Davao del Norte’s secondary boys booters, products of the Davao del Norte Regional Sports Academy, emerged champion in the Davao Region Athletic Association (Davraa) Meet 2024 football competition at the Davao City-University of the Philippines (DC-UP) field at UP Mindanao on Saturday morning, April 6.
The Pioneers and Davao City Durians figured in a scoreless draw at the end of regulation, forcing a penalty shootout.
In the thrilling shootout, Davao del Norte edged 2023 Davraa champion Davao City, 3-2, to secure the gold medal.
Coach Vincent Martin of the DavNor Pioneers, in an interview with SunStar Davao, expressed pride in the team's historic victory.
In an interview with SunStar Davao, Coach Vincent Martin of the DavNor Pioneers said that this is their first time to win in Davraa and they really prepared their team for this event.
“We prepared for a long, long time. It’s not only just one year but two. We made our team as a whole for so many years of counting. This would be our first time to participate in the Davraa and we are blessed that we were given the opportunity to be the winner. This will be our first time to compete in Palarong Pambansa,” he said.
Team captain Alba Jomar Jurada echoed Coach Martin's sentiments, highlighting the team's improvement from last year's fourth-place finish.
“Naa koy mali as a team captain pero gibawi rapud nako. Para ni sa history sa Davao del Norte, first time gyud ni namo mag Palaro (I made a mistake as team captain, but I quickly redeemed myself. This victory is significant for Davao del Norte, marking our first-ever win to reach the Palaro),” Jurada said.
The host squad, represented by the Holy Child College (HCCD) Red Eagles, settled for the silver instead. Notably, it was HCCD's Red Eagles in their inaugural Davraa Meet appearance since launching their football program in 1999.
In an interview with SunStar Davao, Davao City's assistant coach Ramonito Carreon expressed satisfaction with the match's outcome, emphasizing that his team gave their best effort after months of training.
“I’m happy sa ilang performance. I know na gibuhat nila ang tanan and hantod diri lang gyud mi. So next year, we will come back and makuha na gyud namo ning Palaro (I'm pleased with their performance. I know they gave it their all. We'll be back next year, determined to secure the victory for a Palaro slot),” Carreon said. Wilbert Duran and Tricia Del Campo, SunStar Interns