Gier leads U-22 Azkals as SEA Games bid kicks off vs Indonesia

MANILA, Philippines — Even before Rob Gier hung up his boots for the Philippine Men’s Football National Team, he was already helping out as early as 2011 with the team’s scouting reports.

Gier poured over endless video and live matches to deliver detailed reports to help the national side in their matches, and as the team got better in all aspects, it is no surprise that the Azkals went on a huge upswing. 

Meanwhile, local football officials noted Gier’s eye for details.

Today, as head coach of the Philippine Under-22 Men’s Team that will kick-off its Southeast Asian Games campaign in Phnom Penh, Cambodia against Indonesia Saturday, one hopes that Gier’s ideas, toughness, and leadership will translate into a promising campaign.

Of that batch that was present for the Miracle of Hanoi back in December of 2010, the players who were thought to be going into coaching as well as possibly taking the reins of the Azkals one day included Phil Younghusband, Chris Greatwich, and Gier.

Now, it is a reality for the latter. Gierhas 66 international caps to his name along with two goals. 

“To be in this position is something I have been working towards the past seven years,” Gier said.

“I began my coaching journey as soon as I retired from playing with the goal of one day representing the national team again but in a coaching capacity.”

“To be here in the Southeast Asian Games is a huge honor for me and I will make sure I dedicate all my energy to the team over these next few weeks.”

Making the squad are Quincy Kameraad, Santiago Rublico, Kamil Amirul, Daniel Christensen, Dennis Chung, Justin Frias, Yrick Gallantes, Dov Cariño, Jacob Peña, Gavin Muens, Noah Leddel, Enrico Mangaoang, Jaime Sacopon, Carlo Dorin, Pocholo Bugas, Matt Ocampo, Harry Nunez, David Setters, John Lucero, and the Azkals Development Team’s leading scorer, Andres Aldeguer.

“Despite the limited preparation time, the camp has gone really well and the staff and the players have worked incredibly hard to deliver my ideas,” said Gier whose previous coaching stops included Oxford University and the Reading FC Women’s Team. “The players are a fantastic group to work with and there are some very good players here that show a lot of potential to make the next step to the senior team.”

“We recognize the size of the challenge ahead of us and the game against a very strong Indonesia team, will be a great test. We are here to compete and fight for every ball and we hope to represent the country in a positive way both on and off the pitch.”

Kick-off between Indonesia and the Philippines is at 5 p.m. at the Olympic Stadium in Phnom Penh.