As if guided by remote control, I drove to the Cebu International School in Pit-os, Cebu City last Saturday to witness some of the action in the 4th Cebu Rugby 10s Festival.
If you don’t know where the place is, you head to Talamban and when you reach that fork, you take the one on the left and drive a few kilometers more.
If you know where the place is and you weren’t there last Saturday, then you missed a lot.
Although I have seen some rugby games on TV, last weekend’s event at CIS was something different as it was bruising, but obviously a lot of fun.
I admit to thinking of trying the sport encouraged by Noel Flowers, skipper of the Cebu Dragons, who also has spine problems like me.
One thing I surely enjoyed though was shooting pictures.
The guys there told me that I missed the noontime show put up by Team Cebu City DanceSport. The performance impressed them so much and I am sure most of those from the other parts of the country and the world are already looking forward to the next edition.
Rugby 10s is a social event. Yes, it also has much to do about sport, but despite the competition, the people who take part in this event are having so much fun doing it.
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Many are excited to head to Manila this weekend for the exhibition match between the Philippine Azkals and newly-crowned Major League Soccer champion Los Angeles Galaxy.
LA Galaxy will be led by British superstar David Beckham and American star Landon Donovan.
I have been reading the posts of the members of the Pinoy Football page on Facebook and many seem excited especially with the deals being offered through the United Football League.
I will be heading to the southern part of the country this weekend so I will have to be contented with watching the game on television, which I hope to find time for.
Events like this help sustain the interest for football in this part of the world. It had taken a long time for our country to wake up and embrace the world’s number one sport.
While it is true that football has always been there in our country, but it never got this much interest from the sectors that are not into sports.
There are now televised games for the local league and our national team is getting a lot of media exposure.
Yes, there are still much to be desired, but let’s take it a step at a time and get to our destination.
The World Cup is still very far away from where we now stand. Let’s set our sights on the smaller events to hone our skills and keep on moving forward taking these small steps.
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MILESTONES: Congratulations to the Central Command of the Armed Forces of the Philippines, which is celebrating its 10th founding anniversary today.
Happy birthday greetings go to Samsam Gullas, Roger Lo, Michelle Varron, and Alice Costales, who are turning a year older today.
Advance greetings to those celebrating tomorrow like my mistah Rico Lavalle, Anne Marie Tan, Joanna Motoomull, Nancy Cudis, Sheila Peñafort, and Reza Nora.
More power to all of you! - THE FREEMAN