Bleachers' Brew #324 These nomads have found a home

This appears in the Monday, August 20, 2012 edition of the Business Mirror.

These nomads have found a home

story and pics by rick olivares with help from jena fetalino

Founded by British expatriates in 1914, Nomads Sports Club (NSC) is the oldest of its kind in the country. The site of the current club is nestled in the quiet suburb of Merville, Paranaque. “It was nothing then but a barren piece of land with a wooden hut,” said former NSC board member Matt Freeston. Since its move from Makati to Paranaque in 1969, the 2.5-hectare facility has been a haven for expats and for the local populace and has hosted numerous local and international sporting events.

There’s a field where football, rugby, and cricket are played. They have tennis courts, a swimming pool, a basketball court, and a gym. There too, is the ubiquitous bar with television sets tuned into various sports channels.

Contrary to popular belief, the sports teams at Nomads aren’t wholly made up of expats. The club is 40% expat and 60% Filipino. In fact, the current club president, Jena Fetalino, is Filipino.

There are some 45 different nationalities that comprise the membership that is over 400 at present. “You can multiply that by three or four,” said member Thomas Whitwell, “because of one’s dependents.”

Many of the staff that works in the club have inherited the jobs of their parents. “The area behind the club? They call it Barangay Nomads,” chimed in Freeston. “We’ve had the sons of some of our workers eventually take their place in the various facilities around the club.”

On a few occasions, their club team has officially represented the Philippines in an international tournament. NSC greens keeper, Emmanuel Protacio who is originally from Saranggani Province, is a lawn bowler and has won bronze medals in the Asia Pacific Lawn Bowl Championship and the World Champion of Champion Singles Lawn Bowl Championship held in Scotland and Australia.

It’s senior football squad won the UFL’s Division II title two years ago that saw them promoted to the highest level in the country’s only semi-pro league.

And as a bit of trivia, the Philippine Volcanoes were formed in this very club.

“There is a rich history of sports here,” pointed out Nomads’ first team football head coach Michael Denison.

Added Whitwell: “Many of us have settled down in the Philippines and our children also represent the country in different sports and national teams. It bothers me that people consider us foreigners when we’ve lived here longer than many other natural-born Filipinos and our children go to the same school as the natural-born Filipinos. And we have our own outreach programs here!”

Much of these could go away in as little as four years’ time. The sports club as a whole is currently embroiled in a case with the Securities and Exchange Commission based on a complaint filed by a former president of the club. This former club president alleges that NSC has been offering unlisted securities. Furthermore, there is the matter of the land on which NSC sits.

The same president leased the land for a period of 15 years to NSC while extending the right of first refusal to the club in the event the owners decided to sell it. This is where the story diverges. NSC officials claim that after a 2008 board resolution to buy the club, the owner of the land instead offered it to a club member. At this point, the case has gone to court. But clearly, the legal hassles have affected the club.

Denison says the issues have not bothered Nomads’ UFL team but “It’s making everyone uncomfortable. It shouldn’t affect the first team but it will have a big impact on the football academy who are mainly young Pinoys. The first team is really struggling due to the lack of funding. The money that goes to the legal affairs is affecting the whole club.”

Freeston agrees: “That money should have been used on improving the facilities.”

Rumor has it that if bought out by a third party, the land will be converted to condominium unit.

“Many people do not see the value of the club,” interjected Whitwell. “When we hold an international tournament here in Manila, that’s about a thousand tourists who come in. That means they’ll be spending for hotels, public transportation, bars and what have you. I mean, really, whoever owns the club can do what they want with the club. But after nearly a century of helping sports grow in this country, it will be a sad day when NSC is run out. During the lean times, Nomads has helped keep the torch for football burning in this country.”

The club is also a huge boon to the youth of Merville and the nearby areas. With the attention of many youngsters on computers and the internet, the youth here are a throwback as they engage in the various sports the club has to offer.

Despite the lengthy legal battles that have been going on since 2008, the members of NSC has refused to give up the fight. Said an emphatic Whitwell, “Why not? This is after all, our home.”

Sports talk? You have no idea. The bar where hanging out means exchanging great views and opinions about sports teams.

Nomads' UFL Division One team 2011-12.

