Today is the last day of February, and with the Ides of March about to begin just hours from now.
Today also serves as the end of Awards season. With the Academy Awards, we all now await the big releases that pepper the landscape like Thor, Captain America, etc... Oh, and Wrestlemania.
I wish I could share something about the Oscars, but I slept through it. I was awake watching TLC when they showed back to back of Bizarro Foods and No Reservations featuring the Motherland. Yes, I finally and luckily got to watch those two shows. It felt good when a great show features and highlights your own heritage.
Hereforth are the links:
Change of Relationship status for Cristiano Ronaldo. (c/o Digital Spy)
Let's get it on, Ozzie and Bobby. (c/o Chicago Breaking Sports) have Tito Francona as the special guest referee. (c/o Boston Herald)
Some standouts in the Combine. (c/o Shutdown Corner) Also here. (c/o Sports Illustrated)
One last thing before the Youtube portion, I think Darren Rovell of CNBC said it best, imagine if Steve Bartman occured during the era of Twitter. The poor Louisville cheerleader got it bad on the interwebs.
Fire Quinito asked a series of true or false questions regarding the Commissioner's Cup that just commenced in Laoag, and whose next game will be later this week. This is my take on the questions:
Smart Gilas will win more than half their games in the tournament
Not really, but they'll definitely have a better record than Powerade or Air 21.
Rain or Shine’s Hassan Adams will win the best import award.
Somehow, my instinct tells me Gabe Freeman will be back in the PBA soon.
The Powerade Tigers will end the tournament in last place.
Hard to argue on this one.
Air 21’s Rabeh Al-Hussaini will lead all locals in scoring in the tournament.
Still think James Yap or MacMac finishes on top of local scoring charts. And with the news that he's moving on to another team, he's going to be sharing the load.
Willie Miller will start most of the games for Ginebra.
I think Coach Jong has set the rotation in place. Besides, I think Mark likes coming off the bench, as long as he gets crunch time minutes.
Either Hans Thiele or Paolo Bugia will become regular members of the Alaska rotation.
Maybe Thiele, probably not Bugia. Reynel was their garbage guy. Hans can easily replace him there.
Sol Mercado will struggle to fit in alongside Mac Cardona and Chris Ross in the Meralco backcourt.
I think he'll be fine. That's a good three-guard rotation.
Kerby Raymundo will regain his all-star form for the Derby Ace Llamados.
Nope. Not this year. Let the guy rest and recuperate.
Jay Washington will win his third straight best player of the conference award.
Provided he gets far in the playoffs. Then again, I expect someone from TNT to take the trophy.
Talk N Text will make it to the finals of the Commissioner’s Cup.
It could happen again. They have the local talent and a good import in Paul Harris.
The trade deadline has always been the talk after the All-Star Game. It makes good cooler talk and write-up material. I may not be as good as some people who have done their homework, but hey, I give some effort, too. This year has been a very juicy one, thanks to the Melodrama and post-Lebron era and the possibility of the lockout.
Here are all the deals that were consummated this week, added with my own take on the trade:
The Toronto Raptors acquire James Johnson from the Chicago Bulls for a 2011 1st round pick previously owned by the Miami Heat.
Chicago needed to clear room on their roster in any case that they were able to secure any sort of an upgrade over Keith Bogans. Unfortunately, they were not able to find a way to get one, but they already held a tryout of four D-League guys, of which, they will choose one.
The New York Knicks acquire Carmelo Anthony, Chauncey Billups, Renaldo Balkman, Corey Brewer, Anthony Carter, Shelden Williams; while the Denver Nuggets acquire Wilson Chandler, Raymond Felton, Danilo Gallinari, Kosta Koufos, Timofey Mozgov, a 2014 1st round pick of the New York Knicks, second round picks in 2012 and 2013 previously owned by Golden State and $3 million cash. At the same time, the Minnesota Timberwolves secure $3 million in cash, Eddy Curry and Anthony Randolph.
I believe we have covered this one already. Ewing theory alert for the Nuggets.
The New Jersey Nets acquire Deron Williams from the Utah Jazz for cash, Derrick Favors, Devin Harris, a 2011 1st round pick and a 2012 1st round pick previously owned by Golden State.
Someone already did his take. Mine is, the Russian Mark Cuban needed to make a move to build something for Brooklyn. Although the tweetstream showed a little disappointment in Deron during the press conference. You heard it here first, AK-47 will be signing with NJ in the offseason.
