Lord's FA Kochi sign Philippines midfielder Camille Rodriguez

The 28-year-old will be a part of the team for the 2023 Hero Indian Women's League

Hero Indian Women's League (IWL) debutants Lord's FA Kochi have made a prominent signing in the form of Philippines star Camille Rodriguez. The 28-year-old has been impressive as part of the Philippines team that has qualified for the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup too.

Rodriguez will be playing for the Kerala-based side for the 2023 IWL campaign – which kicks off on April 26. The 28-year-old spent the majority of her career in the Philippines and has been a talented female footballer right from her school days.

Who is Camille Rodriguez and what she’ll bring to Lords FA

Rodriguez recently played for Spanish side Mislata FC and is one of the better performers for her national team too. She has made 42 appearances for the Philippines national team since making her professional debut in 2011, at the age of just 17!

Camille has scored 11 goals in her appearances for the Philippines national team and helped them qualify for the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup too. She was part of the Philippines side that won the AFF Women’s Championship title last year and also finished third in the Southeast Asian Games in 2021. Those who followed the 2022 AFC Women’s Asia Cup in India last year could’ve seen her as part of the Philippines side that progressed to the semi-finals.

The 28-year-old is known for being an exciting midfielder full of tricks and running in the opposition half. She can create goals and has a great eye for scoring them too, being blessed with crisp finishing and the ability to turn a spark for her side whenever needed.

Rodriguez has signed a short-term contract with Lord's FA which will only be valid until the end of the IWL season, which will be in May. She could be using this experience to improve her match fitness and get some minutes under her belt before playing for the Philippines in their debut FIFA World Cup outing in July.

Lord's FA primed for IWL debut

Lord's FA Kochi has been making strides in the Indian Women’s Football scene over the years. Found in 1962, they’ve evolved from just being a football academy to building a respectable Women’s Team that is set to play in the IWL for the first time this season.

Lord's FA dominated the Kerala Women’s League (KWL) last season, pipping Gokulam Kerala to the title. They played some amazing football and created history by winning a game by the margin of 32 goals last year, in which India national team star Indumathi Kathiresan herself scored 15 goals!

The Kerala-based side is blessed with some impressive players and has also roped in Nepal’s Women’s Team star Anita Basnet for the upcoming IWL season as well. Lords FA will play their first Hero IWL game of the season against Celtic Queens on April 27 and have been placed in Group B alongside Celtic Queens, CRPF, Churchill Brothers, Eastern Sporting Union, Kickstart FC, and Odisha FC.