UAAP 79 football preview: UP Maroons face tough title defense

UAAP Season 79 Men’s Football Kickoff Weekend
Rizal Memorial Football Stadium
 
Saturday February 4
2:00 pm UE vs NU
4:00 pm DLSU vs UP
 
Sunday February 5
3:00 pm FEU vs UST
5:00 pm ADMU vs ADU 
Weekly LIVE coverage on ABS-CBN S+A and S+A HD begins Thursday, Feb 9

 

The UAAP Season 79 Men’s Football season starts on February 4. Anto Gonzales’ UP are one of the favorites to lift the trophy once again, a year after defeating Ateneo 4-1 in the Season 78 final match. 

The selectors for the SEA Games team will no doubt be keeping a keen eye on the matches this season, which will mostly take place in Rizal Memorial on weekends. The televised Thursday matches will be played in Ateneo’s Moro Lorenzo Football Field. 

The Maroons face stiff competition from the rest of the 8-team field. Let’s take a look at each side. 

Adamson: Continuing Growth 

Coach Nolan Manito achieved a milestone two years into the Falcons’ return to UAAP football last year. The squad notched their first win, a 1-0 victory over UE, and finished seventh, one better than the year before. 

Manito brings an largely unchanged roster to battle this year, with leadership from the Jumo twins, Bless Brian I and Bless Brian II.

The Falcons are often competitive in their matches but tend to leak a lot of goals. The centerback pairing of Bryce Rabino and Jackson Ramos will need to work well to insulate goalkeeper Carl Viray, whose development as a goalie must also accelerate. Viray is a fine shot-stopper who needs to make better decisions about venturing out of his area. It’s likely he will get plenty of work once again this season. 

Adamson will not be a favorite to make the Final Four but they have been together now for 3 seasons, and cohesion counts a lot in football. 

Ateneo: New Cogs In The Mix. 

The Blue Booters have three new overseas-born Filipinos on their team, goalie AJ Arcilla from the USA and Jordan Jarvis and William Grierson from Hong Kong. 

Watch Jarvis score a glorious header in a loss to Timor Leste in last year’s AFF U19 championship at 1:50 of this clip.

The Freshman will likely play wingback for coach Jaypee Merida. 

Arcilla will battle incumbent Kenn James for the right to wear that number one shirt for the Eagles.

Don’t be surprised to see Carlo Liay drop back to centerback, where his experience and composure will be vital in the backline. Grierson could partner Liay in the back. 

Ateneo is bristling with weapons like Julian Roxas, an aerial threat in Rupert Baña, and sophomore sensation Jarvey Gayoso, who is likely to continue his goalscoring ways from the left flank. Gayoso recently raised eyebrows with a dazzling 40-yard run and shot in a U22 friendly against Malaysia’s U22 team. Sam Lim, a rookie from Colegio de San Agustin, could also play a big factor. 

Another rookie, PAREF-Springdale’s Enzo Ceniza is a highly-rated central midfielder. The son of coach Mario Ceniza, the Cebuano is known as a savvy passer. 

Ateneo fell one win short of the crown last year then were runner-ups again in the Ang Liga a few weeks ago. This could be their tournament to go all the way. 

De La Salle: One-two punch. 

The biggest off-season bit of good news for La Salle is the return of striker Gelo Diamante. The former youth national team striker is back for one more spin before taking medical school. For a second year he will play alongside younger brother Jed. 

But there is even better news: the Archers attack will also feature another gunslinger in rookie Mathew Custodio. The former U19 national team goalscorer was raised here but has a British father. Last year he went to the UK for some trials. 

Custodio is the kind of big forward that can really give UAAP defenders problems. Given the proper playing time he should be good for a half-a-dozen goals at the very least. 

DLSU has yet another homegrown Filipino-Aussie rookie forward in Chris Lawless, who like Custodio played with Nomads. Smit says Lawless has “a real knack for goal.”

