Bleacher Talk

Bleacher Talk March 14, 2010 When Stars Collide Attending awards nights or awarding ceremonies has become a routine practice for sportswriters. They’ve attended so many awarding ceremonies in their lives whether this happen on a basketball court, on top a boxing ring or at the athletics oval. They’ll also be secretive to admit that some of these have gotten to be boring and dragging. But what happens when stars collide? What happens when you gather the best athletes of Cebu Sports under one roof to recognize their amazing achievements? Thursday night was something special for the Sportswriters Association of Cebu (SAC) at the 28th SAC-San Miguel Beer (SMB) Cebu Sports Awards where the SAC gave recognition to the best of the best of 2009 coming from the different sporting events which has made Cebu Sports so rich. But unlike previous SAC-SMB Awards nights, Thursday was something else. It was something different. Never before have we gained so much from attending a simple dinner banquet ...

Bleacher Talk March 7, 2010 Following Pacman? While there is no doubt that Manny Pacquiao is the only show in town for Philippine boxing, boxing fans are eager to find out who among the country’s world-beaters could be an heir apparent to the Pacman. And if we are to look at the month that just passed, I’m not sure if there were any clear indications of a good find. Nonito Donaire did a great job of dismantling Manuel Vargas, but while I don’t want to take anything away from Donaire, we all know that this wasn’t a legitimate fight that could elevate Donaire to a higher level. Vargas was a last-minute replacement for original opponent Gerson Guerrero who failed the pre-fight medical exam. Note that Vargas was the same fighter who lost to Donnie Nietes for the WBO minimumweight championship. Vargas fought Nietes at 105 pounds, then suddenly “went up” to 115 pounds on a three-day notice. Moreover, Vargas flunked a post-fight drug test, an indication that he may not have been fit to fight,...

Bleacher Talk February 28, 2010 Youth Ball 2010 Only two months of the year have passed and so much has already taken place in Cebu Basketball. The good news is that it’s not all about commercial or pro ball. While we get the usual dose of the NBA and PBA on TV and the news, Cebu has been busy with age group basketball to start off the year. And although this doesn’t attract as much fanfare as those of the big boys, we all know how crucial this is for the future of Cebu Basketball. Coming to a close today is the ML Kwarta Padala (MLKP) Cup of the Cebu Youth Basketball League or CYBL. Using all of February’s weekends and a dose of holidays, the MLKP Cup started off the year with the goal of kicking off Cebu Basketball’s activities where they should practically start: age group hoops. The league features three age groups: 16, 13 and 10 Under, involving 21 teams playing for some nine schools. In today’s championship games, the University of San Carlos (USC) South Campus and Sacred Heart S...

Bleacher Talk February 21, 2010 More Than a Champion If you saw the convoy that welcomed and accompanied him on the way to Mandaue and eventually to Banilad, you would’ve thought that a Presidentiable candidate was in town. But there were no wang-wangs or an unusual presence of armed men playing the role of bodyguards. The convoy was a mix of the black SUV’s of the ALA Boxing Gym and a host of motorcycles, Multicabs and other ordinary-looking cars that you don’t see at parades or motorcades. No, it wasn’t the arrival of Many Pacquiao or any other Pinoy world champ. It was the arrival of more than a champ; it was no less than Cebu Boxing’s loved one, Z “The Dream” Gorres. Though he didn’t return as a world champion, Gorres has proven that one doesn’t have to be a world champ to gain the admiration of the boxing family. There’s no need to get into the details of how his last fight ended. But the most amazing aspect about his situation is how he will now serve as an instrument to bring ab...

Bleacher Talk February 7, 2010 ML Kwarta Padala and CYBL 2010 Cebu Basketball’s calendar of activities is off to a flying start with the games of the CESAFI Partners Cup and National Basketball Training Center (NBTC). Both leagues showcase Cebu’s best collegiate and high school teams, and are stepping stones towards a possible career in basketball. And today, the calendar just got busier with the launch of the Cebu Youth Basketball League’s (CYBL) ML Kwarta Padala Cup. But what’s the difference among the three tournaments? It’s all about ages and the way these are designed to help Cebu Basketball. The CESAFI collegiate division handles players between 18 to 24 years old, while CESAFI high school teams are composed of players 18 and below. Meanwhile, the NBTC is a national tournament featuring players between 16-18 years old. And to complete the whole picture, the CYBL features players in three age groups: 16-Under, 13-Under, and 10-Under. Welcome to Cebu Basketball: grassroots and yout...

Bleacher Talk February 14, 2010 CVIRAA Experience Every time the months of February or March come around, just when students get into the final stretch of the schoolyear, the region hits its peak period of the sports calendar. This is when over 6,000 athletes coming from the different divisions of the Department of Education (DEPED) get together for the games of the annual CVIRAA or Central Visayas Regional Athletic Association. The CVIRAA 2010 ends today in Danao City, with favorite Cebu City bagging the over-all championship (expectedly). And so another year has passed and all the athletes go back to their respective hometowns, bringing with them tons of experiences and a more mature outlook towards sports. The CVIRAA and all the other regional meets across the country is an experience that all athletes should go through. At every meet, an athlete is there not only for the sports part per se, but one gets to experience a whole lot more. By tagging along with athletes from other schoo...

Bleacher Talk January 31, 2010 Boxing 2010 Start The start of local boxing was a mix of good and bad news. The good news is that Milan Melindo and AJ “Bazooka” Banal started out the year with impressive wins over foreign opponents. The bad news is that Brian Viloria lost his IBF light flyweight championship to Carlos Tamarra of Colombia. More good news came in the form of Jimrex Jaca’s knock-out win in his comeback campaign. And some not so good news is Jason Pagara’s unpopular majority decision win over his most recent foe. And even more good news is that Z Gorres is slowly but surely making progress, having moved out of the hospital and now undergoing therapy. And how can we “forget” that Manny Pacquiao has “forgotten” Floyd Mayweather and has now set his sights on Joshua Clottey? All of this happened in January alone. Not bad for a start, no? If this were to be a prelude of 2010, it looks like a rough road ahead for boxing with a good mix of ups and downs. We just hope there’ll be m...