The New Orleans Hornets acquire Carl Landry from the Sacramento Kings for Marcus Thornton and cash.
I have no idea why it's only Marcus Thornton, because it originally had David Andersen. Apparently, the Maloofs' need the cash more to position for them to be called the Los Angeles Kings of Anaheim. Landry becomes their version of Big Baby, a solid off-the-bench offensive threat. With Tyreke on the mend, Marcus can be plugged in easily.
The New Jersey Nets acquire Brandan Wright and Dan Gadzuric from the Golden State Warriors for Troy Murphy and a 2012 2nd round pick.
Golden State has already made it known that they don't need him. This was a cap clearing move, because both Wright and Gadzuric are expirings.
The Atlanta Hawks acquire Kirk Hinrich and Hilton Armstrong from the Washington Wizards for Mike Bibby, Jordan Crawford, Maurice Evans and a 2011 1st round pick.
Someone already gave his two cents. Mine is, Hinrich is a better upgrade over Bibby and buys them a little more time with the development of Jeff Teague. Hilton provides size, and that's pretty much it. As for the Wiz, they're pretty much shuffling the deck. Bibby might be an interesting veteran waiver piece should the possibility present itself.
The Cleveland Cavaliers acquire Baron Davis and a 2011 1st round pick from the Los Angeles Clippers for Mo Williams and Jamario Moon.
Baron Davis reunites with Byron Scott, his former coach in Nawlins. As The Sports Guy tweeted, this clears the decks for 2012 for a FA that will not come. This will be the attempt to build something around Eric Gordon and Blake Griffin. We sorely needed a small forward and hopefully Jamario fits the bill. Clippers think they do not need an additional kid on a roster whose stars are all kids (Bledsoe, Gordon, Aminu, Griffin and Jordan are all below 23). This move also ensure that the Minny pick in 2012 will not be going anywhere. Personally, it's sad to see him go, but in order for the evolution to proceed, he has to leave.
The Oklahoma City Thunder acquire Kendrick Perkins and Nate Robinson from the Boston Celtics for Jeff Green, Nenad Krstic and a 2012 first round pick previously owned by the Los Angeles Clippers.
Not surprised with this deal. The Boston vets were not pleased, but with this move, Ainge will probably be setting the table for the Big Baby extension (the frontrunner for the Sixth Man of the Year). Sam Presti must have watched the final seconds of their game against San Antonio to do this move. If you watched that endgame sequence, you'll get what I am saying. Kendrick will be providing the muscle and matching smirk for the Thunder.
The Cleveland Cavaliers acquire Semih Erden and Luke Harangody from the Boston Celtics for a 2013 2nd round pick previously owned by Minnesota.
Celtics aim to recapture their late-season magic of 2008 again. They freed up space to sign somebody, preferably someone big. (I'm looking at you, Troy Murphy) As a consequence (because they had 16 players), Cleveland waived Leon Powe, who in any minute now will be returning to the Garden.
The Memphis Grizzlies acquire Shane Battier and Ish Smith from the Houston Rockets for Demarre Carroll, Hashim Thabeet and future 1st round pick.
Thabeet needs a fresh start. Houston's been getting by with a 6'6" Center. They need size with Yao out. They nab a pick in the process and also get another athletic figure in Carroll. Battier is precisely what the Grizzlies need, a veteran who will do anything asked with full effort and accountability. Heisley thinks they are a playoff team, so they're making a move to ensure they get the remaining openings available. Hopefully his presence can smooth over any differences, especially since Indiana decided to hold the Mayo.
The Oklahoma City Thunder acquire Nazr Mohammed from the Charlotte Bobcats for Morris Peterson and DJ White.
If Kendrick Perkins was not enough, Nazr Mohammed is insurance. They just became more physical, tougher and even more dangerous. And they did not really give up much. The Bobcats are shedding salary, which will be more apparent below.
The Phoenix Suns acquire Aaron Brooks from the Houston Rockets for Goran Dragic and a future 1st round pick.
Typical Sarver move, trading away draft picks and staying cost-conscious. Brooks now becomes the latest baller to be named as the successor to Steve Nash. With his skills, he might be able to replicate the success of SSOL Leandrinho Barbosa. This probably also frees up minutes for Kyle Lowry, who has played well as of late.
