Bleachers' Brew #295 For club and country (the UFL & the Azkals)

This appears in the Monday January 23, 2012 edition of the Business Mirror.

For club and country

by rick olivares

I was unable to watch the match between the Azkals United and Icheon Citizen last night I had previous commitments that I could not wriggle free. Despite my absence, I would text friends as well as my staff that covered for my absence as media officer on match day.

When I learned that our team had lost 4-2, I bowed my head and felt hurt. Having been one of those few covering the national team (I know technically this is not the national squad but still…), I’ve been trying my darned best to help the sport that I grew up playing grow in the country. The players aren’t the only ones who get hurt by the loses. While football activity and interest has spiked in the 13 months, there remain those critical of the sport who feel the national squad is overhyped and that interest in the sport is a fad.

However, this isn’t about me debunking those arguments. I have done that in previous columns. Instead, I would like to clear the air about certain matters.

Over the previous two days, a lot of people have asked me if it was true that the Azkals United team was going to miss the services of several mainstays due to club duty. When I confirmed that, some quickly opined that the clubs were selfish as they put their concerns above national duty.

That is quite untrue. For starters, the clubs have always supported and given way to the national team. The UFL Cup competition of 2010 was suspended for a couple of weeks as the nationals left for the Suzuki Cup in Vietnam and Indonesia. So hectic were the schedules that the finals originally slated for December were postponed for January of 2011. And the cup competition was once more suspended matches so that everyone could support our campaign in the SEA Games held in Jakarta last December.

Yet in an unfortunate quirk of schedules, the Kia Rio Cup (between the Azkals United and visiting Korean team Icheon Citizen) was set for January 21, a week after the kickoff of the UFL’s league competition. League mainstays Kaya and Loyola were unable to release their players because they had matches the following day. 

Now one may point out that Global was able to release to release their players for the friendly when they themselves had a UFL match on the very same day. The fact that none of the foreign-based players could make it goes to show that there is a process in releasing players (usually 48 hours before a match).

The national team is managed by Global team owner Dan Palami who has done much for the awareness and growth of football in the country. He has always tried to put his best foot forward with the national squad while spending his personal money in these efforts. He has gone beyond the call of duty and that is highly commendable.

The clubs on the other hand also have a league to mind. Crucial to the growth of the sport (or any sport for the matter) is the youth programs, scholastic competition, and the club system. They are all a part of the support system to the national squad through the decades.

The fact that the clubs have also sacrificed before and will sacrifice again proves that they support the national squad. In fact, when the Azkals go for a two-week camp in Dubai next month to prepare for the AFC Challenge Cup means the clubs will loss key players for two or possibly three games. The teams pitched in for the Typhoon Sendong charity match “Dili Kamo Nag-iisa” the week before kickoff. Without trying to be insensitive, it looks bad for the UFL to postpone the Saturday games a week after its launch! That gives a bad impression of the league as one that is second rate.

In a country that is coping with the rapid rise of football, the hierarchy and systems still need a lot of fine-tuning to work matters out. There have been mistakes and lapses and there will continue to be in the near future until the sports’ authorities get it down pat.

For so long the sport was run like a fiefdom with each football association, club or school trying to do their own thing as politics plagued the Philippine Football Federation. Now that the PFF has eradicated the corruption scandals that have plagued it in the past, the task has turned to home keeping as the various personalities involved in the sport attempt to align one another. You can actually argue that they are “birth pains.”

I certainly wish we had the full complement of players on hand for the match against Icheon Citizen. But those are the breaks. Rather than point fingers on who is to blame, I’d rather look for solutions.

And that brings me to the point where following the 4-2 loss in penalties by Azkals United to Icheon Citizen, our national head coach took shots at the clubs for putting Azkals United at a disadvantage. First of all, the UFL and the PFF as well as national team management have been working to align their respective calendars. It hasn’t been easy but the fact that everyone is searching for a solution means there is hope. Second, I believe we should stop making excuses about losing. If it is not having a full lineup it’s not having enough time to prepare. A couple of times, the critics have been taken to task on national television. Now the latest excuse is the lack of support of the clubs.

History is replete with men and women doing things in the name of so and so. Heck, Adolf Hitler’s Waffen Schutzstaffel killed and they did so with “In God we trust” inscribed on their belt buckles.

The sport of football is growing by leaps and bounds in the country. It is not about club or country. It is about doing what is right for the game. And it’s time to stop making excuses.