on September 27 at the Shaoxing Olympic Sports Center Gymnasium.
Gilas will face the Kazakhs first, but Aquino takes comfort in facing that team in the Asia Cup Division B in Thailand, where they finished only sixth.
“They’re long, but we can handle it,” he said.
Role of reprisal
In deference to the national federation, Aquino begged not to reveal his final roster but then assured that his old reliable players would reprise their roles: cornerstones Jack Animam and Afril Bernardino along with Deadeye Guard and longtime captain Janine Pontejos.
Animam, who will open a new chapter of her professional career in China, will join the team once they arrive in Hangzhou.
Aquino said the short-term goal for the team is to reach the quarterfinals. And once Gilas does that, they continue making plans.
“I think that’s an achievable goal for now,” he said. “If and when we get there, we’ll go for a different goal.”
“There were bumps and bumps on the way to Hangzhou, but the point is that we are going on a straight line,” he said.