The Portland Trailblazers acquire Gerald Wallace from the Charlotte Bobcats for Dante Cunningham, Sean Marks, Joel Przybilla, a 2011 1st round pick previously owned by New Orleans, a 2013 1st round pick and cash.
Obviously, the Bobcats are in shedding salary mode by "giving away" Crash to a Portland team that is going to be one lean mean athletic defensive unit with Marcus Camby and Wes Matthews and a promising Nic Batum. To fit the current roster, Charlotte waived Derrick Brown, Sherron Collins and Dominic McGuire. Sean Marks was waived because technically, they have no use for him.
The Sacramento Kings acquire Marquis Daniels and cash from the Boston Celtics for a 2017 second round pick.
The NBA asks teams to have a salary floor. The Kings were below it. At the same time, Boston needed to clear room for their veteran waiver targets. They needed Marquis to sign off on this deal, which they did. Considering that he might be out for the season, this is purely meh.
FYI to part, Here is the Carmelo intro in his first game as a Knickerbocker
Finally, the Carmelo drama is over. Now, the NBA can proceed with dealing what they need to deal, because the trade deadline has been. As what someone wrote, the new era has arrived. The player power play. Something that Lebron brought to new heights, thanks or no thanks to his decision. Now we look at the two point guards in Chris Paul and Deron Williams and Dwight Howard for speculation.
So, let's fillet the deal...
Denver gets: $3 million in cash, Wilson Chandler, Danilo Gallinari, Raymond Felton and Timofey Mozgov, the Knicks' 2014 first rounder, Golden State's second rounder for 2012 and 2013 that was acquired via David Lee. Raymond Felton gets to be with the man who succeeded him in Chapel Hill. JR Smith on-a-contract-year goes on overdrive. Yes, they lost Melo, but they have decent talent around. Expect a dogfight for the bottom two spots between them, Memphis, Portland, Phoenix and Golden State. Oh, and I expect more trade offers being fielded to Masai Ujiri in a matter of days.
Probable Rotation: Raymond Felton, Arron Afflalo, Danilo Gallinari, Kenyon Martin, Nene, Ty Lawson, JR Smith, Wilson Chandler, Chris Andersen, Timofey Mozgov.
Minnesota gets: $3 million cash, Eddy Curry and Anthony Randolph. Kahn throws a bone to his buddy Donnie Walsh. Both players need a change of scenery (but speculations are rife with Eddy Curry buyout rumors). With Minny going nowhere, he'll be playing a lot. But as a Clipper fan, as long as they stink, the 1st rounder we have acquired from them is gold.
Probable Rotation - Luke Ridnour, Jonny Flynn, Kevin Love, Michael Beasley, Darko Milicic, Anthony Tolliver, Anthony Randolph and someone from the cesspool of Lazar Heyward, Martell Webster and Wayne Ellington.
New York gets: Carmelo Anthony, Chauncey Billups, Anthony Carter, Renaldo Balkman, Shelden Williams and Corey Brewer. Sure, they gave up a lot for Carmelo, but they did not really have a choice because of their assets. They're definitely thin up front, so they might try to look for a back-up big to bolster a small unit. They have a glut of guards and small wings that they can use as trade bait.
Welcome to today's edition of The Victory Formation.
The previous weekend has been dubbed as the welcome to the Blake Griffin Experience. He played in the Rookie-Sophomore Game, with his team winning and John Wall being named as the MVP. We all know the Dunk Contest. And of course, he is the first rookie after Tim Duncan to be selected by the reserves. Naturally, being a first-timer, he got limited minutes.
So, let me use this to give my own personal viewpoint and assessment of the past few days:
Rookie-Sophomore Game: Dejuan Blair does not need ACLs to fly. Budenholzer has a sense of humor like Pop.
Celebrity Game: Apparently, fans did not allow someone to screw over Justin Bieber again, even if it was in a losing cause.
Shooting Stars: The mantra of "Beat Kenny" was enough as Team Atlanta eases out the champs as the Texans could not make any of their midcourt tries.
Skills Challenge: Stephen Curry wins it. He's wicked quick. Terribly disappointed though with Derrick Rose coasting during his run.
Three-Point Shootout: Finally, Miami beats Boston, as James Jones (also known as Reggie Miller's apprentice) beat out both Jesus Shuttlesworth and the self-proclaimed best shooter in the world.
Dunk Contest: Best field to compete in years. The creativity was awesome. I personally want all four of them back in Orlando for a rematch. Kenny Smith is a preacher man.
