Ateneo Football League jerseys

Here are the final designs for the Ateneo Football League jerseys. Players must choose as a team one white jersey and one blue (for light and dark). Goal keepers have a choice - the bib or the other two designs. The regular shirts are PhP300 each so meaning one blue and one white adds up to PhP600. The keeper's shirts, I will post the cost later. Just a slight difference.

Here is the link to the mechanics/rules and regulations for the Ateneo Football League 2011. Just click on the link. We also have a page in Facebook. Join and like! Most likely we begin registration this Saturday Feb 26. Details later. The league begins this April on weekends Saturdays & Sundays from 230-530pm.

Important notice!!!

For all those participating in the Ateneo Football League, team representatives, kindly send email signifying your interest to participate to ateneofootballleague@gmail.com (BE SURE THAT YOU HAVE THE SPELLING RIGHT) and we will send you the following forms:

- Registration form for teams

- Uniform Order form

- Quit Claim form

February stuff from Sports Illustrated

February sure is getting hot. For starters in this supposed chilly month, the new Sports Illustrated swimsuit issue is out. And so is the issue below on NBA action heating up. As for the Swimsuit issue -- Jessica Gomes. Jessica Gomes. Jessica Gomes. Say it three times and you mean it.

Nice stuff, Blake. But before you -- there was Air Milko.

When that Kia Optima was wheeled onto the hardcourt of the Staples Center (right before Blake Griffin's monstrous slam), I told myself, "I've seen this before."

And yes, I have. I first heard of former Phoenix Sun Marko Milic's slam over a car when Europeans pooh poohed an NBA player jamming over some stooge for the slam dunk contest in the late 1990s (yep, Jordan was still playing and the Bulls were still champs). But Milic's feat, achieved in 1995 with the Ljublijana, Yugoslavia (before the civil war), went largely unnoticed. Except in Europe. There was some mention in the American press but not much. And Milic only played two years for the Suns before he went back to Europe (he didn't get much playing time on a loaded Phoenix team).

And as great as Griffin's stuff was (since he had an assist from his Los Angeles Clippers teammate Baron Davis), that jam over a car wasn't the first. Thanks to youtube, I was able to dig it up for your perusal. Take a gander at the man they once called, "Air Milko."

Trick Shots

In the video above is an amazing video of trick shots by Monmouth College quarterback Alex Tanney. The college is located in Illinois and Tanney is a senior QB for the Fighting Scots. Monmouth finished with a 6-4 record in their last season. The Fighting Scots are a Midwest Conference NCAA Division III school. 


And in the video below are basketball trick shots. Amazing. Ah.... am dripping with that "amazing" word right here. Hahaha. But the vids really are.

All-Star Kicks by Kobe and LeBron

Inspired by the visual effects of today’s Hollywood blockbuster, Nike Basketball designers took cues from the movie industry when creating special colorways for the 2011 All-Star Game.

When Kobe Bryant, Kevin Durant and LeBron James step on to the All-Star stage February 20th, the shoes they wear will be as bold and dynamic as the players that compete in them.

All three shoes – the Nike Zoom Kobe VI, LEBRON 8 V/2 and the Nike Zoom KD III – will feature lenticular material in key areas throughout the shoe to create the illusion of three-dimensional moving images.

The lenticular pattern is best seen on the tongue tops. On the Nike Zoom Kobe VI, Kobe’s logo morphs into the West graphic. On the LEBRON 8 V/2 the East graphic morphs into LeBron’s iconic lion symbol. And on the Nike Zoom KD III, Kevin Durant’s logo morphs into the West graphic.

The LBJ shoe

UST faces UP for the UAAP Men’s Football Championship

This appears in the Monday February 21, 2011 edition of the Business Mirror.

UST faces UP for the UAAP Men’s Football Championship

by rick olivares
pics by brosi gonzales

The University of Santo Tomas Growling Tigers booked a return trip to the UAAP Men’s Football Finals with a 5-nil thrashing of luckless Ateneo de Manila yesterday at the Blue Eagles’ home field of Loyola Heights.

UST rookie Fidel Kue struck in the 25^th minute off an assist by striker Ojay Clariño to break the tense Tigers’ bench that needed to win over Ateneo to play in the finals for the second straight year.

Last season, the Tigers, heavy favorites to win their first seniors football crown since 2007, fell to FEU in a two-game finals sweep. This Season 73, the finals match-up was decided on the final playing day as the Tigers needed a win to prevent La Salle from placing in the finals.