The pitch that has hosted sporting events galore.

Five ways to appreciate the Ateneo win over FEU

The battle between Greg Slaughter and Anthony Hargrove was like Godzilla vs Mechagodzilla. haha

Five ways to appreciate the Ateneo win over FEU

by rick olivares pic by brosi

You have to wonder what RR Garcia is thinking. No Eric Salamat. No Emman Monfort. No Kirk Long. Yet his FEU Tamaraws still cannot get over the hump against Ateneo.

The La Salle-NU game that preceded the main event had as much theater and drama too. But this one literally rocked the Big Dome to its foundations. And besides, it was packed unlike the sparsely attended first game.

Wow! Hirap.

Walking alongside Norman Black to the media room, coach uttered two words: “Wow. Hirap.”

Let’s flip the postulate.

No Al Ramos. No Pippou Noundou. No Ping Exciminiano. And these Tamaraws are still a tough bunch to beat. The Blue Eagles had to buck dubious calls in the first quarter, a double digit FEU lead, and Terrence Romeo and RR Garcia going inside like the shaded lane was a McDonald’s drive through to pull out a workmanlike win.  

In the first half, Ateneo could not adjust to the wing play of FEU where their perimeter players would move around a lot thanks to a bunch of screens to free them. The Blue Eagles got so overly concerned with Romeo and Garcia losing their guards that they forgot players like Arvie Bringas, Roger Pogoy, and Anthony Hargrove who took advantage of the confusion to drive in for a lay up, and-one, or even a monstrous throwdown.

For a FEU team that has steadily lost its low post players over the years (see box) they sure took it to Ateneo early on.

After the first half of play, FEU had 20 points from inside the lane, 6 points from the free throw line, and 11 points from the perimeter.

During FEU’s earlier four-game win streak that saw them win by the skin of their teeth (usually in the final play of the game), head coach Bert Flores described the method to their madness. “Hinahayaan ko si Terrence o si RR mag-create.”

The adjustment was to stay in front of Romeo and Garcia and to improve the perimeter defense. When that was accomplished (and with Greg Slaughter swatting five shots), FEU was forced to beat Ateneo with the longball. The Tams nailed three treys at the end of the game but one of which was inconsequential.

And besides, we countered and matched them with our best three-ball effort this season (we were 5-13 while they were 5-18).

We had to sweat it out and work for it. The Tams tested us and brought out some great clutch play.

To borrow a line from the championship t-shirt of the 1988 Ateneo UAAP champion team: “Great champions die hard”.

We got treated to Ryan Buenafe’s playground

Hey, FEU. Remember me?

The last time Buenafe played a match against FEU in a UAAP game, he stuck a three-point dagger in thousands of Morayta hearts.

And here was Buenafe once again – a Tamaraw killer. Hey, the animal in an endangered specie and after Ateneo’s win, it dropped the Tams from first to third place in the standings. With La Salle and NU bring up the rear in the last seats to the Final Four bus, how huge was that loss?

Juami Tiongson’s assist production has dove-tailed. In the first three games of the season, he averaged six assists to one turnover. After missing the UP match, he has since chalked up only one assist versus seven turnovers.

Luckily for him and the team, there’s Ryan Buenafe.

Let’s look at his counterparts in the three-spot:

He doesn’t defy gravity like Alex Nuyles does. He doesn’t put up a ton of points like Jeron Teng does. He doesn’t hoist voluminous numbers of treys like NU’s Lee Villamor or UST’s Kevin Ferrer do.

But Buenafe’s the guy who can dominate a game while scoring only six points and he’s certainly someone who comes up big in big games. Now I am not going to call him "big something" despite his propensity to contribute mightily in big games.

Buenafe is a game changer and a silent assassin in what appears to be an unathletic body. Charles Barkley anyone? Close but Barkley is a different specimen.

When the fourth quarter started, the score was at 53-49, FEU.

FEU’s Anthony Hargrove and Ateneo’s Kiefer Ravena traded two points each. At the 8:18 mark, Buenafe scored on an and-one against the former making it 55-54. We’re down a solitary point.

After a FEU miss, he found Nico Salva who struggled mightily because of foul trouble. That gave Ateneo its first taste of the lead since 2-0.