Providing supply lines for the forwards will be Yoshiharu Koizumi, the Japanese-Davaoeño deep-lying playmaker who has tremendous passing touch. Koizumi impressed in the recent U22 friendly versus Malaysia and it’s likely he will be serving up plenty of assists this season.

“He’s in the best shape since I got him,” marvels Smit.

Far Eastern University: One Last Hurrah. 

FEU is in transition. The architect of their football program, Kim Chul Su, has gone home to Korea. Vince Santos, former Loyola coach, is now in charge. Midfield sparkplug Nano Amita, who sat out last year with an ACL injury, is a scratch for this season too after reinjuring the knee. 

This will be the last year of eligibility for a passel of standouts who formed the backbone of FEU’s halycon days when they won the title in Seasons 76 and 77. Paolo Bugas, Val Jurao, Reymart Cubon, Patrick Rallos, Nicolas Ferrer, and Justin Calamba will all ride into the green-and-gold sunset after the last ball is kicked in a few months. Then next year a new crop of Tams, led by the promising youngster Gio Pabualan, will take the spotlight in Season 80, hopefully alongside Amita. 

Master Kim may be gone but there will still be a Korean influence in the person of UFL veteran Park Bo Bae, who is part of the Tams’ coaching staff. Bugas says that Park’s system will be similar to Kim’s, so there will be little adjustment. The team is determined to forge ahead despite the transition. 

“Napagusapan namin sa buong team, including ang juniors team, na kahit anong mangyari, maglaro pa rin at mag perform ng maayos,” asserts Bugas, who is with both Global and the Azkals. (The whole team, including the juniors, agreed that no matter what happens we will play and perform well.) 

National University: A New Start. 

The Bulldogs enter the post-Paolo Salenga era with a new coach, Mari Aberasturi. The Cebuano takes over Lem Laranas, who nearly took NU to the Final Four for the first time last season. 

NU were supposed to have two Africans on the team, Fil-Nigerian Chima Uzoka and Emmanuel Mbe, reportedly a relative of ex-Bulldogs hoops star Jean Mbe. Both have been left off the roster for unspecified reasons. 

Uzoka would have been useful. The lanky holding midfielder was effective last year in both defensive duties and in creating from the center of the park. Mbe could have helped make up for the absence of Salenga and another striker who used up his eligibility years, Nico Macapal. 

National will lean on captain Patrick Valenzuela, who was in the U19 national team last year. Eddie Alivio will be the bulwark of a defense that lost Arnel Casil to graduation, and goalie Hayeson Pepito, who sat out last year, is back between the sticks. 

The Bulldogs’ main man in central midfield is Lawrence Colina. The Cebuano loves to play the early pass and despite his lean frame, has a surprisingly powerful free kick on him. 

University of the East: Stepping Up.

UE made a coaching change in the offseason, with Romblomanon brothers Fitch Johnson Daviz Arboleda of the Azkals, and Fitch Florence Peter Arboleda as co-head coaches. This tandem replaces Ryan Marinay, now in charge of Emilio Aguinaldo College’s football team. 

Mar Vincent Diano, the big striker on his second year, will be a threat from the left flank. Diano played in the U19 NT last year but was deployed at center back. Nino Mallen brings experience in the midfield while Krysler Opeña, another sophomore, is a scoring threat. 

On defense UE welcomes back centerback Stephane Dagaraga, who was injured last season. UE has another top defender in Louie Polinag, and these two will be needed to limit the workload of rookie goalkeeper Frank Reiza from Quezon province. Reiza takes over Lendon Clores, who has graduated. 

Rookies John Julie Abilong, a striker from Masbate, and Clark Bagsic, a mid from Pampanga, will look to make an impact. 

The Warriors finished dead last last year, with nary a win to their names. But they were competitive in many games and could very well surprise some teams this year. 

University of the Philippines: Battling through Adversity. 

All is not hunky-dory for the champs. Defenders Patxi Santos and Ian Clarino are both recovering from serious illness, and coach Anto Gonzales warns that UP fans could see a makeshift backline in the beginning of the season. 

