(Manila, Philippines) – After nine days of intense
battle, the 2014 PLDT HOME Fibr Asian Men’s Club Volleyball Championship
(AMCC) drew to a close.
The successful staging of the prestigious international volleyball tournament
validates the Philippines’ status as a world-class venue for international
competition and signals the rebirth of the sport in the country.
Powered by PLDT HOME Fibr, PLDT HOME’s most powerful broadband, the
games were brought to Filipino sports fans through live action at the MOA Arena
and Cuneta Astrodome and via live streaming and replay-on-demand on PLDT HOME
TVolution – another milestone in sports entertainment. Games were also
televised live on TV5, the tournament’s official broadcast partner.
The Iranian club Matin Varamin, this year’s defending champion, ruled
over Qatar’s Al Rayyan team to win first place and be the lone Asian representative
in the 2014 Fédération Internationale de Volleyball (FIVB) Volleyball
World Championship at Betim, Brazil in May this year. Qatar was awarded second
place while Baic Motors of China secured third place.
Competing for the very first time in the AMCC, the Philippine squad, also
known as the PLDT HOME TVolution Power Pinoys, finished remarkably at 7th place
in the 16-nation tournament.
For national coach Francis Vicente, this is not because of home court advantage,
superior skills or impeccable coaching. It was because of great teamwork.
"Everybody contributed to this victory," said Vicente shortly after posting
a commanding 25-19, 26-24, 13-25, 21-25, 15-13 win over Zahraa Al Minaa of Lebanon
in the final day of the inter-club tournament. “It was our teamwork which
pulled us through."
The road to the resurgence of Philippine volleyball wasn't a smooth ride
for Vicente and the PLDT HOME TVolution team.
Weeks after the Philippine Volleyball Federation (PVF) clinched the hosting
rights of the annual international competition, SportsCore and PLDT HOME Fibr
worked hard to form a competitive team, a fighting that will seriously contend
for the crown and give the home crowd a good show.
"If not for the support of PLDT HOME Fibr, SportsCore, and the Philippine
Volleyball Federation (PVF), this dream of bringing Philippine volleyball back
to its feet wouldn't be possible. Since it will be our first time to compete
in an Asian-level tournament after quite some time, I realized that winning
right away will be very impossible. So I looked for players who don't only have
the skills, but also the heart to contend. Although we're the smallest team,
I wanted us to have the biggest fighting heart." Vicente added.
True enough, with Australian reinforcements Cedric Legrand and William Lewis
catching fire, the PLDT HOME TVolution team dominated Mongolia in their opening
game, 25-13, 25-23, 25-16, to jumpstart their campaign on a high note.
Although they dropped a pair of games to taller, heftier South Gas Club Sports
of Iraq and Al Rayyan of Qatar in the quarterfinals, they remained focused,
knowing that those losses were part of the birth pain that will strengthen them
in the games to come.
Against Lebanon, in a battle that will shape their fate, the PLDT HOME TVolution
team pounced hard on the absence of top spiker Bruno Furtado to claim a hard-earned
two sets lead.
But the Lebanese came surging back, winning the next two sets to forge a
deciding fifth set, much to the surprise of the highly-partisan home crowd.
"We were in a kill-or-be killed situation," said Vicente, adding that he
trusts the mental toughness of his wards following a two-week boot camp in Seoul,
South Korea where they faced tougher, taller and younger teams.
"But I told them that we've got nothing to lose in this game. We must go
out there and play beyond our expectations for ourselves and for the crowd.
This game is for our countrymen. We want to send a message that we might be
small, but we won't go down without putting up a fight."
The Philippine squad paid Vicente's trust with a resounding victory in the
fifth set to essay a feel-good tale about the re-birth of Philippine volleyball
after years of mediocrity.
“It’s our first time to compete in this competition and we did
very well. This is a very good start," Vicente said.
The Asian Volleyball Confederation (AVC), which appointed the Philippines
as host of this year’s tournament, also expressed their appreciation to
the organizers for the expert handling of the competition. “The AVC is
delighted with the peaceful and organized staging of this year’s AMCC.
We’d like to thank all the organizers and PLDT HOME Fibr for making the
Philippine hosting of the AMCC very successful,” said SportsCore president
Tats Suzara.
“PLDT HOME Fibr is happy and proud to have powered the first and biggest
men’s volleyball event in Philippine history as PLDT affirms its commitment
to help the Philippines regain its competitiveness in volleyball,” said
Gary Dujali, PLDT vice president and head of HOME broadband, and PLDT representative
in the AMCC Organizing Committee. “It also became another opportunity
for us to bring world-class sports entertainment to the homes of Filipino sports
fans through PLDT HOME TVolution and fulfill the group’s mission to inspire
the youth toward sports excellence.”
PLDT HOME Fibr also brought the national women’s squad, the PLDT HOME
TVolution Power Pinays, to the 2014 Asian Women’s Club Volleyball Championship
in Nakhonpathom, Thailand where they clinched 8th place.
The volleyball action continues this May, as PLDT HOME TVolution fields men’s
and women’s teams in the upcoming Philippine Superliga tournament slated
to begin on May 16, 2014.
For recaps of the 2014 PLDT HOME Fibr Asian Men’s Club Volleyball Championship
games, visit its official website at asianmensvball.pldthome.com.