THE CEBU International School (CIS) is ready to defend its turf as it host the second tournament of this year’s International Schools Athletic Conference (Isac) starting today.

Seven other schools will be also coming for the boy’s football and girl’s high school basketball, which will be played over the weekends.

This is the second tournament, and the Isac season closes out this March with girl’s football and boy’s basketball in Baguio City. Each school earn points in every tournament, which are then added after the final event to determine the over-all title holder.

Last year, CIS tied Brent Laguna for the over-all title, despite having a fraction of Brent’s population.

Other schools joining the three-day event are European International School, Southvile IS, Brent South, Brent Bagiou, Brent Subic, Brent Laguna, Mindanao First Christian Academy, and British School Manila.

“Actually, I expect us to perform better this year, the kids are a year smarter and older,” CIS athletic director Brian Bedford said.

Expected to banner the CIS boys football team are Michael Sharpe, Red Miguel and Paolo Cases, who also play for San Roque FC in the Aboitiz Men’s League Div. B, while Mara Reina will trade her football cleats for her sneakers as she joins the girl’s basketball team.

The CIS boys are also fresh from winning the Boys 17 football crown in the Thirsty Cup last Jan. 8, capping a string of four straight Boys 17 titles in Cebu.

“I expect the boys to win the football event while I expect the girls to place with in the top three,” Bedford said.

Former national team member and Tiger Cup veteran Joshua Fegidero of Bacolod will handle the coaching duties for the team.

MIFFED by the Cebu Football Association’s (CebuFA) decision to bar them form playing in the Philippine Football Federation regional eliminations, Aboitiz League Division A champion Hiroshi FC will no longer join any CebuFA-sanctioned tournament the rest of the year.

Aside from its senior’s team, some of whose players got into a fight with Crazy Horse in the Thirsty Cup, Hiroshi also has a 35-above team, and youth teams as young as 10-under.

“Hiroshi FC will not join any CebuFA-sanctioned tournament this year in all age categories. HFC is composed of more or less 150 players,” read a text message from Hiroshi goalkeeper Frederick Alazas.

Asked for comment, CebuFA president Jonathan Maximo said, “I refuse to comment on that until CebuFA will receive an official letter from them. They have a team in Red Ribbon that will play this Saturday.”

Alazas also confirmed they have a team for the Red Ribbon, and that the kids have appealed the decision not to join any CebuFA tournament. They will discuss the issue with the kids today.

If Hiroshi pushes through with its plan, it may not be able to defend all of its seven titles it won last year, including the inaugural Aboitiz League Division A.

It also won the Cebu International School Cup and the Cebu Inter-Club Invitational last summer.

After the Thirsty Cup brawl, four Hiroshi players got banned for a year, while two others in its team got a two-year ban, for getting involved in their second brawl.

Last year, they were involved in a similar incident in the Aboitiz Champions League final, but they were allowed to leave and play in the regional eliminations.

HIROSHI FC had its appeal to play in the Philippine Football Federation regional eliminations this weekend denied by the Cebu Football Association (CebuFA) disciplinary committee.

The board met last night to discuss the appeal of Hiroshi, which got punished for its involvement in a brawl last Jan. 8 in the Thirsty Cup semifinal round.

Though disciplinary committee chairman Mark Bretherton is set to issue an official statement, Sun.Star Cebu learned of the decision from Frederick Alazas, Hiroshi FC’s goalkeeper.

“The board has decided to maintain the original decision. Hiroshi will not play in the PFF regional games, thank you for your inputs. We sincerely hope you will maintain your interest in football,” said a text message forwarded by Alazas to Sun.Star. Alazas said the text message was from Bretherton.

Even if it asks for another reconsideration, time is running out for Hiroshi as the regional elimination starts on Friday.

After the Thirsty Cup brawl, which involved Hiroshi and Crazy Horse FC, the CebuFA board suspended four Hiroshi players for a year and also meted out a two-year ban on two players, aside from preventing Hiroshi to play in the regional.

Hiroshi earned the right to represent Cebu in the regional elimination after topping the Aboitiz League last December, ahead of first runner-up Crazy Horse FC, which was also barred from joining the regional games.

