An improving changeover. The Ateneo Blue Booters challenges to their opppnents on this coming UAAP season with much changes to the coaching staff and team dynamics. Photo by Mario T. Dagdag

MANY SAY that the scars of the past are better buried and forgotten, but the strength and humility to face the past, and learn from it, prepares one for the future. With revitalized spirits and renewed direction, the Blue and Lady Booters look forward to a challenging UAAP football season after two years of placing at the bottom of the rankings.

Blue Booters

After going through team issues, controversies and a winless season 73 campaign, the appointment of Jay Pee Merida—the 29-year-old Ateneo Hall of Famer and former member of the Ateneo three-peat championship team—to replace his own uncle, long-time coach Ompong Merida, led to much needed changes.

Among the alterations made in the team is the coach and player relationship, as team captains James Arco and returning goalkeeper RS Mantos cite. “He communicates well and motivates us all,” shares Mantos about their new coach.

“Football has become fun again; the team is one family,” adds Arco.

As for tactical changes on the field, the team has switched from the 4-3-2-1 defensive system to a more fluid 4-5-1 system—a system which requires constant transitions from offense to defense and a higher level of conditioning. “The entire coaching staff is also young and composed of former UAAP champions,” Arco says about the more rigorous training program. “Their passion rubs off on all of us.”

Senior Anton Amistoso says that the younger Merida believes in the value of a true team effort by assigning players to positions where they are most effective. A former striker, Amistoso now plays midfield due to his ability to facilitate plays and defend. “Everything is a team effort,” Amistoso says.

Arco, Mantos and Yu Murayama are this year’s co-captains. Alongside them are field veterans Francis Mendoza, Miguel Tuazon and Kurt Alvarez. They all have one aim this season: to restore pride to a team that was once three-peat champions. “It really is all about playing for the print at the front of the jersey,” declares Mantos, “not the names printed at the back.”

Despite drawing against UP and FEU in the preseason, Mantos points out: “You really can’t gauge from the preseason because it all changes come UAAP, but we saw room for improvement.”

“We have the potential to do well this year since we have a good mix of veterans and young players,” Arco says.

Lady Booters

The Lady Booters had a relatively better Season 73 performance, finishing fourth out of five teams. Change also came their way as Ateneo’s football program head Bob Manlulo took the helm at the start of the year. Restructuring and a renewed perspective were his main targets.

“Coach’s priority is to make us improve and work as team,” says sophomore defender Milka Romero. “Winning is just a bonus.” With team chemistry as the primary objective, several players were shuffled into different positions in order to gauge their capabilities.

“I was a striker all my life until coach made me a defender this year,” shares Romero. She now plays alongside skipper Inez Achacoso at the heart of the defense—both Romero and Achacoso’s tall frames make them fit for the role. On the other hand, Cess Trinidad, the Lady Booters’ fastest attacker, was moved to play on the wing.

However, the changes didn’t provide an automatic fix. The Lady Booters failed to bag any medals in the Rexona Cup and the MMGFA league. But, despite their 1-0 quarterfinal loss to La Salle in the recently concluded Unigames, the women’s team showcased the kind of teamwork that Manlulo envisions. It also gave them something that they need going into the UAAP season: confidence.

As the season approaches, spirits are high among the Lady Booters—with much credit to their rediscovered form. With just the right amount of belief, the ladies in blue might pull off a surprise. “We have the talent and the experience,” Romero concludes. “All we need is the confidence. We are contenders.”

The football season kicks off on January and will be held at the high school and Ocampo fields in the Ateneo campus.