The Game itself: Hey, Kobe was on a Wilt-like scoring record pace, but Kevin Durant scored probably the quietest 34 pts in an All-Star game. In the end, Kobe ties Bob Petit with his 4th All-Star Game MVP. Lebron secures the 2nd triple-double in the Game's history.
Sidelights: Loved the musical intros. Kudos to TNT for stuff like these:
Hereforth are the links:
It's not a good idea to stir debate on a topic like this when you yourself admit that you lack certain aspects. (c/o National Football Post via Yahoo)
Regrets, yes, I have had a few - David Stern. (c/o Seattle Post-Intelligencer)
Jim Gray gets himself involved again. (c/o USA Today)
The 70s represented the psychedelic era. Obviously, with the fashion tastes, must be prevalent. (c/o Sports Illustrated)
In order to keep this guy (c/o Colts Chronicle), Indianapolis has to release this guy. (c/o Indianapolis Star)
Basketball Hall of Fame Finalists named (c/o International Business Times). Don't worry, Reggie. You'll get in eventually. (c/o Dime Magazine)
Why the Knicks should or should not go for Carmelo? (c/o Hoopsworld)
Los Angeles Kings of Anaheim? (c/ o Los Angeles Times)
Need a bat? Well, whilst pitchers and catchers report? In India, it is in full swing. (c/o Cricket World)
Gary Bettman wants a new arena for Edmonton. (c/o Toronto Sun)
Heritage Classic was a success for the Flames. (c/o Calgary Herald)
The Motherland caught between football and basketball. Can't they all get along? Or maybe a reality check. (c/0 Fire Quinito)
The Filipino Flash can knock you silly. (c/o Fire Quinito)
Stu Holden > Clint Dempsey in the FA Cup. (c/o The Sun)
Trevor Bayne won the Daytona 500. Trevor who? (c/o Washington Post)
NASCAR must know something is afoot with its Daytona scheduling. (c/o Fox News)
General Greivis gets his jersey retired. (c/o San Francisco Chronicle)
Who's #1 now? Both the Longhorns (c/o SB Nation Kansas City) and the Buckeyes got beat (c/o Fort Wayne Journal Gazette). The Blue Devils escape the axe, however.
You're a New York City, boy... Where St. John's Basketball is rockin' (c/o Sportsrageous)
Wassup people and welcome to today's edition of the Victory Formation!
I would like to wish everyone here a Happy Valentine's Day or for some like me, Happy Singles' Awareness Day. I mean, my own personal lovelife has been elusive and it can be a pain, so sometimes, one just has to continue and just wait for the right girl to come and sweep me off my feet and let me sweep her off hers.
You're probably wondering where I got my picture for today. Well, I spent 40 hours in a place called Bacolod to watch a football qualifying match for the first time. I was holed up there from February 8 to 10.
You see, the Philippines is now basking in football glow. We have been pretty much down in the doldrums, being the whipping boys over the years for this sport. Not only that, they have been pretty much ignored. But then, the 2010 Suzuki Cup happened. We made it all the way to the semifinals, losing to the eventual champions Indonesia, but made a good account of themselves.
With the newfound fame, the Azkals (the team's monicker, which is a colloquialism to askals when translated means street dogs) aimed to capitalize that with the next step, qualifying for the AFC Challenge Cup. (c/o Fire Quinito) Being on a home-and-away format, the only place that can currently handle a match like this is the Panaad Stadium (c/o Wikipedia) in Bacolod. Thus the reason why I flew down there. (spending slightly over US $50 for a plane ticket (inclusive of taxes) & spending a total of US $75 for my whole stay in Bacolod.)
Hey, it was worth it. It really was. See below. (c/o Philippine Star)
Here are the links to love! (Note: you can always tweet me @misterjpmanahan if you have links for me to use.)
Has been a tough year for the Redskins, and you can add their best offensive weapon to the victims. (c/o SB Nation DC)
Jerry Gray is back in the NFL, after a month. (c/o Dallas Morning News)
The old guys are still better than the young guns. (c/o Celticsblog)
The Cavs ended two streaks the past few days. Theirs (c/o ProBasketball Talk) and the Wizards' (c/o the Washington Post).