The Tams regained the lead with a Mark Bringas bucket and then the play that swung the momentum for good, Ateneo’s way.

At the 6:26 mark, Buenafe took the ball on top of the left side of the three-point arc. Greg Slaughter went out to provide a pick as Ryan looked up at the clock. His last two three-point attempts from the same area were short. He looked to shot but drove hard instead. Drawing a crowd as he knifed in from the lane, he suddenly found Slaughter amidst the forest of limbs and the Big Fella obliged with a two-handed stuff. We never did surrender that 58-57 lead (at the 6:20 mark).

In a little over two minutes, his heads up play turned the game around.

With the score at 66-60, he dove for the loose ball and got FEU’s (and his former San Sebastian teammate) Arvie Bringas to pick up his fourth foul.  

Following a Bringas trey to cut the lead to 69-63, Buenafe tacked on two more free throws to provide some breathing space.

And it got contagious. Slaughter posted up and handed off the ball to Kiefer Ravena who cut along the baseline. Ravena literally laid the ball inside the basket with his finger tips just touching the rim. No need for a slam. When it mattered, Ateneo countered with execution. The result was a 74-71 comeback win.

When the Blue Eagles struggled against UE in its last outing, Ryan was handed the ball in the third quarter. Ten minutes later, the Red Warriors were finished.

Buenafe tallied a stat line of 10 points, 3 rebounds, and 4 assists against FEU. Like the man himself, it doesn’t really look unspectacular. What is important is how and when he does it. And that is spectacular.

Rabeh Al-Hussaini and Nonoy Baclao V.2

We all know what that duo gave Ateneo.

There are few storied centers in Ateneo’s UAAP history. There was the fabled Danny Francisco and undersized but no less tough John Verayo. Then there was Enrico Villanueva, Ford Arao, and Al-Hussaini. Now there’s the Big Fella from Virginia.

Technically, the four-spot belongs to Nico Salva who is also a defensive problem for others because he can take them out to the perimeter. But how intriguing was that pairing of Slaughter and Erram during that crucial late and early fourth quarter?

Erram was pegged to replace the revered Nonoy Baclao at the four spot. A defensive menace who could provide some rebounding assistance and points on the putback. But I have always thought that Erram was better offensively.

After the last University Games (in Roxas City) that the Blue Eagles won, I thought that Erram was ready to breakout this season rather than provide the occasional cameo and quality minutes. He was making opposing centers eat their shots while slamming the ball from alley-oop passes from Juami Tiongson and Tonino Gonzaga.

Poy is athletic, has a good medium range jumper, and has great defensive instincts.

FEU tried to overwhelm us with their size -- Anthony Hargrove (bet you regret not playing for the blue and white now), the Bringas brothers, Rey Belo, and Christian Sentcheu. But when Ateneo countered with Slaughter and the more mobile Erram, the freeway that the Tams had access to earlier? Dude, they had to pay the toll fee.

Slaughter – 17 points, 8 rebounds, 3 assists, and 5 blocks.

Erram – 6 points, 9 rebounds (including four offensive boards), 1 steal and 2 blocks.

Until they take it from us, we are still the kings of the endgame

The Tamaraws have been clutch for the most part. They chalked up impressive endgame victories over tough teams – UST and La Salle. They nearly pulled it off again against NU and the final three-point margin notwithstanding. The outcome against Ateneo was decided with a minute and eight seconds left (after a Kiefer Ravena free throw made it 69-60).

While the Norman Black era in Ateneo will be remembered for its championships and defensive mentality, one hallmark that should be remembered is its steel-resolve in the endgame. We have won more nail biters than anyone since 2006. And that has served this team in good stead.

The UAAP Board likes that there’s parity in the league. There are five teams who could realistically win it all. Adamson would have been a contender had they not lost Alex Nuyles. Every game we ‘re going to be tested. And that brings me to my last point.

You have a front row seat to the Drive for Five.

Who would have thought that the Ateneo Blue Eagles would be in a position like this – to win a fifth straight title? There have been two occasions where this has happened – the 1930s and the 1950s (where we went to six finals in eight years while winning four: a pair of back-to-backs sandwiched by losses). And then there is now.

We’ll save the sentiment for a later column but you have to appreciate what you are watching.

