LONDON, England - Only a handful of Filipinos really support football unlike the massive following that basketball have. With the election set next week, it is also quite difficult to name any politician who has supported the beautiful game.

Me and all football loving Filipinos all over the world just wish that someone with a true love of the game should be elected and do something for the sport in the country. No politician has ever given much support to football back home. Can you name someone and list me his contribution to the sport? If you can then I can give him or her some space in this column.

If I were a congressman or a senator back home I will pass a bill that will force every province, town, and city, to put up a football pitch so that young footballers can train and improve their skills. With the help of my `pork barrel’, I will then create an initiative that will make a real national league. This league will follow the set-up of England’s football league which has teams from the top level down to the different lower divisions. I will also make sure that the national teams (men, women and youth teams) will be well supported.

Football is flourishing within our neighbours like Vietnam, Indonesia, Thailand, Burma, Japan, Korea, Malaysia and Middle East Countries. It is because the government of these countries have supported the sport and have created strong leagues that is why football is very well followed. From these leagues they develop players for their national teams.

UNSUNG HEROES

THE young and handsome Fil-foreigners who are serving the national team recently have brought glamour and made Pinoy football very attractive to Filipino football fans. They are handsome and are now considered as matinee idols. Some of them even have their own managers and PR machines to boast their marketing capability.

The most famous are Fil-Britons the Phil and James Younghusbands. Other Fil-foreigners include Chris and Philip Greatwich, Liegh Gun, Henry Braunner, Chad Gould, and Mathew Hartman. Admittedly, I have not seen any of these guys play, but since they made it to the RP team, then they must be good.

When the Philippines hosted the 1991 South East Asian Games, the RP football team played without any Fil-foreigners but Filipino football fans trooped to the Rizal football stadium in Manila in the later stages of the matches. The only reason why they trooped to watch the beautiful game was the national team then was winning games and even almost made it to the medal table.

After that, I do not remember when was the last time the RP men’s football team have attracted a capacity crowd. Until the South East Asian Games again this time in 2005 with Bacolod hosting the football matches. Some of those players mentioned above played in the SEAG 2005. The Filipino fans trooped the Panaad stadium in Mansilingan, Bacolod city to watch the RP team play (They are known now as the Askals) and see these handsome Fil-foreigners.

The Askals lost to Thailand in their opening match but bounced back two days later to nip Cambodia. However, luck was not on their side as they got eliminated from the medal race when they bowed to Malaysia in their last elimination round match. That was the first time in the history of Philippine football that we heard fans screaming as if their lives were at stake. But of course loads of those fans were from the opposite sex and Bacolod being a hot bed of football also helped.

These Fil-foreigners who play for the Philippines can be considered heroes. They spend their own money, they get very little allowances and they get minimal games. Yet when they are called to play for the Ascals they ask no questions and just fly back (of course if they are available) to the country they consider home putting at stake their professional football careers in the process.

They get nothing financially when they play for the RP team except for the honour of having won an international cap. But that is precisely the reason why these players come and play for the Askals, for the honour. But for lots of people honour is not enough to convince them to play for the nationals. Then they regret the opportunity afterwards.

Missed Oppurtunity

In 1991, M. Lhuillier Jewelers of Cebu had a very good striker who was feared by defenders all over the country. In fact he was a member of the M. Lhuillier team under coach Graeme Mackinnon which won the National Football League title (then known as the Don Andres Soriano Cup) in Iloilo in 1988. He was barely 17 when the Jewelers won the national title. Whom I am talking about is Rene Maambong of Wireless, Subangdaku Mandaue city.

The Philippine Football Federation (PFF) and national coaches were eyeing him then and they offered him to play for the national team. He refused many times but the PFF kept on calling. In 1991, the PFF tried to convince him again this time to play for the national team that would see action in the SEAG in Manila. He refused again citing conflict in his studies.

1991 SEAG was historical for Philippine football because it was the first time that the games were televised. The nation watched when the national team finished fourth in the biennial event, their best ever. The event made household names to Filipino footballers like Elmer Bedia and Norman Fegidero. I could imagine how Rene was salivating while watching the games on TV and thinking, `I could have been there’. Well, opportunity knocks only once.

I really wanted to write about the coming FA Cup final between Man United and Chelsea set on May 16 at the brand new Wembley stadium. But I remembered that come Monday, Filipinos will troop to the poll stations to vote. I will write the pre-match analysis three days before kickoff instead. God Bless