Lebron needs to have his kids around all the time, then? (c/o SportsGrid)
Ford wants to show the world that there is only one thing that comes to mind with the F-150. (c/o Ford Muscle)
The Glazers and Qatar both benefitting from the Manchester United buzz.(c/o Telegraph)
Wayne Rooney wants to ride a bicycle. And he did it in style. (c/o Huffington Post)
West Ham gets to keep the 2012 London Olympic Stadium. (c/o Forbes)
Can Roy Hodgson save the Baggies from the drop? (c/o Mirror Football)
The leading goal scorer in World Cup history has announced his retirement. (c/0 Bloomberg)
America, you ready for Pacquiao on free TV? (c/o Boxing Scene) He's also rockin' the Bieb do, also (c/o Fanhouse). Here are some more quotes. (c/o Fight News)
Toronto fans must be giddy for this as practice if they want to engage Chris Bosh for screwing with them. (c/o Inside Fights)
End of an era for the MMA Legend known as the Last Emperor? (c/o Baltimore Sun)
To end this day, here is a new long song. Also serves as a LSS.
Hey, I was in the minority with regards to the Black Eyed Peas performance. Not necessarily because I like the group (feel free to lambaste me for such), but mainly due to the fact that the sound technicians botched this one, like pretty much how this year has been for Jerry Jones and Jerryworld. What we all can agree on is to how the hell Alex Rodriguez tried to steal the show again for a brief moment?
As I promised, here forth are the non-Super Bowl related links:
Kevin Love is Yao's injury replacement, (c/o ProBasketballTalk) which leaves LaMarcus Aldridge out. (c/o The Oregonian)
Gilbert Arenas got served in Orlando. (c/o Afro-American)
Here's the latest on Marquis Daniels. (c/o The Patriot Ledger)
Amar'e sizzles (c/o The Epoch Times), but not as much as the latest Melo rumor. (c/o HoopsWorld)
The 411 on the Madoff-Mets mess. This could possibly be the reason why Alderson left MLB for the Mets. He could Bud's eyes on the team. (c/o The Wall Street Journal)
Welcome to today's edition of The Victory Formation. Congratulations to the Green Bay Packers
I am sure everyone remembered about last night, so, let's go straight to the links (all-Super Bowl edition, the non-Super Bowl links will be in another post today):
Yup. Green Bay won the Super Bowl. (c/o Green Bay Press Gazette)
Aaron Rodgers wins MVP (c/o USA Today) and probably is one lucky guy, too. (c/o GossipCop)
Jordy Nelson smashed a very very old Super Bowl record for Green Bay. (c/o Austin American-Statesman)
Clay Matthews finally gets what is due on behalf of his great clan. (c/o NFL)
Guess who is coming to Wisconsin this week. (c/o Miami Herald)
Well, I thought it was only here in the Motherland that just had issues with the singing of the National Anthem. (c/o The Guardian)
Has been a tough week for Jerry Jones and the handling of the Super Bowl. This ices it. (c/o Detroit Free Press) Might be appropriate that he failed to break the record considering the zeal he had. (c/o Fox Sports Southwest)
The Black Eyed Peas performed at halftime. (c/o Los Angeles Times) And elicited different reactions. (c/o the New York Times). Quite simply, Pat and Big D simply encapsulated it with a response to what I thought were mic issues: The mic issues are the fact that they are on.
The commercials this year is said to be disappointing. (c/o New York Daily News) Feel free to make your own opinions after seeing them all here. (c/o Youtube)
To end today, The Lombardi Trophy's singing this particular song, as it returns to Titletown, USA.
Okay, I know some people grow sick and tired of talking about the Heat, because they really do make an interesting storyline for the whole year. However, after what most saw during the game (it was shown on BTV), and from reading the tweet streams and tweet conversations after the game(s), color the world impressed with the Stud-worthy statline.
What the King pulled off against the Magic was definitely an impressive feat in itself. He started off like a house on fire, making his first 11 attempts.
Then, with Wade getting beaten up and Bosh not really being a factor, Lebron just went on and on.
I still think Derrick Rose is the front runner for the MVP, but Lebron is really making a creditable chase for it even with he and Dwayne Wade putting up pretty much the same numbers as what they had last year.
Other than Tracy Morgan's moment (and TNT's subsequent apology), the highlight of last week's pregame was the naming of the All-Stars Starters (which are voted on by the fans) for both conferences.
The Coaches will dictate who will comprise the reserves. Each coach, however, cannot vote for his own players. Now each coach can be creative in designating positions, because there is a need to have at least one "Center" on the roster.
