The Tweak
Ateneo 2 vs. FEU 1
words by rick olivares pic by brossi gonzales
1/17/10 Erenchun Field
In the first 15 minutes of the match between Ateneo de Manila University and Far Eastern University, the second game of Season 72 football tournament, the Tamaraws had five shots on goal, two of which should have put up last year’s losing finalists on top 2-nil were it not for a misplayed chip by Jason Cordova and the crossbar saving the day for a hyper RS Mantos.
Arnulfo “Ompong” Merida sat down by his customary seat at the Ateneo bench and stewed, bit on his finger nails, and yelled a few instructions every now and then. The opening days jitters and FEU’s stifling defense in the midfield were a bad combination for the Blue Booters who were sorely in need of a good start.
Football is a game of moments. On one turn, a stop, a mistake, a lucky bounce, misdirection, or even the hand of God, and the momentum can swing another’s way.
Last season was the lost year; a debacle that cannot be explained in simple ways. Suffice to say that it turned bad the moment that right wing James Arco suffered a pre-season ACL injury and Mantos’ missed kick that resulted in an own goal (and his subsequent internal benching for grades) that sent the team on a one way tailspin to football hell.
The team is no longer what it was last year. They lost quite a few players to graduation and academics. And they were down to two players with links to the Blue Booters last title squad of 2006 – Gerard Cancio and Fred Ozaeta. Of the players who immediately came up to the squad following that hallowed trifecta, those left included Gab Siojo, now the chief playmaker with the graduation of Jolo Peralta and this year’s captain. Arco was back alongside Choi Kapunan, Derrick Candelaria, spot kick specialist Luigi Meer, Mario Marcelo who now captains the defensive backs, and Mantos. Anton Amistoso, Paul Cheng, and Joel Faustino are three-fifths of last year’s Fab Five rookies. Ah, the newbie’s.
Julio Abraham and Keith King are from Xavier. Enzo Bonoan is from Southridge while Miguel Monfort is from La Salle Greenhills. Tom Cruel, Ranvin Jarina, Carl Llado, and Jacobo Lorenzo are from the AHS.
There are eight and their presence effectively makes Team Ateneo a team in transition. “Maybe that’s why we have been seeded number five (in a six team field),” wondered Merida who welcomed the low rank if only to deflect expectations yet bristled at the notion. How the proud and mighty have fallen.
The Tamaraws on the other hand, pretty much have their champion squad of two years ago almost intact. They lost the prolific Jovanie Simpron to graduation. To replace him, head coach Adolfo Alicante, moved his fellow Santa Barbara native, the returning Jason Cordova who was out after spending a year abroad, to the top striker position. It was Cordova’s heads up defensive play that was a major factor as center back when the Tamaraws beat the Blue Booters in the 2008 Finals and immediately after that, he cracked the starting XI of the national team; a clear indication of his talent and prowess. Another tweak to their roster was moving last year’s goalkeeper Ronnie Aguisanda out of the box and into the midfield. “Sanay naman ako. Kaya ko rin naman,” offered Aguisanda, who is on the national team along with Cordova, right wing Glester Sobremisana, and central midfielder Raymond Buensuceso.
They also had four rookies in Filsan Akut, Dexter Chio, Jae Hyung Park, and Kevin Sernicula. And to help in their off-season training, the team spent two weeks in South Korea.
FEU employed a flat 4-4-2 while Ateneo was in their 4-3-3 formation. Merida was hoping that a stronger midfield and an extra player up front would give his squad more scoring chances after bleeding for goals all of last year.
And in the first 15 minutes, it looked like the bloodletting would continue. Until Cancio’s entrance.
With the Ateneans unable to mount any serious offense, Merida, dispatched forward Cancio much earlier than he would like. Coming in for Arco, Cancio’s sublime skills and deft touch quickened the pace for Ateneo.
Within minutes, Derrick Candelaria, nearly had the first goal of the game and for Ateneo. After finding himself almost on a breakaway that brought out FEU keeper Bricks Caballero whose reckless challenge saw him beaten and himself flailing away after he was side-stepped, all the Atenean had to do was smash it to an empty net. But Candelaria’s boot lacked power and conviction. As a result, Tamaraw defender Jake Hugo, who never gave up on the play as he blasted out the offending ball out of harm’s way, magnificently denied it.