The match against FEU was a classic regardless which side you root for. One team is the paragon of exceptional talent while the latter is for team play. You can never take for granted that we are the defending champions. It’s a different season under a different set of circumstances. To make history, they have to be focused while we have to support them in the stands win or lose.

In 1989, Blue Eagles lost overnight four vital cogs who missed a season for varying reasons. There was already a sense of three-peat was done even before it started as we lost Danny Francisco to a heart ailment, Alex Araneta and Jay Gayoso to academics, and Jet Nieto to med school. The blue and white faithful still trooped out but not in large numbers. The noises about winning a title then emanated from that school along Taft Avenue (and they did win it).

I will forever remember how with barely 60 Ateneans in the stands, the FEU Tamaraws of Johnny Abarrientos and Vic Pablo officially hammer down the last nail in the coffin for Ateneo. My classmate, Joseph Canlas, shot blanks for nearly 90% of the way but caught fire late in the game. We fell.

The difference between now and then is that we are in the thick of things. The great thing about our being fans is that we are then win or lose. Even during those two dark ages of the early 80s and the title-less 90s.

The first round is done. Now, the scramble for the first objective of nailing the top two seeds for the Final Four will become even more intense.

The Drive for Five continues.

Seven played. Seven more to go.



---------------

Thanks to the guys from Imperium Technology. And I apologize for my glasses remark. 

Azkals statuette collection

I took this photo using Instagram. These Azkals statuettes were specially commissioned by football fan Raymund Maclang of Samsung Philippines. I snapped it at his office the other day. 

Updates on the Clear Dream Match

I was surprised to hear that Stallions pulled out the participation of OJ Clarino and Wilson Muñoz from the Clear Dream Match. I sent a message to Ernie Nierras and have yet to hear from him. So I won’t speculate yet on the reason. Whatever it is, what a waste. I think that it's good publicity for the players and the club. 

Freddy Gonzalez won’t be able to play as well because he’ll be on a business trip.

So that’s three players voted by the fans who won’t make it. Two replacements has been named… Pachanga’s Ousseynou Diop and Loyola’s Michael Menzi who will play for Team Phil. Menzi also plays for FEU. He made his Spakrs’ debut during the recent leg of the Singapore Cup.

As for Gonzalez’ replacement, Paulus Reyes of Team Socceroo will suit up for Team Phil.

I will wait for more info before I make comments about whatever is happening to the Azkals’ US trip. Suffice to say I’m shaking my head at the developments.

I reported earlier that OJ Clarino is leaving Stallion for Diliman, but a message from the former UST player indicates that he is staying put. 

On the topic of Pachanga, they have some new transfers – Hector Zaghi and his brother have left Team Socceroo for Pachanga. That greatly strengthens the Red Phoenix’ midfield.

Former Azkal, Global and Laos player Michael Atienza has also moved to Pachanga. I guess you all know now that Angel Guirado has left Global for a club in India. There was an opportunity to play in Qatar but the India gig looks better.

There were other celebrities who wanted to participate but couldn't because of the scheduling conflicts. Hopefully, by next year's edition of this charity match. And Rico Blanco will be performing at halftime. 

My column on NBA jerseys having sponsors' logos

Here's my latest column in ph.nba.com. It's on the new corporate logos that look to adorn NBA jerseys in two seasons' time. 

Imagine Carmelo Anthony taking the floor two seasons from now in New York home whites with “Met Life” or “Duane Reade” logos emblazoned next the “Knicks” lettering in front.

How about Kevin Durant tapping his breast area to a “Target” logo just above the “Oklahoma” every time he drills a three-pointer?

Priceless?

Yes and no. 

READ MORE.

The UE Red Warriors in freefall

This appears in the abs-cbn website.

Freefall

by rick olivares

Kevin Ferrer got the ball outside the three-point line. He faked a trey attempt that got his guard up in the air. Ferrer drove, drew the defense and spotted a cutting Aljon Mariano for a lookaway dish. That made the score 13-8 for the UST Growling Tigers. Previous to Ferrer’s drop, UE’s Ian Carlo Valdez put on the same moves on his guard except this time he attacked from the baseline. UST center Karim Abdul extended and Valdez had to loft a floater high above the onrushing center. The ball clanged off the rim but UE teammate John Sumido grabbed the offensive board and went up for a shot.