The University of San Jose-Recoletos Alumni, which placed third in the Aboitiz League, will represent Cebu in Dumaguete.

Hiroshi coach Eddie Buot told Sun.Star in an interview they have accepted the players’ punishment but called the additional punishment on Hiroshi as an “overkill.”

“All this time, we were looking forward to play in the regional finals,” said Alazas, who did not take part in the brawl as an injury early in the Thirsty Cup placed the former national youth team member on wheelchair.

“I informed (CebuFA board member) Jackie (Lotzoff) that this will greatly hurt the team,” said Alazas. “It’s such a waste since the team has been preparing hard for the regional games.”

*(been meaning to post this one, never found the time)

IT was a sight I have never seen, a sight, I long to see again.

Twenty thousand football fans (30,000 by some estimates) screaming till they can
scream no more.

Chanting.

Cheering.

Shouting.

As one.

For that 90 minutes, nobody cared about Garci, nobody cared about the stupid squabbles up north.

We were winning, 4-2, against Cambodia.

Before the Southeast Asian Games (Seag), the most I’ve seen at a football match was two hundred. During the Seag, there were probably hundreds crammed at the gates, stretching their necks to see the action. People climbed trees, fire trucks and the gates itself to see action. That’s how jampacked the stadium was that day, Nov. 25, 2004.

It was a day, I stopped becoming a sportswriter.

Getting assigned to cover football in the Seag was a dream come true. It was akin to a politician, getting the key to the national bank, or Michael Jackson, getting the key to the Fountain of Youth.

During the first match of the Philippines — named the Askals owing to the scraps it gets as support from the government – I had difficulty taking down notes.

During that Cambodia game, I couldn’t. My hands were shaking before the game started and taking down notes was impossible. Still, I can still recall every minute of that game – except for the times that I was screaming or cursing that referee.

We were so crammed in the stadium that the area for the media was occupied by the fans. Still, it didn’t bother me, so much the better to be beside rabid fans.

Some of my colleagues cried foul though, calling the organizers that the media area was being overrun. I didn’t mind them. These primadonnas who never cared about football before the Seag – and who wouldn’t write about it if not for a brief visit by Ninoy Aquino or Tito Vic and Joey in their pockets – didn’t deserve special treatment. The fans deserve special treatment.

When Cambodia leveled the match at 2-all with less than 10 minutes to go – we were silent. But we all knew we would win. I knew that. Every fan knew that.

And so we did. Philip Greatwitch, a Filipino-Brit, scored the go ahead goal with four minutes to play – pandemonium in the stands was an understatement. Then a home-based player, Emilio Caligdong, capped the night with a lovelier goal – a chip just inside the box, in the 90th minute, and everybody’s chants and screams was drowned by the person next to you.

I remembered saying, “It couldn’t get better than this.”

After the final whistle, the players ran to the stands, while one grabbed a flag and run with it — it is a sight that you just can’t put into words.

It is a sight to behold, that night, we were one.

That night, everything seemed possible.

THEY were playing a crucial match and won easily, 7-1, but yesterday, the only thing in the minds of the San Roque FC players when they played FC Inter Cebu was this — did Manny Pacquiao win?

Out of the 25 players in their squad, only 13 showed up for the match.

Ang uban nagpabilin, nagtanaw Manny,” said Eleazar Toledo, who scored a goal yesterday but made a bigger killing on the fight, winning P5000 on bets.

Worse, one of their defender abandoned his position in the middle of the game, to get updates on the Pacquiao fight. SRFC player Paolo Cases’s dad brought a radio with him in the match.

“Murag amaw, mugawas sa field, gi-biyaan jud ang iyang posisyon kay nangita’g update,” Toledo said.

Other scorers in their game were Anthony Colina (19th), Romeo Bordador (22nd), Darwin Bordalba (26th), Berto Eco (67th), Jovie Bordalba (88th) and John Mayol (89th)

It was the same problem for Queen City United, which defeated Metropolitan 4-2, though coach Mario Ceniza isn’t sure if Pacquiao is the reason.