UP, despite playing its second eleven for most of their match with La Salle, outplayed the Green Archers took the pitch without their customary intensity after earlier watching UST make the finals. Come the second half, UP head coach Anto Gonzales began to insert his starters and rookie Jinggoy Valmayor scored his league-leading seventh and eighth goals of the tournament when his 84^th and 90^th minute strikes beat DLSU keeper Patrick Deyto.

The Fighting Maroons’ 2-0 win saw them finish the double round robin eliminations with a nine wins and one draw that recorded them 28 points. They enjoy a twice-to-beat advantage over UST who they beat twice in the tournament 1-nil and 2-nil.

UST ended with a 6-win, 2-draw, and 2-loss record that was good for 20 points and second place in the eliminations. La Salle, finished second runner-up for the third consecutive year with 16 points from four wins, four draws, and two losses.

Against the Growling Tigers, the Blue Eagles, who placed last for the first time in more than two decades of top-notch football, hung tough. That is until a well-placed corner kick Clariño found its way to an unmarked Ronald Batisla-Ong who volleyed home from 10 yards out his first goal in UAAP college competition.

From thereon, the Tigers teed off on the Ateneo keepers Joel Faustino and Fritz Mendoza. UST scored three more goals in the second half with Clariño tallying his sixth strike of the year in the 55^th minute to tie UP’s Valmayor for the scoring lead, and team captain and Azkals reserve David Basa converting a penalty shot in the 76^th minute and John Caballero closing out the scoring with a goal in 83^rd minute.

In Juniors Football, the FEU-FERN Baby Tamaraws denied Ateneo High School a three-peat with a 1-0 win over the Blue Booters for a season sweep. Midfielder Paolo Bugas maneuvered inside the Ateneo box against three defenders for a strike that flew past keeper Micah Alampay. The Baby Tamaraws lost to Ateneo in last year’s finals via penalty shootout.

De La Salle Zobel’s Stefan Wintermahr, who scored 12 goals in the tournament, was adjudged Best Striker in the Juniors Division. Bugas was named Best Midfielder while teammates Niño Fuentes and Michael Menzi were awarded Best Defender and Best Goalkeeper respectively. Ateneo High School’s Jose Roberto Andres was named Rookie of the Year and FEU’s Alexander Domekyas tournament MVP. 

Azkals hold training camp in Baguio and Japan

This appears in the Monday February 21, 2010 edition of the Business Mirror.

Azkals hold training camp in Baguio and Japan

by rick olivares

The Philippine Men’s National Football Team left for Baguio City yesterday to prepare for their upcoming AFC Challenge Cup away match with Mongolia on March 15. In an interview with national coach Hans Michael Weiss in Bacolod City, the German said that the cold weather conditions of the City of Pines is part of the strategy to acclimatize the team to the cold weather conditions of Ulan Bataar.

The Philippines could be missing the services of starting keeper Neil Etheridge and defender Rob Gier for the Mongolia leg. Etheridge’s English Premier League team, Fulham, is currently in 12^th place of the 20-team league with a 6-win, 13-draw, 8-loss record. Gier in the meantime has his construction business that needs looking after. Weiss will promote two players from the 30-man national pool to replace the two Fil-Britons.

The training camp of the Azkals up north is sponsored by the Baguio Football Association and the Baguio Country Club.

The team will train there until February 26 before they fly to Japan for further training under the auspices of the Japan Football Association. The Filipinos will be staying at the J-Village, the national training facility in Fukushima. The J-Village is where the Blue Samurai, as Japan’s national team is known by, trained for the 2010 World Cup in South Africa and their campaign in the last Asian Cup in which they won 1-0 over Australia.

The Philippine National Team flies to Mongolia on March 13.

Bleachers' Brew #248 Special K

This appears in the Monday February 21, 2011 edition of the Business Mirror.

Special K

by rick olivares

When Special K scored over 80 points in a basketball game, the local hoops world and media went ballistic over the feat. They trotted out a man called Triggerman who once scored seventysomething in a game. Special K was even compared to another man who goes by the name of Black Mamba.

It’s a feat, right? Never mind if it was done against a team of patsies who were probably pulled out from a physical education class. Even an Admiral who once went for the NBA record dumped an awful load of points on a team where defense was an anathema.

I once read an article in Sports Illustrated where a writer described every single of Air Jordan’s 55 points against the New York Knicks in his fifth game back after his first sabbatical. I was impressed and wanted to do my version of the “Double Nickel” piece for Special K. Only I was busy and by the time I looked up from my desk, the season had passed me by. The story would have still been great except a couple of other dudes through the years would break his scoring mark. He never got to truly savor owning a record for years and years like the Triggerman, Babe Ruth, Hank Aaron, or the Chicago Bulls did when they accomplished their feats in terms of points scored, home runs hit, or total wins in a season.

