ONCE again, the Cebu football fans came in droves for the Global Cebu vs. FC Manila derby, impressing not only the visiting coach, who was a former national team coach, but the current head coach of the men’s senior team.
It wasn’t as many as the crowd who showed up for the Ceres game, but at 4,850, that’s still an impressive number considering it was a 4 p.m. kick-off.
I sat next to Thomas Dooley and Dan Palami and in the middle of the game, I heard the coach tell the Azkals manager who also owns Global, “We have to play here. They are so noisy and they react to the slightest things.”
Knowing that by “we,” coach Dooley meant that Azkals, I smiled but didn’t catch what Dan told the national team coach.
As the head coach of the national team, coach Dooley has seen all sorts of Pinoy crowd and that the Cebu crowd managed to impress him is quite a feat.
Last Saturday, just like in previous matches, it wasn’t only on goals that the crowd would let out a cheer, but on good defensive plays, skillful dribbles and the non-calls, especially on Rufo Sanchez.
Heck, one guy heckled the referee all game long that it was good that the German-American coach doesn’t understand Cebuano. I think coach Dooley was most impressed with how the crowd really tried to rally the home team and made its displeasure felt at the slightest perceived non-call--things the national team haven’t experienced in their stints in Manila.
However, before you start dreaming of a friendly here; before kick-off I asked Dan Palami if the field is good enough for an international friendly and sadly, it isn’t. And since it’s September and the field’s annual death is only three months away, I don’t think a friendly this year is in the offing.
The only positive that I can think of when the field dies during the Sinulog is that perhaps during its rebirth, the CCSC management can plant just one type of grass--the right one--for the whole field. As it stands, there patches with one type, a whole stretch with another and it doesn’t look good on TV.
Meralco’s Aris Caslib, who handled the national team, was also impressed and said that aside from rivaling that of the Ceres crowd, the fact that a lot of kids are in the stands mean the effect will be long term. Kids see the best and the brightest of Philippine football and I’m sure, years from now, some of them could be playing in the domestic league.
So again, take a bow, Cebu.
SCHEDULE. Global Cebu will take on rival Ceres Negros on Sept. 24 in Panaad and will host Stallions Laguna on Sept. 27, its final home game for the month.
I’m excited to see the Stallions return because I want to see Joaquin Melliza in action. This guy currently leads the league in goals with 13 and had four in one game this season.