It was Ateneo’s turn to put the fear of God into the Tams. The tide had turned.
Within minutes after Candelaria’s flub, Ateneo went on a quick counter with Meer finding himself being tracked on the left flanks. Meer, is left-handed, or in this sport’s case, left-footed. He quickly debunked that he was nothing more than a spot kick specialist when he turned on the run and sent an expertly placed cross with his right foot towards Siojo who was unmarked a few yards from outside the box. As Tamaraws Ronie Espinosa and Hugo came charging out, the Ateneo captain controlled the ball with one touch, took one step then blasted home the shot.
Caballero never had a chance.
The air of desperation was lifted. One-nil Ateneo in the 25th minute.
Since the three-peat years, the coda of the Ateneo Men’s Football Team has been a couple of fifth place spots to go with one first runner-up finish. The two years at the near bottom have been nightmarish. The team knows the saying, “when you’re down the only place to go is up.”
And that is what was on their minds in the weeks heading to the UAAP football season. No traces of last year were in their minds. “We didn’t want to pollute our focus,” pointed out Gab Siojo, this year’s team captain.
Although Sobremisana equalized in the 44th minute after a penalty was called on Ateneo, one could sense that Ateneo had a feel for the game. Earlier, FEU’s speed was a factor as the Blue Booters couldn’t mount any serious challenge. Once they got more aggressive in their attacks and challenges – Cordova and Sobremisana were silenced from thereon -- they had better chances.
In the 83rd minute, the Blue Booters were given an indirect free kick from close to the midfield touchline. Merida asked Meer, “Kaya mo pa?”
Meer who was limping shook his head. “Monfort,” called out the Ateneo coach. And the rookie, who had long wanted to don the blue and white, raced up from the forward position to take the shot.
He laced a high arcing shot that curved right into the box and into a gaggle of players from both sides. Cancio reacted while Espinosa and fellow defender Joshua Almenar did not. He headed in the ball and the Tams were undone.
The team mobbed Cancio who vigorously pumped his fist. “I felt that I had come home,” he would beam later.
Merida threw in fresh legs with time down to 10 minutes including injury time. And when the whistle ended, Ateneo had their first and maybe even improbable win of the season. Merida was so excited that he bounced around the sideline before catching himself not wanting to show up Alicante and his squad.
“Good start.” exclaimed Siojo who was both happy and relieved. “Last year is a memory. A bad memory. This (the win) gives us the confidence to go out and make the most out of this season.”
Merida walked off the sidelines and muttered, “Five. Five.” There’s no shortage of motivation in these parts.
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Starting XI:
Ateneo -- Mantos, Amistoso, Arco, Candelaria, Cheng, King, Lorenzo, Marcelo, Meer, Ozaeta, Siojo.
FEU -- Caballero, Aguisanda, Buensuceso, Chio, Cordova, Devora, Espinosa, Hugo, Jover, Gustilo, and Sobremisana.
Other Men's Football results:
First game: UP beat UE 2-0. Great start by the defending champs who were missing Ayi Aryee who should suit up in their next match which is on Wednesday January 20 3pm versus Ateneo. No shortage of power for the Diliman team while UE was missing Mark Madrona who is no longer eligible to play.
In the third match, UST upset DLSU 1-0 (should have been 2-nil but the referee and linesman missed a goal that Green Booter keeper Patrick Deyto stopped inside the line). Tough loss for this DLSU squad that performed well in the UFL. I'd chalk this one up to opening day jitters. They should get better. UST adjusted better. The funniest part of the match was when a UST defender dived and tried to get attention from the ref. The zebra charged back up and said, "Ayaw mo ba maglaro? Wag ka na maarte." The player promptly stood up as if nothing had happened. Bwahaha!
In Women's football, DLSU with eight rookies beat UP 1-0 while Ateneo drew with FEU 2-2. Defending champs UST drew a bye.
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