Foton opens AWCC bid vs Hong Kong's Pocari Sweat

Games Saturday:

(Alonte Sports Arena)

 11:30 a.m. – Chinese Taipei vs Malaysia

1:30 p.m. – Opening Ceremony

2:30 p.m. – Philippines vs Hong Kong

5 p.m. – Indonesia vs Kazakhstan

7 p.m. – North Korea vs Iran

BINAN CITY – Foton Pilipinas rolls into the warpath in high spirit when it tackles Pocari Sweat of Hong Kong in the opening salvo of the 2016 AVC Asian Women’s Club Championship Saturday (Saturday) at the Alonte Sports Arena here.

Action starts at 2:30 p.m. following the match between T. Grand of Chinese Taipei and the Malaysian national squad at 11:30 a.m. and a brief opening ceremony at 1:30 p.m. where no less than Binan City Mayor Arman Dimaguila declaring the tourney open and Larong Volleyball sa Pilipinas, Inc. (LVPI) president Joey Romasanta and Philippine Sports Commission chairman William Ramirez delivering the opening remarks.

AVC Honorary Life President Wei Jizhong will also grace the occasion as he serves as guest of honor.

Also seeing action in the opener of this prestigious tourney organized by the Philippine Superliga (PSL), LVPI and city government of Binan headed by Congw. Len Alonte-Naguiat and Mayor Dimaguila are Jakarta Elektrik PLN of Indonesia, which will battle Altay VC of Kazakhstan at 5 p.m., and 4.25 Sports Club of North Korea, which will face Sarmayeh Bank of Iran, in the night cap at 7 p.m..

TV5 and SMMTV-Thailand are the official television partners while Crimson Hotel serves as the official residence of this prestigious continental battle, which also is also bankrolled by SMM Sports, Nike, Senoh, Asics, Mikasa, Foton, BMW and Price Waterhouse Cooper.

AksyonTV will air the Foton Pilipinas-Pocari Sweat match live while TV5 will start its broadcast at 3 p.m.

Despite having only two weeks to prepare following an impressive bridesmaid finish in the 2016 PSL All-Filipino Conference, hopes are high for the Tornadoes as they drafted American imports Lindsay Stalzer and Ariel Usher together with guest players Aby Marano of F2 Logistics, Jen Reyes of Petron and Jovelyn Gonzaga of RC Cola-Army.

Foton Pilipinas also tapped Italian coach Fabio Menta, a grizzled international mentor who called the shots for the Cook Islands national women’s team last year.

Menta said although Hong Kong appears to be a lightweight after the PSL All-Star Team swept it in a friendly match in Bangkok last March, they still can’t take it for granted as it is an experienced team powered by quick players who can attack above the net.

“Blocking will be the key to the game,” said Menta, who piloted the Tornadoes to a pair of victories in the tough Sealect Tuna Thailand Volleyball League in Sisaket, Thailand last week.

“Hongkong and any other teams will be a big obstacle if we do not perform at blocking. So, one game at a time, day after day, we can have our tallest player, Jaja (Santiago), understand the new schemes and improve the mechanism.”

Menta admitted that the 6-foot-5 Santiago has yet to fully grasp his system as her school commitment limited her time with the team.

On the same note, Gonzaga had trained only thrice as she failed to secure a travel permit from the Philippine Army when the team traveled to Thailand.

“We are working very hard on every single detail and everyone is focused,” he said. “But Jaja trained only once while Jov trained three times. We will not be perfect.”

Menta added that Maika Ortiz, Rhea Dimaculangan, EJ Laure, Cherry Rondina, Patty Orendain, Bia General, Angeli Araneta and Ivy Perez will also play a crucial role when the going gets tough.

After all, their target is to dominate their first two games against Hong Kong and Vietnam to build momentum in the quarterfinals where dangerous NEC Red Rockets of Japan or Altay VC of Kazakhstan would be waiting.

“We look at the quarterfinals as much as possible,” he said. “From then on, we will be better from where we are right now.”