In the West, these are the starters:
Guard - Chris Paul (New Orleans Hornets)
Guard - Kobe Bryant (Los Angeles Lakers)
Forward - Kevin Durant (Oklahoma City Thunder)
Forward - Carmelo Anthony (Denver Nuggets)
Center - Yao Ming (Houston Rockets)
If I were a part of a NBA Coaching Staff, the following would comprise my choices for the West All-Star Reserves:
1. Dirk Nowitzki (Dallas Mavericks) - 3rd in the balloting among forwards this year.
2-3. Manu Ginobili and Tim Duncan (San Antonio Spurs) - The Spurs are the best team in the league.
4. Pau Gasol (Los Angeles Lakers) - Carried the team while Kobe paced his way through the early part of the season.
5. Russell Westbrook (Oklahoma City Thunder) - If he elevated his game in the playoffs last year, he raised it to another level this season.
6. Deron Williams (Utah Jazz) - If CP3 is here, D-Will has to be here. He's on the pine, so there might be a possibility of an opening for someone.
7. Blake Griffin (Los Angeles Clippers) - At this point, we can no longer ignore his impact anymore. This is meant to be HIS weekend.
Injury replacement for Yao Ming
Kevin Love (Minnesota Timberwolves) - As much as they are facing the wrath of Kaaaaaaaaahhhhhhnnnnnn, it is really hard to ignore the numbers and that double-double streak of his.
Close calls:
Big Men: Rudy Gay and Zach Randolph (Memphis Grizzlies) , LaMarcus Aldridge (Portland Trailblazers), Luis Scola (Houston Rockets), Paul Millsap (Utah Jazz),
Guards: Monta Ellis (Golden State Warriors), Tony Parker (San Antonio Spurs), Steve Nash (Phoenix Suns), Chauncey Billups (Denver Nuggets), Eric Gordon (Los Angeles Clippers)
The West is really loaded. So loaded, I can name a 2nd All-Star team from the snubs. That's why the Yao scenario provided a break which the NBA could plug someone in.
Other than Tracy Morgan's moment (and TNT's subsequent apology), the highlight of last week's pregame was the naming of the All-Stars Starters (which are voted on by the fans) for both conferences.
The Coaches will dictate who will comprise the reserves. Each coach, however, cannot vote for his own players. Now each coach can be creative in designating positions, because there is a need to have at least one "Center" on the roster.
In the East, these are the starters:
Guard - Derrick Rose (Chicago Bulls)
Guard - Dwayne Wade (Miami Heat)
Forward - Lebron James (Miami Heat)
Forward - Amar'e Stoudemire (New York Knicks)
Center - Dwight Howard (Orlando Magic)
If I were a part of a NBA Coaching Staff, the following would be my choices for the East All-Star Reserves
1 -4. Rajon Rondo, Paul Pierce, Ray Allen and Kevin Garnett (Boston Celtics). The Celtics own the best record of the East.
5. Chris Bosh (Miami Heat) - If the four of Boston gets in, the three in South Beach likewise gets in.
6-7. Josh Smith & Joe Johnson (Atlanta Hawks) - J-Smooth deserves to get in at this point. He's been phenomenal.
Close calls:
Big Men: Gerald Wallace (Charlotte Bobcats), Al Horford (Atlanta Hawks), Danny Granger (Indiana Pacers), Andrew Bogut (Milwaukee Bucks)
Guards: Raymond Felton (New York Knicks)
If you notice, only six teams from the East are represented. It is also not a coincidence that those are the same six teams that are the virtual locks to make the playoffs. Just goes to show that the deep gulf still exists in that side of the Association.
A week from now, I will be on my way to the Ninoy Aquino International Airport, on a flight down south, to a place called Bacolod. It will be a very brief stay, less than 40 hours in the land of the Masskara. I will be there for one purpose really, and that is to watch a football game in person.
I did manage to catch 2 practices at the University of Makati, although I missed seeing the men's team do their drills the first time. Plus, it rained like crazy. But one thing for sure, there were a lot of interested people observing the activities, from the University students to the media to even "fan girls" and of course, the rabid fans of the sport of football.
I do encourage you to go watch the game on Studio 23 on February 9 against Mongolia. Cheer on our fellow countrymen as they play for our flag, in the pitch of Panaad in Bacolod City.