He did play briefly for the national team and was the subject of an intense recruiting war. He was transferred to another school to finish his secondary education. But there was a problem. He never went to class. Like that team of patsies who thought that the word “block” was reserved for a city street or “guard” meant that security guy who inspected their bags, “school”, Special K thought, was taking on some slow-footed stiff to the rack for a Samboy Lim finger roll and an and-one.

Of course, I didn’t know that. Until recently.

Special K got in touch with me. I didn’t know him at all. Never previously engaged him in conversation, chat, or text. I was elated. This was my chance to do that Sports Illustrated Double Nickel story.

We had lunch at Taco Bell and we chatted. Only it turned out to be a shocker. He recounted how his life had changed since eightysomething. It wasn’t for the better for worse. He said that the school that recruited and transferred him had stopped their “funding of him”. He doesn’t come from a well-off family. Far from it. They have trouble making ends meet and that is an understatement. He is the eldest of seven siblings and all (including his parents) look up to him to earn a living by putting that ball through a hoop. It was a Kleenex moment.

He was recruited to play for another team in another league. But there, former friends and now foes (who were on other squads) informed league officials that he was not yet done with his secondary education. So Special K never got to play and he was once more adrift.

Now he asked for my help. I am not the manager sort. I have been asked a long time ago by one of the most popular bands in the country back in their nascent days. I knew they’d hit it big but I declined. Truthfully? I wasn’t the managerial sort. I knew what I could do and playing Bob Arum wasn’t it.

I told Special K that his first goal was to finish his high school education because that would help him get to college where he could continue his basketball career. That was the process of going to play in the PBA. I don’t know of any local hardship cases where one skipped high school to go straight to the pros. This wasn’t the NBA or the Euroleagues. I asked if he was going to be single-minded in his goal of finishing school and going through a good college program where a good coach can provide guidance for him. Special K affirmed his interest. Not once but a dozen times a dozen times.

I told him that I was on great terms with a bunch of coaches who could get him into their programs and I asked him to choose what he thought would be the best situation for him. Special K chose Adamson first and the University of the Philippines second. I called Adamson only I got no replies. State U on the other hand, was excited. The team managers were a little wary because when they tried to recruit him years ago, he went to the meeting with an agent and a lawyer.

What is it with high school kids today who think that having an agent is their ticket to fame? I’m sorry but these guys look at them as meal tickets. The pros might be different but high school kids? There ought to be a law.

I met up with Special K several times. We had lunch and snacks. I helped him out with a little of his day-to-day finances and he asked if I could help manage him. I said no. That wasn’t my core competence. I do mentor quite a few athletes but that’s more out of friendship than anything else. The only thing I asked was should he make the college team and the pros, I had first dibs on his jersey. He laughed. The first real and easy one he’s had in a while. There was hope on the horizon.

I facilitated a meet between Special K and State U and he practiced with them twice so that they could get a close up look at his hoops and hops. It was clear that he was not in game shape but the potential was there. He wouldn’t be available to them for a while but he would still have a couple of years to show what he can do on the canvass that is the college hardcourt. They asked him to procure his papers so they could help him earn his high school diploma. Special K promised to work on his papers while we promised to help pay for whatever expenses (transcript, gasoline money, and meals). We were excited. We were hopeful. Boy, were we wrong.

Special K disappeared.

Around the same time, I got in touch with the school that first tried to recruit him out of his high school team. They liked his game and they were prepared to take care of the kid. Except that his papers were not in order and he played hooky quite a lot in class. Even after he dropped out, the team manager tried to reach out and help. “It was such an unfortunate situation,” said the team manager. Eventually, exasperated and disappointed, that school eventually gave up.

I eventually got hold of him and his nonchalant answers only indicated that he wasn’t interested in going to school except for playing ball. He said his mother was sick and while it was true, his lack of urgency or even having no initiative to get in touch with any of us showed an alarming lack of interest.

I felt bad. I set out to do a story and a story of redemption cannot be told in the span of month but in years. That was fine as it was all about helping someone get back on his feet. Ultimately, it is his decision. We could never force someone anyway.

I don’t know where he is now. I heard that another person who picked up the slack to help is now exasperated as well. But he’d give Special K one more chance.

Maybe there’s still a silver lining to this.

