OFWs clamor for second serving

Open the gates.

That was the initial reaction of some members of the PBA crew and the media the minute their bus crawled to a stop in front of the Queen Elizabeth gym, looking at some 500-meter long, eight-deep line of overseas Filipino workers and expats that Sunday afternoon in Hong Kong.

The occasion was the PBA on Tour match between Talk n Text and Purefoods and there were some uneasy thoughts that a stampede may occur ala Ultra because the crowd has become restive and excited.

Save this one was not for some quick rich scheme like in the tragic television show but for fun and entertainment for the thousands of OFWs.

And so the long line of PBA fans, numbering 3,000 — a hodge-podge of basketball diehards taking a break from their daily chores, waving banners and bandanas in the colors of the Phone Pals and Giants, erupting in shrieks and shouts for their basketball idols.

"I’ve waited since 9 a.m. but it’s worth it," said Leng Capurian from Calamba, Laguna. She traveled close to an hour from the New Territory where she works for five years for a Chinese couple to cheer for Purefoods and swoon over Jimmy Alapag’s ball-handling and pinpoint passes.

There was a coliseum-full of fans like her. They would disrupt players’ warm-up routine to seek for autographs, jostle for PBA t-shirt souvenirs, scramble for Asi Taulava’s head and wrist bands and put up signs to cheer for their cage heroes like Willie Miller.

One excited Pinay couldn’t resist a showbiz bit and flashed a placard declaring her love for "James Yap and Kris."

"I hope they do this every year. It’s a big thing for us to see these PBA players in action here in Hong Kong," said Winston Guadiz, a computer programmer in Tusen Wan who brought his wife Melody, a Cathay Pacific stewardess and their three-year-old son to the PBA showdown.

The Phone Pals drew an explosive start from Harvey Carey, shooting eight of the team’s first 11 points and wondrous shooting from Miller, hitting four straight treys, to lead by 18 points before bucking a third quarter run by the Giants en route to an 88-66 win.

It was their first victory in three starts in the Gran Matador Brandy PBA Philippine Cup.

PBA commissioner Noli Eala was so impressed by the huge turnout and success of the pro league’s first venture in the former British Crown Colony they plan to hold another game late this year and another event for OFWs in Singapore in probably under the sponsorship of the PLDT Global.

"Judging by the way we saw things here, the event was undoubtedly a success. So we’re looking at coming back and staging another game hopefully by November, again with the support of the PLDT Global," said Eala.

"If that’s the PBA plan, then that would be also our focus," said PLDT Global president and chief executive officer Al Panlilio.

"We want to help. That would be one of our ways in giving something back to our OFWs. They’re our modern-day heroes, giving our economy a big boost with their remittances. We want to entertain them even at least for a day," Panlilio added.

Expecting an even bigger turnout, the two are considering to hold the next PBA bash at the Hong Kong Stadium with a capacity of over 10,000.

Talk n Text PBA governor Ricky Vargas, who accompanied the team, noted how the entire stadium would rock with cheers from the crowd for every play and action regardless on which side of the court it would unfold.

"They’re cheering for their idols more than the team here. We’re happy we could bring this kind of entertainment and make our overseas kababayans happy," he said.

Tickets put up by the organizers were sold out three days before the event. Sponsors also used them as bonus to a purchase of 1528 Smart card.

"It’s a joy to see again a PBA game live after covering it for years. Hopefully, the PBA will come again to entertain our people here," said Noel Novicio, a vice consul in the Philippine embassy who used to cover the PBA beat for Sports Mirror magazine in the early 90s.

"I hope the PBA would keep coming back in Hong Kong. We long for events like that here," said Rodolfo Lopez, a native of Laguna who works in a hotel here.

PBA HONG KONG NOTES: Vargas said the Phone Pals win took "tremendous pressure off coach (Derick) Pumaren’s back. He was appointed three weeks before the season, and put in a new system despite some new players in the team and coming off two losses."… Bobby Barreiro, ABC vice president for marketing, who led the ABC coverage, said that the network is still studying its options on the television rights for the Doha Asian Games after getting initial communication from the Asian Broadcasting Union (ABU)…the HK game will be shown on ABC-5 at 4 p.m. today…. Surprisingly it was Purefoods team manager Alvin Patrimonio who was the most popular with the OFWs. Those involved on the TnT side of the HK PBA Tour aside from Vargas and Panlilio were Paul Gueco, Dr. Raffy Bejar, Tina de Quintos and Jay Eustaquio while Winston dela Cruz assisted the ABC crew.