Alas Pilipinas Men eye a first-ever podium finish in the SEA V.League as they take on Thailand to close out leg 1 of the competition.
For rivals-turned-national-teammates Joshua Retamar and Joshua Ybañez, a lot of team and individual lessons can be learned ane be valuable moving forward for Alas Pilipinas, especially during the ongoing SEA V.League stint under new coach Angiolino Frigoni.
“Iba kasi yung game pagdating sa international so sabi nga ng coach namin kailangan pa namin masanay. Southeast Asia muna bago kami pumunta sa Word [Championships] next year,” Retamar said, in the aftermath of Alas Men’s four-set loss to two-time champion Indonesia in the 2024 SEA V.League.
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Retamar pointed out Alas Pilipinas’ poor reception that proved costly in the final three sets, leading to their downfall even after taking the early lead against the Indonesians.
"Hindi kami agad nakakapag-side out kaya medyo lumamang sila samin ngayon. ‘Yun ‘yung pagtutuunan pa namin ng pansin ngayon."
Furthermore, the Nationals’ 24 unforced errors– including a whopping 11 in the first set– is a problem that needs to be addressed as soon as possible.
Ybañez, meanwhile, emphasized on working to be as steady as they can be on defense.
"Siguro ‘yung sa depensa. Kailangan ko lang hindi masyadong maging malikot and more on react not anticipation,” Ybañez said, the reigning two-time UAAP MVP who has taken the role of libero for the national team.
"Again, yung siguro, dapat maging consistent ako sa energy ko inside the court.”
The UST Golden Spiker also shared his experience with new head coach Frigoni, who he credited for letting him play as free as possible inside the taraflex.
“With coach Angiolino, sobrang nakakatuwa. Happy ako na naging coach ko siya kasi siya yung coach na parang nagre-relax sakin, sobrang nagmo-motivate na just play free inside the court.”
Alas tries to bounce back against unbeaten Thailand (2-0) later at 6:00 p.m., looking to lock up a winning finish for leg 1 of the SEA V.League.