Ateneo Men's Football Match #6 Of the heart, of the soul, and of the killer cross

Ateneo 4 vs La Salle 1
by rick olivares

Match 6
January 31, 2008
Erenchun Field
Ateneo De Manila University

“As far as I’m concerned, the season is over for us.” It’s unlike Hans Peter Smit to sound off with a defeatist attitude. Whether it’s because the De La Salle men’s football team is the unlikely cellar dweller and that they’ve routinely been on the receiving end of sound beatings or that it’s his version of psy-war with his wards is any one’s guess.

And Ateneo definitely wasn’t taking any chances. “They’re the most dangerous team to face,” cautioned the blues’ Ompong Merida in the pre-game huddle. “The pressure is off them and they’ll play loose. With FEU’s win over UE, this is a must win for us.”

“If nothing more, they’ll play for pride,” summed up Ateneo’s Gino Tongson who was playing in his first UAAP game against the ancient rivals since the 2006 title game (he was suspended for the first round match). “So we have to push and push. And any time you play La Salle, it’s all about who has more heart.”

For Merida, even a win can be an ugly win. He thundered such albeit in a very colorful manner after the season opener against UP (a 2-1 win). In that respect, he is very much a product of the Brazilian system he learned all those years ago. He eschews the Italian game that plays a grinding defense that tires out the opponent’s offense then striking when they’re tired.

It’s a thing of beauty when the passing is seamless. When with pinpoint accuracy the ball is advanced for a devastating killer cross that leads to a goal. Merida’s players to a man will cite their infinite belief in the team’s system that it’s almost a mantra game after a game.

When La Salle drew first blood in the fourth minute courtesy of Nikko Villa’s curling free kick from outside the box that skirted a poorly positioned wall and into the back of the net for a 1-0 lead. And as the Green Booters celebrated, Smit was quick to temper any early celebrations. “It’s too early,” he yelled as he was now concerned that the dragon had been roused from its early game slumber and blunder.

There was no sense of panic among the Ateneans. “It wasn’t like it was a goal scored off a set play,” said the Blue Booters’ captain Pat Ozaeta. “We knew that we’d get it back soon enough. Just run the system.” It’s the mantra, right?

Ateneo almost immediately equalized but Gerard Cancio flubbed a point blank stab that sailed over the goal post. La Salle goalkeeper Bob Lacaya was experiencing an eerie sense of déjà vu as the Blue Booters began to pick apart La Salle’s defense and get off shot after shot. In the first round clash of the titans, Cancio scored the season’s first hat trick (UP’s Andoni Santos followed suit that same afternoon) en route to a 4-0 rout. “Mark mo si Cancio,” he directed towards his defensive backs.

But Ateneo’s system is such that the defensive backs and the wingmen all take part in the attack. In the system – yes, I know what it is – everyone is dangerous. In the 14^th minute, second-year player Luigi Meer sent a high-arcing corner kick that sailed and dropped right into the upper right corner of the goal for the equalizer and rapturous celebration. Meer was the sixth Atenean to score in the tournament.

In terms of difficulty and execution, it was even better than Villa’s Beckham-like strike. Lacaya got to the ball, but he was way inside the goal when he caught it. And just like that, the pressure now was on La Salle’s side. “We just started thinking that it was a scoreless draw so far,” said Alvin Perez whose foul led to the free kick that gave the green and white the first taste of the lead. “We were more loose after that.”

In the 37th minute, Gino Tongson scored his fourth goal of the tournament with a shot that fooled the La Salle keeper. Thinking Tongson would cross to Cancio on the left flank, the shot instead was a heater that rumbled unimpeded towards the right that even the defense had no chance of catching. Ateneo was up 2-1 at the half. “We have them where we want them,” pointed out Merida to his boys. They were going in for the kill.

La Salle came out smoking in the second half as they began to play a little more physical. They had a number of shots on goal off corner and free kicks, but Ateneo’s defense held fast. In the 76^th minute, a quick counter-attack found Tongson bearing on the wings and outracing his guard. He laced a nifty cross over the head of a La Sallian defender and straight into Cancio. The blues’ top striker drew one defender closer before passing off to a barreling Jolo Peralta who pushed the ball and himself into the net for a 3-1 lead. “Gino and Gerard did all the work,” graciously offered Ateneo midfielder afterwards. “All I had to do was tap it in.”

Cancio reprised his excellent playmaking skills by serving another perfect cross to Tongson in the 84^th minute for the final goal tally of 4-1. “It feels great. It feels complete,” beamed a happy Tongson afterwards referring to his contributions in thwarting their age-old foes from Taft. “But credit Gerard – those were some killer crosses he passed to us.”

After the game, it was a gracious Kim Smit and Bob Lacaya who met their victorious counterparts right before the Ateneo bench. “It’s a tough loss for us. We’re just not a good football team right now,” softly offered the coach’s son. “I patted him on the shoulder and told him that I know they’d be back. After all, they had a young team and one of the best minds in the game.

“You know what sets apart Ateneo from other teams,” said the elder Smit in tribute to his school’s rival. “They’ve got school pride. It’s almost an entirely homegrown team and they play with a lot of heart. We – me and Ompong (Merida) – we can teach kids to play the best football techniques and systems. But what we cannot teach is heart. That team is all heart.”