222 SOCCER TEAMS WANT TO JOIN ABOITIZ FESTIVAL

Courtesy of Sun Star Newspaper (http://www.sunstar.com.ph/)

Friday, September 01, 2006 issue

by Mike Limpag Sun.Star Staff Reporter

Cebu's traditional powers Cebu International School, Don Bosco College and Paref-Springdale will have their hands full in the 2nd Aboitiz Football Festival, as some of the country's best footballers are set to join the P12 bracket in the two-day event set Sept. 23 and 24.

Cebu Football Association president Jonathan Maximo has asked the Philippine Football Federation (PFF) to make the Aboitiz festival as part of its talent identification program for the national team and has invited PFF's Vince Santos and national coach John Carmona to watch the event.

Carmona is the coach of the youth national teams, while Santos is in charge of the countries Center for Football Excellence. Each CFE is in charge of training elite players in the 1992 age-group, the players groomed to win the gold in the 2015 Southeast Asian Games.

"We have also sent an invitation to each FA to send their elite P12 players for the festival," Maximo said.

Participation in the Aboitiz Festival is set to break local records as 222 teams have signified their intention to join the event. "Labad ni sa ulo," Maximo said.

"We also have an option to hold games at night, but with 222 teams, we might have to hold games until midnight," said Maximo.

To address the problem, only 180 teams will be accepted, depending on who pays the registration fees first, said Maximo in a text message to Sun.Star Cebu.

As to the P12 group, Maximo said it is not sure whether Cebu will form an elite team in the bracket.

"We're not sure if the coaches will release their best players," Maximo said.

Mario Ceniza, who coaches Springdale, is in charge of Cebu CFE.

Aside from the local teams and the P12 teams, the football associations of Davao, Cagayan de Oro, San Carlos CIty, Iloilo, Dumaguete will also send delegations.

"Mark Bretherton (CebuFA board member) is also inviting teams from Manila," Maximo said.

To accommodate the entries, CebuFA has designated the Cebu City Sports Center as the venue for the event, which houses the biggest football field in Cebu.