Rookie defender Marco Casambre, who debuted for the Azkals in the Suzuki Cup, may not be allowed to suit up. As of press time his status is still up in the air. Casambre has already played for Global and that might complicate his eligibility. I hope Marco gets to play. He could certainly use the match experience. 

UP also has off-field issues. They are bereft of a training pitch as of the moment, as construction of their on-campus turf facility has stalled. The team often trains in Marikina and FEU Diliman. 

That’s the bad news. The good news is that they are mostly intact in other areas, with Ace Villanueva in goal and standouts JB Borlongan, Kyle Magdato and Christian Lapas in the midfield. Borlongan was excellent in the U19 national team’s AFF campaign last year. Kintaro Miyagi scored a hat trick in the final last year and a goal in the AFF campaign too. MVP Daniel Gadia, now an Azkal, will likely sport the captain’s armband. 

UP are facing some hurdles but one believes that the road to the UAAP title still passes through Balara. 

University of Santo Tomas: Preseason Momentum 

The Growling Tigers have suffered three losses going into this season in each third of their formation. Defender Rainiel Dosano and fellow Barotacnon Karl Bronda will not be on the roster. Academic issues have struck both of them. Bronda was one of the most creative and skilled midfielers in Season 78 and it’s my fervent hope he gets a shot at the SEA Games U22 national team. 

Steven Anotado was supposed to be back in the saddle for coach Marjo Allado this year after sitting out last year with knee problems. Unfortunately the striker has knee issues again and will likely not factor this season. 

All this is supposed to leave UST in disarray going into this season. But the Tigers never got the memo. 

Two weeks ago UST downed UP in the semis, then defeated Ateneo 1-0 on the Blue Eagles’ home pitch to win the Ang Liga title. Ang Liga is the most prestigious preseason bit of silverware that most UAAP and NCAA teams participate in. Renz Gumban knocked in the scrappy goal. There is optimism in the air around España. UST fell in the UAAP semis last season and they wish to go further this time around. 

UST will have veteran guidance from Daryl Regala and the Busmion brothers, Dionisio and Darwin. They will need to replace graduating vets Ronald Batisla-ong and Fidel Kue. Batisla-ong specifically was a fiery leader. 

Watch out for Ian De Castro. The defender, who spent some years in Australia, could help shore up a defense along with goalie Zaldy Abraham. Marvin Bricenio, hounded by injuries last year, could be a force in the middle of the park. 

A word about the ladies. 

The women’s competition also starts in February a week after the men begin. This season will take place during the months-long transfer window between the two rounds of the PFF Women’s League. That theoretically means the women players of UAAP team will be in the best shape ever. All five UAAP women’s teams are playing in the PFF Women’s League too. 

DLSU, runner-ups to UP in last year’s UAAP, are lording it over the PFF league. Last Sunday they remained perfect in the league with a 2-0 win over UP. Sara Castañeda scored both goals. La Salle’s women’s team suffered a blow when Shannon Arthur, one of their main weapons, was lost for the year with an ACL tear. Castañeda will need to keep up production. 

UP lost 8 players to graduation, and Mary Rose Obra, one of their stars, is injured and could be out for much of the first round. The Lady Maroons will welcome back Marie Huff and Sab Nierras from sick bay but Kali Huff, Marie’s sister, will sit out the season and try to make the national senior team. 

Don’t count out FEU, even though they struggled in the PFF Women’s league. Striker Bia Requerme could help out vets Jean Kadil and Jovelle Sudaria. Ateneo and UST will also be very competitive. 

The Women’s national team will play an Asian qualifier in April. It could force some rejiggering of the sched but having it so close to the UAAP season could mean a razor-sharp women’s national side.

But preparing our players for international duty is exactly what the UAAP is all about. We just can’t wait for the season to begin. – Rappler.com 

The UAAP Season 79 Junior’s Championship Match between DLSZ and FEU will take place on Saturday, Feb 4 at 6pm after the seniors games in Rizal Memorial.

Follow Bob on Twitter @PassionateFanPH.