Only his undergoal stab missed!

The two sequences encapsulated the entire match between UST that is skyrocketing up the UAAP standings while UE looks to battle out UP once more for the right to stay out of the league cellar.

Curiously, UE’s leading scorer, Roi Sumang only played four minutes in the first quarter that the Tigers took 15-11. And the Red Warrior’s leading scorer (averaging 16.8 points in the first four matches) was not reinserted into the match until well under four minutes and the score now at 32-16 for UST. The score had doubled.

So did UE’s rotation. Red Warriors’ head coach Jerry Codinera played 12 and 14 men respectively in an effort to find the right combination whereas UST counterpart Pido Jarencio fielded 10 and 11 for the first two periods.

How lost was UE?

At the 4:37 mark, Abdul swished a 15-foot jump shot with UE reserve forward-center Paul Meña all over him. Abdul grinned of a man having a ball while Meña looked at Codinera; 29-16, UST.

One play later, Tiger reserve forward Ed Daquioag hit a trey all over UE’s Jai Flores. The Red Warrior looked at Codinera; 32-16, UST.

Two plays later, Daquioag blew past Chris Javier for an and-one and the latter looked at his coach; 35-18, UST.

Codinera called for a timeout and hoped he could provide answers for his befuddled players. A UE supporter who sat behind the bench yelled at the players, “Wala kayong pride!” Warriors Jeric Hernandez and Carlo Duncil looked at the lady who was unperturbed.

There was no chemistry whatsoever. No sense of brotherhood or team play. As the players went in and out of the match like they were playing musical chairs, it was only Flores who received some low fives from his teammates. The rest… well they sat down on the bench or tried to until Adrian Santos evicted them from the seat.

The score at the half was 41-23 for UST. The game was slipping away.

The only thing UE seemed to win was the battle from the stands where their gallery outcheered UST’s despite the lopsided score.

But those were the students who in spite of being required to watch the game for their PE class cheered their hearts out at every basket and every stop.

As for some of the UE alumni?

At the resumption of hostilities following the halftime break, UST forward Louie Vigil scored back-to-back baskets including one that forced UE center Sam Razon to back pedal and hurt his knee. Following Vigil’s knee breaker on Razon, two UE alumni seated at the patron section threw up their arms and left without so much as looking back.

The Red Warriors tried to make a game of it in the second half as Sumang made like LeBron James when he was with the Cleveland Cavaliers. His final stat line: 13 points, 4 rebounds, 4 assists, 2 steals, and 3 turnovers in only 24 minutes.

The Warriors made an effort in the last quarter. But the deficit was simply too big and the Tigers too good that UST coasted to its fourth straight win for a 4-1 record.

The Warriors? Well, they remain winless.

UE has put on the hardcourt some of the most talented teams in recent memory. Their line-ups eventually begat some terrific PBA talent: James Yap, KG Canaleta, Paul Artadi, Ronald Tubid, Mark Borboran, Paul Lee, and Elmer Espiritu to name a few.

Their teams made two UAAP Finals – 2007 and 2009 – but each time they were swept by their opponents. In the last two seasons, they’ve been at the bottom of the standings.

Chris Javier, the team’s second leading scorer (and one of two in double figures scoring with Sumang) with a 11.0 average, has lost more games in his first two years with UE than his entire career with San Beda when he was in high school. In four of Codinera’s years in college, he played for the UAAP Men’s Basketball championship four times. He won his first two then conceded the latter two in his last years with UE.

When asked what’s wrong, he grinned although it was a pained one. “Marami.” And he walked rather forlornly to the parking lot following an 85-69 beating.

Time to make a stand, Adamson.

Time to make a stand, Adamson.

After Adamson lost to FEU in last year’s Final Four, I believed that it was the end of that good team’s run. I didn’t think they’d get past Ateneo anyhow but to see them make the finals would have been reward enough for this team.

There’s a small window of opportunity for teams to win a title. A steady flow of good recruits ensures better chances.

For a team like Adamson that is without the resources of the bigger programs, that doesn’t come very often.

