Why Cebu should just boycott Smart Club championship
I FIRST met Engr. Rodney Orale after the last election of the Cebu Football Association and since then, the amiable Waray has been a regular fixture in football tournaments.
In all the times that I've seen in football games, I've only seen him blow his top once, when he was insulted in front of family members in a tournament that he and his fellow ERCO-BRO team owners organized.
Last Sunday night, while we were enjoying our favorite Mandaue-water after the opening of the Aboitiz Cup, with CFA sec gen Atty. Julius Entise, Dino and Raffy Musni and an unnamed referee who shared some insights, Dino called up Rodney for updates of their game against M'lang.
He was livid. And understandably so. Remember, their team has been reduced to 12 men because someone--they still don't know--protested against the presence of UFL players in their lineup because it was already past the Jan. 21 deadline of the UFL. (Here's where I point the elephant that is the six UFL teams in the Smart Club championships)
Minutes after the game against M'lang, Orale--and the guys who were in that little gathering--all felt that it seems the Philippine football community conspired to make life hell for Erco in the Smart Club.
Per Engr., Cebu had a lot of goals disallowed for fouls and one player got smacked right in front of the assistant referee, who strangely got so per-occuppied he didn't call a foul. Being the one in charge for referees in the CFA, you rarely hear Engr. Orale complain about referees, so that officiating must have been that bad.
In their first two games against Ilonggo teams (Stallion and Mlang) the PFF didn't bother to assign non-Ilonggo referees?
Perhaps it was the Mandaue brewery talking but we all felt that night that the Cebu Football Association is getting the raw end of the deal here.
Aside from raising the conduct or misconduct in this tournament to the PFF, I suggested that with 17 FAs in Mindanao and a few more in the Visayas, the non-UFL FAs should start to have one voice in this matter.
Imagine, UFL teams have two ways to join the Smart Club--the UFL and by latching on to the qualifiers of their favorite FA--while the provincial FAs only have one option?
Why not hold a separate men's open tournament for the non-UFL FAs and let the UFL have a monopoly of the Smart Club, because not only are they salivating at the thought of representing the country in the AFC, they'd bully other FAs into submission.
That's one idea.
Another idea is one I just had now after reading Engr. Orale's online post.
Boycott the Smart Club championships. You want it, well, you can have it all for yourself. Besides, in those lean days of Philippine football, when nobody cared, Cebu had (and still has) a vibrant football community and had no need for (and will not need) national tournaments.
Bully our FA will you? Go (expletive) yourself.
This year, the CFA is revising the men's open rules to comply with the Smart Club rules, but why bother when the Smart Club rules are as pliant as Elastic Girl?
As host of the qualifiers, the CFA, too had to shell out money because the PFF, though it provides funds, is late to release them.
All of this and Erco gets bullied in the national scene?
Why bother.
This year, Cebu should just forget about playing in the Smart Club championships and other provincial Fas who want to join the stand are welcome.
Go shove that Smart Club up your ass.
In all the times that I've seen in football games, I've only seen him blow his top once, when he was insulted in front of family members in a tournament that he and his fellow ERCO-BRO team owners organized.
Last Sunday night, while we were enjoying our favorite Mandaue-water after the opening of the Aboitiz Cup, with CFA sec gen Atty. Julius Entise, Dino and Raffy Musni and an unnamed referee who shared some insights, Dino called up Rodney for updates of their game against M'lang.
He was livid. And understandably so. Remember, their team has been reduced to 12 men because someone--they still don't know--protested against the presence of UFL players in their lineup because it was already past the Jan. 21 deadline of the UFL. (Here's where I point the elephant that is the six UFL teams in the Smart Club championships)
Minutes after the game against M'lang, Orale--and the guys who were in that little gathering--all felt that it seems the Philippine football community conspired to make life hell for Erco in the Smart Club.
Per Engr., Cebu had a lot of goals disallowed for fouls and one player got smacked right in front of the assistant referee, who strangely got so per-occuppied he didn't call a foul. Being the one in charge for referees in the CFA, you rarely hear Engr. Orale complain about referees, so that officiating must have been that bad.
In their first two games against Ilonggo teams (Stallion and Mlang) the PFF didn't bother to assign non-Ilonggo referees?
Perhaps it was the Mandaue brewery talking but we all felt that night that the Cebu Football Association is getting the raw end of the deal here.
Aside from raising the conduct or misconduct in this tournament to the PFF, I suggested that with 17 FAs in Mindanao and a few more in the Visayas, the non-UFL FAs should start to have one voice in this matter.
Imagine, UFL teams have two ways to join the Smart Club--the UFL and by latching on to the qualifiers of their favorite FA--while the provincial FAs only have one option?
Why not hold a separate men's open tournament for the non-UFL FAs and let the UFL have a monopoly of the Smart Club, because not only are they salivating at the thought of representing the country in the AFC, they'd bully other FAs into submission.
That's one idea.
Another idea is one I just had now after reading Engr. Orale's online post.
Boycott the Smart Club championships. You want it, well, you can have it all for yourself. Besides, in those lean days of Philippine football, when nobody cared, Cebu had (and still has) a vibrant football community and had no need for (and will not need) national tournaments.
Bully our FA will you? Go (expletive) yourself.
This year, the CFA is revising the men's open rules to comply with the Smart Club rules, but why bother when the Smart Club rules are as pliant as Elastic Girl?
As host of the qualifiers, the CFA, too had to shell out money because the PFF, though it provides funds, is late to release them.
All of this and Erco gets bullied in the national scene?
Why bother.
This year, Cebu should just forget about playing in the Smart Club championships and other provincial Fas who want to join the stand are welcome.
Go shove that Smart Club up your ass.
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