More hot Philippine Volcanoes

Right after Valentine’s, we featured Philippine Volcanoes team captain Jake Letts and Kenneth Stern. The Volcanoes were invited for the first time to participate at the HSBC Hong Kong Sevens series on March 23-25 at the Hong Kong Stadium.

We continue this week with two more team members, Chris Everingham, and Arnold Aninion (who joined GMA’s Survivor Celebrity Edition). We interviewed them in between their preparations for their upcoming tournaments. Aside from the Hong Kong Sevens this March, they are training for the Asian 5 Nations Division 1 Championships on April 15, 18, and 21 at the Rizal Memorial Stadium.

PHILIPPINE STAR: Was rugby your first sports? If yes, how did you start?

ARNOLD ANINION:  Rugby wasn’t my first sport; I started playing soccer/football at age six. At nine, I started competing in athletics. However, NZ was known more for rugby so as I got older, I slowly transitioned into rugby union. At one point, I was competing in all three sports, but eventually, rugby was the sport I wanted to stick with and when I turned 10, I decided to leave soccer and continue with rugby as my primary sport.

CHRIS EVERINGHAM: I played a very similar game in Australia called Rugby League since I was eight years old. Basically, my dad dragged me down to the club and said, “You’re playing footy” and I loved it ever since.

Do you play any other sports?

ARNOLD: I love playing indoor soccer, it’s fast-paced and I thrive in the one-on-one challenges and not to mention the smaller field that you have to play in. I also enjoy playing basketball especially street ball, I enjoy the aggressive plays. The fact that there’s no referee makes it all the more interesting because you’re relying heavily on the honesty of the other players and I love watching the creative moves/plays that other players come up with.

CHRIS: Now, I also kitesurf and breakdance. Surfing and golf as well.

How often do you practice?

Chris Everingham: Rugby is good in building confidence; being the odd one out, being the only Asian in school, it helped me build an identity.

ARNOLD: For rugby, I train twice a day, five days a week. A normal day would consist of weight training in the morning, mainly explosive exercises (snatch and cleans), followed by stretching and abs. And then in the afternoon, I mainly focus on ball skills, finished off with some short sprints (50m, then 80m).

CHRIS: For rugby, I train about five days a week, twice a day.

Does rugby provide non-physical benefits?

ARNOLD: Rugby is a great confidence booster. Why? Because you have to face other players running at you and without confidence, you’re going to find it very challenging to play. Also, rugby develops your ability to think and react under pressure, you have only seconds to perform and execute moves. Not to mention that you have to do all these while at the same time evading incoming defenders. So it requires extreme concentration and focus. 

CHRIS: Self-confidence, social network — meet new people, make new friends!