I saw those Adamson teams of Louie Alas back in the mid-1980s and they were always tough teams to play. They had their big chance in the early 1990s when they had Marlou Aquino, EJ Fiehl, and Kenneth Duremdes.

The early 2000 squads coached by Leo Austria were talented but always came up short.

Now the squad of the last few years was not only deep but really talented: Alex Nuyles, Eric Camson, Roider Cabrera, Lester Alvarez, Jerick Cañada, Janus Lozada, Jan Colina, and Austin Manyara. They also had Michael Galinato and the underrated Will Stinnett. Then they also tabbed Rodney Brondial. I always thought that what stopped them from taking it to the next level was their mental toughness.

Some people point to the win against Ateneo as a sign that they were ready to ascend. Excuse me. That was one win in what 15 years? One win does not make anything.

The same was said the previous year but come the Final Four Ateneo annihilated them.

Now with Nuyles out for the season, they’ll still play but this season is over for them. They’ll want to better upset a team or two because they are building for the next season now.

How tough is this for Nuyles? For this to come in his final season – he goes out with a season-ending injury.

The last time this happened was in 2004 when Larry Fonacier played his last year for Ateneo. Fonacier tore up his knee after having played three games. At that time, Ateneo was undefeated and they used that win to spur them on to sweep the first round. But after that the cracks widened and the team fell in the Final Four.

This is now an opportunity for Camson to take control of this team, for Cabrera to play more consistently, and for Jericho Cruz to become this team’s next creator (he has to learn what Nuyles does which is drive and drop). And perhaps more importantly, this is the best time for Ryan Monteclaro to show that he can run this team. This is not a time to roll over and let opposing teams walk all over them.

We know that Leo Austria is a very good coach. Now this is where we see what he can do with even less.

The Younghusband brothers select their Dream Teams

The Younghusband brothers select their Dream Teams

by rick olivares

You remember when we used to pick sides in the playground? This guy is your teammate. This other one is yours and so forth.

Football isn’t simply a child’s game. It’s grown to be much more than that. It’s huge. In fact, it’s the world game.

But the game has come full circle to when you used to pick sides in the Clear Dream Match Draft. And perhaps even better, it’s giving back to the children of the Tuloy sa Don Bosco Foundation.

James and Phil Younghusband have made it just as much as their career to teach football to the young. The sport continues to be good for them and they are not going to wait until their old to give back.

For about an hour, the brothers along with their colleagues from the United Football League and a few from the celebrity world, played a series of exhibition matches with kids from Tuloy sa Don Bosco as well as from Muntinlupa. They played seven-a-side and sometime barefoot football. Now this was taking the game back to its roots.

When the festivities were down, it was down to James and Phil once more to choose sides.

From a pool of 50 players, fans voted their Top 40 players on the Clear Dream Match Facebook Page. And it was among those 40 players that the Younghusband brothers chose to play for their particular side. The first five players they personally got to pick while for the rest of their lineup they had to pick out names from a pot.

Phil won the coin toss and got to pick first. And his choice – the first ever pick of the Clear Dream Match Draft -- was Kaya goalkeeper Saba Garmaroudi. Of Garmaroudi, the dentistry student from the University of the East, Phil said: “He’s the toughest goalkeeper to score on. I want him on my side.”

Rounding out his first five selections revealed his hand – a defensive oriented squad: defenders Park Minho (Loyola), Yves Ashime (Pachanga), Roxy Dorlas (Loyola), and Armand del Rosario (Kaya).

James’ choices were more offensive oriented: Nate Burkey (Kaya) and Patrick Bocobo (Green Archers United) at forward, Anton del Rosario (Kaya) and Jonah Romero (Kaya) on defense, and Patrick Deyto (Green Archers United) at goal.

Then the brothers alternated into dipping into the pots to flesh out their respective squads of 20.

Team James:

Goalkeeper: Ref Cuaresma (Loyola)

Defenders: Patrick Ozaeta (Loyola), Reymark Fernandez (Diliman), Ronald Batisla-Ong (Pachanga), Andrew Santiago (Diliman), Steven Silva (Team Socceroo), and Nico Bolzico (Kaya).

