Fair Play: A scheduling conflict that shouldn't be
THE scheduling conflict that has hounded the Cesafi and the Cebu City Olympics could have been avoided had Cesafi not taken its time with its schedule.
The basketball season started on July 31, yet here we are, three months later and it’s not over yet. Because of that, the Cebu Eastern College Dragons lost an opportunity to make their mark in the national scene.
Make no mistake, the Dragons would have won the Cebu City Olympics had they played but because they picked the Cesafi over the City Olympics, they lost the chance to represent Cebu City in the Cviraa and Region 7 in the Palarong Pambansa.
And it is in the Palarong Pambansa where the scouts go.
The Dragons, of course, had to pick Cesafi because their campaign is the Story of the Year—from chumps to champs.
Instead of asking the City Olympics to postpone its games, it would have been better had Cesafi postponed the high school games. Basketball counts for the overall tally in the City Olympics and it would have been unwise to hold the tournament hostage, just because of one event.
Besides, had Cesafi moved its high school series, it would have given the exciting series the treatment it deserves—with two big schools and with such big following, it shouldn’t serve as the preliminary game to the college level. It deserves to be the main game.
But that’s water under the bridge.
Don Bosco College is another victim of this conflict and the team that was poised to run away with the high school title now faces the threat of a suspension because it forfeited its match.
But I hope Commissioner Felix Tiukinhoy will go easy on Don Bosco.
While winning the Cesafi football title is prestigious, compared to the Cebu City Olympics, it means nothing.
The Cesafi champion is just that, a champion of a five-team league. As the Cebu City Olympics champion, Don Bosco now has a chance to meet the best of the region in the Cviraa, and if they’re lucky, the best of the country in the Palarong Pambansa.
Also, DBC tried to play both games. Coach Glen Ramos was planning to send seven players to face USJ-R in the semis at USC-TC. And with seven against 11, USJ-R still would have had no chance against DBC.
DBC tried this a few years ago, to disastrous results, in the Aboitiz Cup and Milo Little Olympics. The fatigued players lost both matches and muscle cramps struck a few
players.
Last Saturday, I suspect, Glen Ramos was surprised that he was still in contention after the first half and the prospect of ending their drought in the Cebu City Olympics forced them to scrap their plan.
I covered a few members of the DBC team—Miguel Caindec, Val Calvo and Jay Arizabal—when they played in the 2007 Palarong Pambansa and it’s great that they get a chance to compete for a spot in the Palaro, again.
Now, the Cesafi, instead of penalizing the team, should look into its practice of giving basketball a head start in the schedule. I’ve complained about this practice before, and I’m complaining about it, again.
This is the reason DBC had to play two simultaneous tournaments, the reason the Aboitiz Cup had to start very late.
You see, some organizers respect Cesafi’s rule on their teams not playing in other events when the Cesafi season is ongoing that they schedule their events after the school-based league ends. It would have been better had the Cesafi reciprocated this by starting early. The City Olympics don’t have that luxury because it has to hold its event in October.
Consider this: Cesafi basketball started on July 31 but Cesafi football started on Sept. 4!
Why? That one-month delay has led to this problem.
I hope the Cesafi sees that the solution to this mess lies in its hands.
The basketball season started on July 31, yet here we are, three months later and it’s not over yet. Because of that, the Cebu Eastern College Dragons lost an opportunity to make their mark in the national scene.
Make no mistake, the Dragons would have won the Cebu City Olympics had they played but because they picked the Cesafi over the City Olympics, they lost the chance to represent Cebu City in the Cviraa and Region 7 in the Palarong Pambansa.
And it is in the Palarong Pambansa where the scouts go.
The Dragons, of course, had to pick Cesafi because their campaign is the Story of the Year—from chumps to champs.
Instead of asking the City Olympics to postpone its games, it would have been better had Cesafi postponed the high school games. Basketball counts for the overall tally in the City Olympics and it would have been unwise to hold the tournament hostage, just because of one event.
Besides, had Cesafi moved its high school series, it would have given the exciting series the treatment it deserves—with two big schools and with such big following, it shouldn’t serve as the preliminary game to the college level. It deserves to be the main game.
But that’s water under the bridge.
Don Bosco College is another victim of this conflict and the team that was poised to run away with the high school title now faces the threat of a suspension because it forfeited its match.
But I hope Commissioner Felix Tiukinhoy will go easy on Don Bosco.
While winning the Cesafi football title is prestigious, compared to the Cebu City Olympics, it means nothing.
The Cesafi champion is just that, a champion of a five-team league. As the Cebu City Olympics champion, Don Bosco now has a chance to meet the best of the region in the Cviraa, and if they’re lucky, the best of the country in the Palarong Pambansa.
Also, DBC tried to play both games. Coach Glen Ramos was planning to send seven players to face USJ-R in the semis at USC-TC. And with seven against 11, USJ-R still would have had no chance against DBC.
DBC tried this a few years ago, to disastrous results, in the Aboitiz Cup and Milo Little Olympics. The fatigued players lost both matches and muscle cramps struck a few
players.
Last Saturday, I suspect, Glen Ramos was surprised that he was still in contention after the first half and the prospect of ending their drought in the Cebu City Olympics forced them to scrap their plan.
I covered a few members of the DBC team—Miguel Caindec, Val Calvo and Jay Arizabal—when they played in the 2007 Palarong Pambansa and it’s great that they get a chance to compete for a spot in the Palaro, again.
Now, the Cesafi, instead of penalizing the team, should look into its practice of giving basketball a head start in the schedule. I’ve complained about this practice before, and I’m complaining about it, again.
This is the reason DBC had to play two simultaneous tournaments, the reason the Aboitiz Cup had to start very late.
You see, some organizers respect Cesafi’s rule on their teams not playing in other events when the Cesafi season is ongoing that they schedule their events after the school-based league ends. It would have been better had the Cesafi reciprocated this by starting early. The City Olympics don’t have that luxury because it has to hold its event in October.
Consider this: Cesafi basketball started on July 31 but Cesafi football started on Sept. 4!
Why? That one-month delay has led to this problem.
I hope the Cesafi sees that the solution to this mess lies in its hands.
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