Cinderellas bag second honors in Subic

THE Baguio Cinderellas came home from Subic last Sunday with a second-place trophy in the 2012 Kicksand Beach Football Tournament.

It was a rare finish for the girls, rightfully the original Askals for having to scrounge for funds to reach competition venues in over 20 years of glorious campaign.

In past editions of the meet, the girls were a cinch to come home with the championship trophy. When they didn’t, which was rare, their worst showing was third place, not only on the beach but also in regular or seven-a-side blitz tournaments from here to Laguna.

In Subic they started strong with a methodical 4-0 blanking of Soccer Babes, the goals chronologically coming from pioneer striker Anna Liza Umoc-Cabanilla, her sister Vangie Umoc-Gigan, second-generation recruit Luz Pilao and again by Van gie.

They then squeaked past tough Pasargad FC, 1-0, on a conversion by forward Judith Doctolero on a pass by Anna in the second minute of play.

Lapses in defense cost them the third game, a 0-2 drubbing in the hands of eventual champion Kick Me FC which scored in the first two minutes and last minute of the match the organizers divided into three periods of four minutes each.

Hounded by that loss, the Cinderellas bowed again to Kick Me, 0-1, in the championship match that defender Virgie Tibaldo-Bungay swore could have gone either way.

“They scored early with a looping goal in the first two minutes and we could not convert even with more attempts in the second and third periods,” Bungay said.

Unlike in numerous competitions at the early portion of their campaign in the 1990s, the girls no longer had to scrounge for funds. Mayor Mauricio Domogan, their top fan when they captured the 1992 National Baguio Invitational, made sure they didn’t worry about transport and meal allowances.

Soon, the girls, who won five national crowns and numerous invitationals for Baguio, will be back at the Baguio city jail where they recently started indoor football training for women inmates. (Ramon Dacawi)