Ateneo Football League (AFL) Revised Official Rules & Regulations for 2011 tournament

Ateneo Football League

Official Rules & Regulations

Summer 2011

 Section I. Representation

·      The Ateneo Football League (AFL) is a friendly get-together competition organized by Real Sports Authority (RSA) and Rick Olivares (RO) designed to foster camaraderie and growth through football.

·      The AFL is organized by RSA & RO under the patronage of the Ateneo de Manila University Athletics Office (UAO).

·      The AFL is a tournament held yearly at a date and venue that will be determined by RSA & RO.

·      The AFL is a tournament is an All-Ateneo tournament meaning one must be an alumnus of the school to be able to participate. The AFL follows the definition of an Ateneo alumnus as someone who spent at least two years in any unit whether it be the grade school, high, school, college, law school, medical school, professional or masters program. Members of the Ateneo community – office staff, faculty, and security – are allowed to participate. Alumni from other Jesuit schools including Ateneo de Cagayan, de Davao, de Naga, de Iloilo, de Zamboanga, and Xavier High School are allowed to participate as well.

·      All proceeds from the tournament will be utilized for the organization of the tournament with a portion going to a scholarship for the Ateneo High School.

·      Each team is responsible for its players and it is advised that they have the necessary insurance coverage. The organizer of the AFL cannot be held liable in this regard.

·      This tournament will be sanctioned by NCRFA and will use NCRFA referees.

Tournament Organizers: RSA & RO

Tournament Director: Jerry Ngo

Section II. Teams

The competition is 7-a-side. And teams can line up 14 (fourteen) players. A player can suit up for another team provided it is in a different division. No loaning or trading of players. No transfer fees.

A team can replace players in their roster up to the second match only. But teams must pay PhP100 per added player to the Tournament Director.

Teams must give a name to their team. While this may resemble our IAC teams in college, let’s keep the names within the bounds of decency.

Example: ASSOC FC, Guidon FC, or Los JSEC Tambays FC

Teams must name a team captain and a co-captain.

Registration begins Feb. 26 and ends on March 16.

Games begin first week of April and will be held Saturday and Sunday afternoons (2pm-530pm).

The different divisions and teams are as follows:

ALUMNI MEN’S (The Chris Monfort Cup -- 10 Teams Per Age Group)

Open: 30 and below and 31 and above. Former and current varsity players allowed.

ALUMNI MEN’S (The Oscariz Cup -- 10 Teams Per Age Group)
Just for Fun: 30 and below and 31 and above. Former varsity players eligible. No current varsity allowed.  However, each lineup will be assessed by the committee to determine if team is eligible to play in this group. Teams have the choice of fielding mixed male/female players.

WOMEN’S OPEN (The Vallar Cup* -- 10 Teams)

Open: Teams cannot have more than three (3) current varsity players (Current varsity players must seek approval of UAO to participate. Team B Players can play without asking permission).

COLLEGE OPEN (The Merida Cup --- 10 Teams)

Open: Maximum two (2) Varsity Players allowed and can play at the same time. (Current varsity players must seek approval of UAO to participate. Team B Players can play without asking permission).

HIGH SCHOOL (The Cabalida Cup --- 10 Teams per Group)

1st and 2^nd year Group

3^rd and 4^th year Group

Teams can field a maximum of two (2) current varsity players who can both play at the same time.

Section III. Technical Matters (Match Rules)

1.    The matches will be played using modified FIFA Football Rules.

2.    A Size 5 football will be used for the matches as long as the pressure is as regulated by the FIFA Laws of the Game.

3.    The size of the pitches for each match shall be half that of a regular football field.

4.    Teams will wear the AFL official jerseys, which consists of blue and white uniforms designed by RSA & RO. Socks and Shorts can be different but we advise all teams to look their best! Regarding the kits, please refer to the addendum to the AFL Official Rules & Regulations.

5.    All players must wear the proper shoes for the game and shin guards and long socks for all their matches.

6.    We will be playing 7-a-side Football, with one (1) player that must be a Goalkeeper.

7.    A team must start with at least six (6) players, one (1) of which must be a goalkeeper. If a team does not have enough players, it will be considered as defaulted and a 3-0 will be awarded to the other team.

8.    If during a match a team will be left with less than five (5) players, one (1) of which must be a goalkeeper, the match will be abandoned and the team with more players will be awarded a score of 3-0 or the score of their current game if greater.

9.    The match will use open/flying substitution during dead ball situations only.

10. The duration of each match shall be:

a)    For high school: 25 minutes per half with a two-minute halftime break.

b)    For college and alumni divisions, 30 minutes per half with a two-minute halftime break.

