MANILA, Philippines – Unrest is brewing over the camp of F2 Logistics.
After suffering a sorry setback to Foton, the Cargo Movers raised a strong sense of urgency to field star setter Kim Fajardo in the quarterfinals of the Philippine Superliga Grand Prix.
Multiple sources revealed that head coach Ramil de Jesus wants Fajardo to play following a five-set loss to the Tornadoes that pushed them on the brink of a massive collapse in this import-flavored conference.
Arguably one of the best playmakers in the country today, Fajardo was sidelined with a fractured finger after trying to block the attack of Filipino-American star Kalei Mau in their eliminations encounter against United VC last February.
The initial assessment revealed that she will only be out for only two weeks, but it’s been more than a month and Fajardo has yet to be given clearance by team doctors.
With Fajardo out, the Cargo Movers deployed Alex Cabanos as their starting setter. Unfortunately for them, the former University of Santo Tomas playmaker had some lapses whenever the game is on the line.
“It’s not that coach Ramil doesn’t like Alex as his setter. He likes her a lot. Unfortunately, Alex gets tired whenever the game extends to five sets,” said the source, speaking on condition of anonymity.
“That’s why the team, especially coach Ramil, wants Kim back — even as a reliever for Alex. Her presence would definitely boost F2 Logistics against a very tough and talented team like Foton.”
In their first encounter against the Tornadoes, the Cargo Movers greatly felt Fajardo’s absence.
Cabanos played the entire two-hour match, prompting fatigue to affect her performance. On the contrary, the Tornadoes had the luxury of shuffling Gyselle Sy and Ivy Perez to keep the defense guessing, especially in the crucial stretch where Jaja Santiago and Courtney Felinski asserted their dominance at the attack zone.
At the end of the night, Cabanos had 23 excellent sets while Sy, who sat out the second set, had 20.
The source said it wouldn’t be a surprise if Foton shocks F2 Logistics.
“Foton is a very dangerous team. They won’t be two-time champions for nothing,” the source said. “This is the point where you need all hands on deck. And coach Ramil acknowledges that Kim can be a big help regardless of her role.”