THE Central Visayas Regional Football Association (CVFA) is going for no less than a win against the visiting Eastern Visayas Regional Football Association (EVRFA) in the Philippine Football Federation (PFF) Under-15 boys’ National Championship on Saturday, July 13, 2019 at the Cebu City Sports Center football pitch.
“We have made the necessary adjustments on our plays and defense. This will be a new lineup for us as we selected another 18 players for this game,” said CVFA’s coach Garry Garciano on Friday’s press conference at the Orange Karenderia in Mandaue City.
CVFA is off a 1-1 draw against the Panay FA last week in Barotac Nuevo. That came after it lost its first home game against the Negros Occidental Football Association (Nofa), 1-0, last June 29.
CVFA is looking for its first win in the tournament, while EVRFA is aiming for a good debut.
“This is our first game and we are up against a tough team. It’s either we win or we learn. We are here to learn and get the boys some experience,” said EVRFA’s general coordinator Alfred Celebrado.
“We didn’t have much time to prepare, but despite the adversities, the team is trying to compete. Our players from Manila will be coming over to play in our first game,” added coach Ehgie Gerardo.
CVFA’s team captain Vaughn York Pacaña, who’s on a game-time decision due to an ankle sprain, said the team is motivated to play in front of the home crowd and is raring to bounce back after losing the first home game to Nofa.
“We will do our best to win this home game. In our first game, we were a bit embarrassed because we lost. We need to bounce back and learn from the mistakes on our previous games,” he said.
Pacaña added that he’s good to go and willing to play but the final say would be from the coaching staff.
“We think positive every game. The team has prepared well for our second home game,” said coach CVFA’s coach Ralph Ebin Plaza
CVFA’s team manager Michael Pato, a football player himself who once played in the United Football League, hopes to gather all the resources he can get to back up the Central Visayas team.
For CVFA president Rodney Orale, a tournament like this is helping the growth of football and young football players.
“This is one of the privileges of the FAs to play in this tournament. Hopefully, this will continue for years because it gives the young kids the chance to play high-level football against different regions,” he said. “The grassroots project program of PFF really helps the local players in terms of exposure.”
“The last home game of CVFA we had about 2,000 spectators, we are hoping the number will rise since we have more time to promote the game,” said CVFA’s Guy Ceniza. (RSC)