“Out of 24, only 17 showed up, we missed most of our starters,” Ceniza said, “some of our players are also injured, so I’m not sure if its because of the fight.”

Levi Bajarias scored first for Queen City in the 13th before Rene Inoc leveled the count a minute later and Ronald Loayon made it 2-1 for Metropolitan in the 23rd.

Rey Baring leveled the count in the 69th before Dexter Arrojado scored two late goals in the 86th and 87th for their fourth win in five games.

Meanwhile in the first game, three Cebu State College of Science and Technology scored a hat trick for their 12-1 win over FC inter Lapu-lapu. Jun Clark Lacia, Randy Vercide, and Romel Justo Rameo Vercide scored thrice whileJoseph Omiping had two in their easy rout.

The three clubs win also complicated the standings as the three and Wilde Cebu are now in contention for the top two spots in the Division with either a 4-1 or 3-1 card.

The top two teams in the Division will be promoted to Div. A to replace bottom two, Danao FC and Juvio Magone.ML

WHEN 22-year-old Joanne Lardizabal Ignacio started playing football, on the prodding of a PE instructor at UP Manila in early 2001, someone told her to pick up another sport, saying she was “too lampa to be good at the game.”

Fast forward a few years later, Ignacio, who has a BA Broadcast Communication (cum laude mind you) degree at UP Diliman, got her sweetest revenge, the obnoxious futbolero had to give her the trophy for winning the MVP award in a tournament.

Still, success didn’t come easy for Ignacio, as once in a football game, the ref stopped her – pointing to her watch.

“I guess I wasn’t paying enough attention - I thought he was asking for the time! So I told him what time it was, and then everyone started laughing! Turns out he was telling me to take my watch off before he resumed the game,” she said.

At 5-foot-4, Ignacio played all positions in the game except tending the goal – the changes due to her fast improvements in the game (for those who ever entertained such position-intellect theories, here is your proof)

She started as a defender (dumb ones they all are, ey?) “then I became a sweeper when my long balls improved” (kick, aim later) but “when my long balls improved (she could now aim at someone) I became a midfielder.

Best part. “Then right midfielder when I could dribble a bit. I now play center forward or right wing”, depending on the composition of the team. (Of course, every one on a football team knows that the strikers are the prima donnas of the team)

After finishing her degree at UP last April 2005 (why do they always hold their graduations on April?), she now plays once or twice a week, but makes sure to juggle for an hour every day, aside from her daily weight routine.

“To add power to my shots,” Ignacio says.

Pity the poor keeper who stands between her and the goal.

Aside from the football jaunts in crowded Metro Manila, she has been to Laguna for the Labay Cup and Dumaguete for the University games but added: “I went there train with/support my UP Dil teammates, I didn’t play in the actual tournament.”

Right now, Ignacio is on the verge of getting a hosting job at Game Plan, something we futboleros and junkies out there have been wanting for a long time – someone who knows, love, and play the game – to replace those pretty-faces-but-don’t-know-a-thing-about-sports.

Football, could get its much needed mileage when she gets the job, so, let’s help a fellow football fan.

She needs our help, vote for her, here’s how:text (left bracket) GP REACT JOANNE (right bracket) to 2331 for globe/sun and 231 for smart/talkntext/addict mobile =)

people for more details on how to vote for joane click the link below.It seems the template doesnt allow the use of the bracket symbol…hence the words above

http://www.philfootball.info/forum/index.php?a=topic&t=344

THE CEBU Football Association Disciplinary Committee is set to meet with Hiroshi and Crazy Horse officials regarding their recent sanctions after the two teams got into a brawl in the Thirsty Cup Men’s Open semifinal round last Jan. 8.

“I expect they will also bring their appeal with them,” CebuFA president Jonathan Maximo said, “I will just let Mark Bretherton (Disciplinary Committee chairman) preside over the meeting.”

In their decision last week, the CebuFA said “team officials, manager, coach and captain from both clubs are to be summoned to a meeting with the CebuFA shortly. The CebuFA is to appeal to both teams for a better level of sportsmanship and goodwill during all future football tournaments. Both teams will be expected to sign an agreement that states future repetition of “free for all” situations by any team will result in a lifetime ban for the club concerned and the players involved.”

