Azkals rookie cites Phl's defense

MANILA, Philippines - National football team rookie goalkeeper Christopher Camcam won’t suit up for the AFF Suzuki Cup semifinals against Indonesia tomorrow and Sunday but the Azkals youngest player isn’t bothered. For the 16-year-old Benjamin, just making it to the 30-man roster is an achievement he’ll cherish forever.

Coach Simon McMenemy submitted a 30-man lineup to the AFF for the Suzuki Cup but a day before the start of hostilities, trimmed the cast to 22, leaving out Camcam and seven others. Although he’s not in the active list, the 6-2 Camcam left with the team for Jakarta yesterday.

“On a scale of 1 to 10, I rate our chances of beating Indonesia to be 7 or 8,” said Camcam. “We’re used to playing matches abroad. We beat Vietnam, the defending champion, in front of 40,000 fans in Hanoi. It’s no different playing in Jakarta. I think we’re the best defensive team in the tournament while Indonesia is best in attacking. So in the semifinals, it will be our defense against their offense.”

Camcam said the Azkals will keep a close watch on Indonesia’s deadly strikers Cristian (El Loco) Gonzales and half-Dutch Irfan Bachdim. “We can handle Gonzales,” he said. “Our defenders are solid – Aly Borromeo, Anton del Rosario, Rob Gier and Ray Jonsson. Anton and Aly will check Irfan (who has scored three goals so far in the tournament). Aly’s our leader. He’s a huge presence for us on the field. And coach Simon is a great motivator. He gets us all fired up. He knows what he’s doing. You couldn’t ask anything more from a coach.”

Camcam, a third year high school student at Linden Tree, said he never expected to be called up to the senior squad. He saw action on the under-16 team in an international tournament in Bacolod last year and was recommended by Philippine Football Federation technical director Aris Caslib to try out for the senior team with then coach Desmond Bulpin. When Bulpin left and McMenemy took over, Camcam remained on the training roster.

“When I started training with the national team at the International School and Nomads, I was kind of scared,” said Camcam, the oldest of five children. “At first, I thought of not going back to practice. I wasn’t sure if I could keep up with the guys. But I worked as hard as I could. I tried to improve my game. My dad brought in coach Itik Baldava to work weekends with me for additional practice. I also spent two weeks of daily intensive training with the Barcelona football club in Spain.”

Camcam’s father Nicky, a 43-year-old restaurateur who played varsity football for the La Salle Military Academy in New York, has pulled no stops in providing his son with the support to get better. The trip to Spain opened Camcam’s eyes to new techniques in goalkeeping and Baldava’s individual coaching honed his skills to a higher level. His father arranged for Baldava to fly in for eight weekends from San Carlos City to Manila for personalized training.

 “Coach Itik gave Tophe the maturity to be patient,” said Nicky. “He gave pointers on proper timing. At his age, Tophe needs the exposure, what I call EQ. He’s dedicated. He wants to learn and improve. My wife (Marivi) and I are doing our best to make his dream come true. I remember Tophe started playing football at 7 and his Richfield coach was surprised that he preferred to play goalkeeper than striker. Tophe went on to play at Southridge then last year, we transferred him to Linden Tree, an international school which is affiliated with the Colby Academy of California. Linden Tree allows its students to pursue special interests outside of academics with compromising their studies. The curriculum is tailor-made for its students and we’re happy with Tophe’s progress.”

Nicky even transformed the garden at home in Alabang into a virtual football pitch where his son could practice with a makeshift goal and spotlights for night play.

Camcam used to play for the local club Kaya but since its disbandment, is looking for a new team. A dream is to play overseas. National teammate Jason de Jong offered to arrange tryouts for Camcam with a first division club in Holland and a third division club in Belgium.

“I never thought I’d make it to the national team so I’m really surprised coach Simon gave me a chance to play behind our goalkeepers Neil Etheridge and Ed Sacapano,” said Camcam whose sister Alessandra, 15, is with the national under-16 girls team. “My attitude is to keep working hard. Someday, I hope to play abroad and bring more honor to our country.”

Camcam said the Azkals’ advance to the Suzuki Cup semifinals was a result of hard work. “It’s been a surreal experience,” said Camcam who singled out Etheridge, Iker Castillas of Spain and Gigi Buffon of Italy as his favorite goalkeepers. “The other day, we met President Aquino who promised to support our team. It’s a great feeling to be part of the national team. I’m really proud of it. I just hope this inspires others to work hard in whatever they do because hard work always pays off.”