Midfielders: Marvin Kiefer (actor/model), Jolo Durian, Jake Cuenca (Team Socceroo), Slick Rick (Boy’s Nite Out), and Mikko Mabanag (Agila).

Forwards: Rudy del Rosario (Homeless World Cup), Eric Dagroh (Kaya), and

Andrew Wolff (Philippine Volcanoes).

Team Phil:

Goalkeeper: Wilson Muñoz (goalkeeper)

Defenders: Dexter Versario (Loyola), Janrick Soriano (Pachanga), Alvin Ocampo (Pachanga).

Midfielders: Rafael Rosell (actor/model), Paolo Bediones (TV5), Daniel Matsunaga (Team Socceroo), Tony Toni (Boys Nite Out), Davide Cortina (Loyola), Jeong Byeong Yeol (Loyola), OJ Clarino (Stallion).

Forwards: Eric Tai (Philippine Volcanoes), Yannick Tuason (Kaya), Freddy Gonzalez (Pachanga), and Fabio Ide (Team Socceroo).

After the two selected their respective squads, they had one last pick to make – the wild card pick – where they could choose anyone who wasn’t even included in the draft.

In a totally unexpected move, James chose the Philippine Men’s Football National Team’s physical therapist Wally Javier. “Wally’s close to Phil and this way, Wally wouldn’t be on his side,” struck the elder Younghusband as the competitive juices began to flow.

Phil countered with a more sound and tactical choice – Loyola midfielder Anto Gonzales.

As for their respective coaching staff: Phil will have Loyola club president and former national striker Randy Roxas on his side while James will have Loyola assistant coach Vincent Santos – also a former national player) – to aide him.

A cursory glance at the respective squads, Team Phil looks to be more defensively sound while Team James has a lot more scoring punch up front. But Phil will have alongside him scoring machine and former national player Freddy Gonzalez who led all goalscorers in the last UFL season with over 30 goals to his name.

When I asked John Imperial of Clear Brand Manager who would win the Clear Dream Match, his answer was: “The fans and the kids of Tuloy sa Don Bosco Foundation.”

The playground will be revisited and it’s going to be a lot of fun.

See you all at the University of Makati on August 25. Kickoff is at 630pm. Admission is FREE.

Team Phil

Team James

Thanks to Clear, Greenwich, Gatorade, and AKTV! 

And the Tuloy sa Don Bosco.

Friday stuff

With Ateneo Blue Eagle (and my former student) Tonino Gonzaga at the Moro Lorenzo Sports Center talking about the mechanics of his jumpshot. Below with PBA scoring machine Gary David. We were at MLSC to do a video on Nico Salva. Next week we have Ray Parks then the Teng brothers.

Lolo Jones must learn from LeBron James

A gold standard

by rick olivares

At the end of the great World War II epic Saving Private Ryan, actor Tom Hanks’ character of Captain Miller, who is mortally wounded pulls a soldier played by actor Matt Damon close to him. With his dying breath, Miller tells Ryan, “Earn this.”

Fortunately the over 300 basketball players plying their trade in the NBA, their “wars” are fought on the hardcourt. As for respect, as Miller said, it is earned.

And LeBron James must surely know what American hurdler Lolo Jones must be going through. READ MORE

Revised UAAP Men's Basketball Sked 1st Round Season 75

MEN'S SRS

AUG. 12, SUN (ARANETA)

2 P.M. - DLSU VS. ADU

4 P.M. - UE VS. UST

AUG. 15, WED (ARANETA)

2 P.M. - UE VS. ADU

4 P.M. - UP VS. UST

AUG. 18, SAT (ARANETA)

12 NOON (AIRING 2 P.M.) - NU VS. DLSU

4 P.M. - ADMU VS. FEU 

AUG. 19, SUN (ARANETA)

2 P.M. - UST VS. ADU

4 P.M. - UP VS. UE

I'm surprised they changed the sked. Normally you play through what there is and the ones that were not played will come after. That's a two week layoff for Ateneo and FEU! Well, NU too! The upside here is all the matches will be at the Araneta Coliseum. Cool. So much better there.

Bleachers' Brew #323 Eduard Folayang and Kevin Belingon: the calm before the storm

This appears in the Monday, August 14, 2012 edition of the Business Mirror.

