‘Girls are fantastic’: Butler beaming after back-to-back draws

Before facing off against higher ranked sides in the AFC Women's Asian Cup Qualifiers in Myanmar in a few weeks' time, the Bangladesh women's football team recently earned back-to-back draws against two strong opponents in Jordan and Indonesia, much to the delight of head coach Peter Butler who felt the team's hard work is starting to pay off.

"The girls are fantastic, well done, fully deserved it and it just goes to show with hard work, sometimes, you reap what you sow. So, I'm really, really proud of the girls," Butler said in a video clip sent by the Bangladesh Football Federation (BFF) after the match against Jordan on Tuesday.

Following a goalless draw against Indonesia, who are ranked 94th in FIFA rankings, the 133rd-ranked Bangladesh came from behind twice against the 74th-ranked Jordan to play out a 2-2 draw on Tuesday.

The positive outcomes against two strong opponents are good signs before the qualifiers, where Bangladesh will face higher ranked opponent like Myanmar (55) and Bahrain (92). Turkmenistan (141) is the other side in the four-team Group C and Bangladesh's campaign will run from June 29 to July 5.

The results will also bring relief following a tumultuous period in the country's women's football.

Just months after Butler coached Bangladesh to their second successive SAFF Women's Championship title in last year's October, captain Sabina Khatun and 17 other senior players revolted against the coach in late January, skipped training and demanded his resignation.

But the BFF didn't yield to the pressure of the footballers and sided with the coach. A new-look Bangladesh team, without the rebel players, played in the two-match friendly series against the UAE in February-March and lost both matches 3-1.

Butler had initially reportedly refused to call back any of the rebel footballers, but later relaxed his stance and included proven campaigners like Monika Chakma, Maria Manda, Rupna Chakma, Shamsunnahar Sr, Ritu Porna Chakma, Tahura Khatun and Shamsunnahar Jr who were part of the protests. However, he didn't recall SAFF champions Sabina, Sanjida Khatun and Masura Parvin.

The return of the experienced players improved the side's strength and the team is now implementing the style of play Butler was trying to instill.

"We play good football. We've got a clear identity of actually how we want to play and how I want the team to play."

But for the English coach, the biggest gain from the two draws was the character his team showed on the field.

"I think the most important ingredient which has come off this week is character… I'm just really proud of like everybody. The staff, the technical team, everyone's put a shift in, worked really hard. I just thought we showed lots and lots character.

"It's been a wonderful learning week. Playing against higher opposition is not easy, but I think we've come a long way."