On the other hand, Hiroshi FC head coach Eddie Buot and team owner Harou Iwanaga are expected to appeal the board decision, barring them from the Philippine Football Federation regional eliminations set Jan 27-29 in Dumaguete City.

Aside from suspension on their six players, Hiroshi also got barred from playing in the regional finals, a decision Buot calls as “overkill.”

“This (board meeting) is a good development,” Buot said, “basi pareha napud ni sa una nga last minute ma-iron out.”

Last year, after Hiroshi got into a brawl with Exas in the final of the Aboitiz League final, they also had a meeting with the CebuFA the night before they were set to leave for the regional finals.

Meanwhile, Hiroshi goalkeeper, Frederick Alazas, who was on a wheel chair nursing an injury at the time of the brawl, lamented the CebuFA’s failure to hand them a copy of their suspension.

“We need the papers so we could act on our appeal,” said Alazas.

THE Cebu Football Association (CebuFA) has moved the Red Ribbon Under-14 tournament from today to Jan. 28 due to the unavailability of the players in the nine-team event.

“Four schools begged off because they are having exams,” CebuFA president Jonathan Maximo said yesterday.

The postponement was agreed during the team managers’ meeting Thursday night, when the draw for the tournament was held.

The teams are divided into three brackets with defending champion, Paref Springdale, and favorites Hiroshi and Don Bosco College, spread in the three groups. The top team in each group plus the best second placer will play in the semifinal round.

To add flavor to the event, which the CebuFA will use as its talent-identification program for the Cebu City team in the International Children’s Games in July, individual awards will be given.

They will hand out the Most Valuable Player, Best Striker, Best Defender, Best Midfielder and Best Goalkeeper awards at the end of the tournament.

Meanwhile, after the Cebu leg, a national Red Ribbon Festival is being proposed in Manila at the end of March.

“This is still a proposal and it will only be a seven-a-side festival type because of budgetary constraints,” Maximo said.

If it pushes through, the teams will have to shoulder their transportation and accommodation.

Paging mr Jonathan Maximo…daghan nag request foto sa imong PaBol girls..hehehe

ONE of the biggest casualties in the Thirsty Cup brawl between Hiroshi FC and Crazy Horse FC is Joshua Fegidero, one of Bacolod City’s most loved football sons.

Fegidero, a product of West Negros College and former national team player, got a one-year ban for his part in the brawl, and the news has also hit his home city.

Fegidero, along with teammates Gary Panagsagan, Francis Parampan and Hiroshi’s Harold Buot, Richard Romero and Rommel Cuizon got suspended for a year, while Ariel Cahilig and Vermonel Resuena got two-year suspensions.

The Crazy Horse striker said they were just forced to retaliate during the brawl because they were the ones attacked.

“I pulled Gary (Panagsagan) aside to protect him and backed away from them. I backed away too far that from Pitch 3, we reached Pitch 1,” said Fegidero.

Fegidero plans to appeal the one-year suspension.

“Sayang, I can’t play in the Aboitiz League, and then there’s a coming tournament in San Roque. I can’t play anywhere else because of this,” he said.

Meanwhile, the suspension has reached Bacolod and the “City of Smiles” isn’t happy.

“When I told the USLS coach about it, he was shocked. He asked ‘What? What for?’” said Anthony Joseph Ascalon, a football fan in Bacolod City.

Fegidero was invited to join University of St La Salle (USLS) in representing Bacolod City in the Philippine Football Federation regional eliminations in Dumaguete City later this month.

However, Fegidero declined since he will coach Cebu International School in a tournament in the same weekend.

Ascalon said the Fegideros are well loved and respected in the football community, and are known for their skills.

“If you play against a team that has a Fegidero in its line-up, ma-kulbaan gid ka ya (you’ll feel uneasy),” Ascalon said. “I’ve heard and read in the newspapers about the Fegideros, so before I started playing (in 2002), I knew for a fact that these brothers are very good in football.”