Eduard Folayang and Kevin Belingon: the calm before the storm

by rick olivares

When Filipino Mixed Martial Arts fighter Kevin Belingon enters the cage, like his teammate Eduard Folayang and his idol Georges St. Pierre, he has this calm presence. Living through firefights not to mention his cage matches will do that to you.

As a youngster growing up in Ifugao province, his town would explode in violence whenever the Philippine Army would roll in. Like a moth to a flame, the New People’s Army rebels would inevitably come down and engage the government troops in sustained firefights. One time when Belingon was only five years old, his father hid him and his sibling inside an empty water tank as the bullets and grenades exploded all around.

“You can say that I got used to the intense firefights. So cage fights are nothing compared to living through combat,” Belingon reveals of his preternatural calmness. 

Belingon fights to represent his tribe (Ifugao), his country, and the Filipino people. It isn’t the usual remark about serving the people. Belingon means every word. He is a Criminology graduate and if he weren’t fighting now, he’d be a cop. “I would love to help bring back the public’s trust in the police.”

Belingon isn’t the only one who exhibits grasshopper calm. His teammate, Eduard Folayang, is the same. Folayang was once a Physical Education teacher in his home city of Baguio. He was already into wushu when his mentor pushed him into getting into Mixed Martial Arts.

Even with three wushu medals in the Asian Games and Southeast Asian Games as well as a Universal Reality Combat Championship welterweight title to his name, Folayang keeps a regal sereneness about him. If it weren’t for his sculpted physique, one could still mistake him as a teacher.

Folayang carries with him a small notebook where he jots down things that he picks up and learns everyday from the people he meets to events that surround him. When I inquire about it, he simply said, “To learn. There is a lot to learn in life. Not just MMA. This makes you a better person.”

Over a bistek Pilipino lunch, both Folayang and Belingon talk about mistakes they made in their previous losses. For Eduard, it’s all about doing something in the right as opposed to not doing it. Against Filipino-Danish Muay Thai specialist Ole Laursen, Folayang was suckered into a ground and grappling game. While known as a stand up striker, Eduard isn’t beyond going to the canvass when need me. “I should have done it to him first,” he regrets. “It’s a huge learning for me to leave everything in the ring so when I exit there are no regrets.”

He pauses to accentuate a point, “Things – even a loss – happen for a reason. They teach you hard lessons to learn and to be humble.”

Belingon saw his win streak stopped at nine when he lost to Japanese fighter Masakazu Imanari in the first round of One FC last March in Singapore. “Wrong move on my part,” he rued. “Mistakes are part of life. You have to make sure that you do not repeat them. You have to get over the loss and fear if you want to stand up. That’s life.”

Inside the air-conditioned and plush Manila Peninsula, people are insulated from the beating that nature has wrought down on Metro Manila. But Folayang and Belingon think about their hometowns and loved ones.

Folayang is nicknamed “Landslide” for his sudden fury inside the ring that evokes the disasters that occasionally beset Baguio City. Both fighters talk about people they know or heard of who have been victims not just of the rains and flooding but also landslides. “We all try to give back in our own way,” pointed our Eduard. “When the time comes that I can make big money then I can give back to more people. Some times, all I can do is represent them in the cage. To give them glory as well as to honor them.”

On August 31, 2012, both fighters will be a part of the biggest Mixed Martial Arts event in the country to date. One Fighting Championship, Asia’s biggest MMA fight organization, will bring 24 of Asia as well as Pan-Asia’s best fighters to the Smart Araneta Coliseum.

Folayang will be up against Japanese-Peruvian Brazilian Jiu Jitsu and Muay Thai specialist Felipe Enomoto (6-1-1). Enomoto beat Folayang’s conqueror Ole Laursen and it would be interesting to see how the two tangle with one another.

Belingon will take on 20-year old Korean Soo Chul Kim who has a pro record of 4-3 having lost his last two One FC fights against Leandro Issa and Gustavo Falciroli.

“August 31,” summed up Folayang. “I hope we can really make the nation proud.”

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Get your tickets to One Fighting Championship: Pride of the Nation at ticketnet.com.ph today! It’s gonna be packed in more ways than one.

With Kevin Belingon, One FC CEO Victor Cui, and Eduard Folayang.