Pacman, Azkals, LA Galaxy, cliché

Sunday morning will be traffic free and crime free in many parts of the country.

There would be no need to sign any peace agreement or identify any Areas of Temporary Stay (ATS) for our soldiers and the MILF to avoid confrontation.

There won’t even be any queues in the grocery and even our churches would not have too many going to mass.

The reason for all of these is that Manny Pacquiao will be fighting Juan Manuel Marquez for the third time.

I may not be in favor of Pacquiao entering politics, but when it comes to his fights, I am all for the Filipino international boxing superstar.

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If you plan to fly to Manila for the December 3 exhibition match between the Philippine Azkals and the Los Angeles Galaxy of Major League Soccer, be ready to spend a good amount of money.

The cheapest tickets are sold at P2,000. If you intend to pay a little more, the other tickets are priced at P5,000, P9,500, P10,500, P12,500, and P15,500.

Add the cost of plane fare and hotel accommodation plus the transfers and meals, watching the game can easily set you off several thousands of pesos.

If you can afford it, then why not go?

If you can’t, don’t feel left out as the game will be telecast live.

It will be the senior team of the Azkals that will face the Galaxy, not the team that is now competing in Indonesia for the Southeast Asian Games.

So, what are the chances of the Azkals against the Galaxy? Not really much, but this will be a great opportunity for us football-starved Filipinos to watch some international stars play in our country.

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The cliché that players win games and coaches lose them seem to describe what happened to Sacred Heart School-Ateneo de Cebu in the rubbermatch for the CESAFI secondary basketball crown against the University of the Visayas.

My work prevented me from being at the Cebu Coliseum, but my son, who watched the game along with other students of their school, was regularly updating me of the scores.

When the game ended, it did not take long before I started receiving text messages from fellow parents and others, who watched the game asking why the SHS-AdC coach benched the players, who played very well during the third quarter, at the start of the fourth.

UV turned things around and beat SHS-AdC by three points, 85-82 resulting to another bridesmaid finish for the Magis Eagles.

I’m sure this will be a hot topic today as we gather at the school for the card giving day. See you at the parents’ lounge that the PTA will set up at the lobby. Yes, snacks will be served as usual.

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MILESTONES: Belated happy birthday to my cousin Patrick Evans King, who celebrated the other day and to our comare Myna Biscocho, who turned a year older yesterday.

Today’s greetings go to Atty. Louella Mendoza-Yu. Advance greetings to Atty. Nilo ‘Olin’ Seno and Buena Paz ‘Bon-bon’ Montero, who are celebrating tomorrow.

More power to all of you!