11. In the event any match ends in a draw, the teams will proceed straight to a penalty shootout with three kickers from each team to determine the winner.

12. An outright win for a match merits three (3) points. For teams that end in a draw and engage in a PK shootout, the draw winner receives two (2) points while the losing team garners one (1) point. A team that loses a match outright does not get a point.

13. The tournament system shall comprise of a group stage of two (2) groups with five (5) teams each playing single round robin league, and then a final ranking match for all teams

For example:

A #1 vs. B #2 (semis)

A #2 vs. B #1 (semis)

A #3 vs. B #3 (for fifth and sixth place)

A #4 vs. B #4 (for seventh and eighth place)

A #5 vs. B#5 (for ninth and tenth place)

The top two teams play an extra two matches (cross-over semifinals, 3^rd place and finals match). While the bottom six teams play one more match for the final rankings.

The winners of the semifinal matches play for the title.

14. In the event of a team being equal on points at the end of the league stage, head to head record will be used to determine the overall champion. Tiebreakers in order include total goals followed by goals for.

15. Pass-back to the goalkeepers is allowed.

16. Throw-ins and kick-ins are optional with the exception of corner kicks.

Section IV. Technical Matters (Disciplinary)

1.    Each team is responsible to keep their players, substitutes and officials under control.

2.    In the event of a disciplinary dispute, the Tournament Director will make a final decision based on the report of the referee, and team captains of the team concerned.

3.    When a player gets a yellow card, it will not be carried over to the next match day.

4.    When a player gets a red card, he will be ejected from the match and his team must play with a man down, until the opposing team scores against them.

5.    A player that gets a red card will be automatically suspended for the next match his team will play.

6.    A player, official or team that will be reported for violent conduct will be suspended for the rest of the tournament, with his team being fined.

7.    Each Team must be ready five (5) minutes before their designated match kick off time. If they are not ready, they will be considered a team that defaults, and the other team will be awarded a win of 3-0.

8.    The Tournament Director determines the kick off times in the event that there are issues with the field, weather, and reasonable circumstances appealed by the team captains.

9.    The kick-off times are pre-set as per the match schedule.

10. The Tournament Director under the recommendation of the match Referee reserve the right to shorten the duration of the match in the event of the field conditions being unplayable, weather, or extraordinary circumstances. 

11. For fines, please refer to the Financial Section of the Regulations.

Section V. Technical Matters (Match Officials)

1.    The Tournament Director will appoint a Referee every match.

2.    Each match has one (1) Referee and his decision is final with the exception of the blatant infringements on the tournament regulations.

3.    In the event this happens, teams are entitled to ask for a replay of the match.

4.    The decisions of the Tournament Director are final, but arbitration between the participating teams is always the first avenue.

5.    Teams are responsible for formulating their line-ups and making sure all their players are eligible.

6.    In the event a team fields an ineligible player, the team will be fined and cannot play until the fine is paid.

Section VI. Team Registration

1.    Each Team is entitled to register up to 14 (fourteen) players as their official line-up for the entire tournament.

2.    Every match day, each team must declare the 14 players present to play and take it to the tournament director at least 15 minutes before the kick off of their first match.

3.   If a team does not register 14 players by the first match day, they are entitled to register new players for free up until the 14^th name, but must pay Php100 in order to register more players for their pool. We encourage all teams to plan their lineups and exercise their commitment to the tournament.

Section VII. Financial (Obligations)

1.    If there are “values in kind” from the tournament sponsors, it will be shared by the teams.

2.    Each match will have balls provided for by the Tournament Organizers.

3.    The Tournament Organizers are responsible for settling all organizational expenses and requirements.

4.    Each team must pay a registration fee of Php11,000 (eleven thousand pesos).

5.    The Tournament Organizers will provide a first aid medic or physiotherapist during every match day.

Section VIII. Financial (Fines and Penalties)

1.    A team can replace a player in the lineup up to their second match of the tournament. But they must do so at least two days before match day and must pay an additional Php100.00 per new player to the Tournament Organizers as a one-time registration fee.

2.    Fighting will not be tolerated and each team charged with fighting will have to pay a penalty of Php1,000.00 in order for the team to continue to play in the tournament with the exception of the players ejected for violence.

Awards:

Plate trophy for division winners

Trophy for each division MVP and Golden Boot winner

* Named after former Ateneo Women's Football great Donna Vallar.

We have a Facebook page for the Ateneo Football League. Aside from playing in the league, join the page and like it too! 


For any inquiries, kindly send email to: ateneofootballleague@gmail.com


Thanks. OBF!!!