Prepping for Mindanao leg: Roxas Vanguards vow to be a force to reckon with in Vismin Super Cup

CEBU, Philippines —  They may not have a starry lineup but with great team effort, the Roxas Vanguards vowed to be a strong fighting force in the inaugural season of the Pilipinas Vismin Super Cup.

Roxas, a town in Zamboanga del Norte named after the late Philippine president Manuel A. Roxas, is among the nine contenders in the Mindanao leg of the country’s first ever professional basketball league based in the South.

It is currently under suspension by the Games and Amusements Board in the wake of the Visayas bubble play controversy but the Vismin Super Cup management is determined to work things out for its May 25 kick-off   still in Dipolog City pending GAB’s approval.

The Vanguards will be pitted against the Pagadian Explorers, Cagayan de Oro Rafters, Sindangan Saints, Zamboanga City Los Valientes, Basilan Peace Riders, Ozamiz Cotta, and teams from Tawi-Tawi and Valencia City in Bukidnon.

By taking part in the league, Roxas Mayor Atty. Jan Hendrik I. Vallecer said they will not only bring honor and distinction to their place through sports tourism but also give their homegrown talents an opportunity to showcase their skills and be known.

“This has always been my passion. In fact, I have a lot of programs not only in basketball but also in other sports in our town. But it all stopped for a while because of the pandemic,” Vallecer said. “That is why when the opportunity came, we grabbed it right away especially that no less than our beloved governor (Roberto Y. Uy of Zamboanga del Norte) prodded us to form a team for the Super Cup.”

Vallecer, a former seminarian, very well knows the dynamics of the game being a diehard baller himself. He once played for the Gilas Defenders that emerged as champions in the IBP-Cebu Basketball League a few years ago.

Vallecer said given their roster bannered by three former PBA cagers in Leo Najorda, Chito Jaime, and JK Casino, they don’t have any superstars but teamwork will be their most lethal weapon in giving their rivals a run for their money.

“We may not have stars in our team but we have teamwork,” said Vallecer, who is also an educator having taught Philippine history at the Sacred Heart School-Ateneo de Cebu while studying law at the same time at the University of San Carlos (USC) some years back.

“We are here to play because of our passion, not for money. One thing I can assure with regards to ourteam is that we will compete. We will be a fighting force on the playing court. We aim to reach the championship and hopefully win the title,” he added.

Vanguards head coach Eddie Laure echoed Vallecer’s sentiments.

“What I have now are low-profile but hardworking players,” said Laure, who played for the Batangas Blades in the entire five seasons of the defunct Metropolitan Basketball Association (MBA), a community-based league from which the Super Cup is being patterned after. He was named MVP when the Blades outdueled the Negros Slashers to win the national championship of the 2001 MBA season.

When the MBA disbanded, Laure spent 13 fruitful years in the PBA after being selected by Shell Turbo Chargers as No.3 overall pick in the 2003 PBA Rookie Draft. He also saw action with Purefoods Hotdogs, Alaska Aces, Rain or Shine Elasto Painters, Powerade Tigers, and Blackwater Elite before retiring in 2016 with Mahindra Enforcer.

In the Super Cup, the 43-year-old pride of Dipolog City said they are ready for the tough challenge that lies ahead of them.

“We will not waste every game. We will always give our best to win. That would be our mindset,” said Laure, who was assistant coach of the Laguna Heroes in the Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League (MPBL) before deciding to go back to his hometown and take the coaching reins of the Vanguards. “I noticed that we lagged behind in terms of sports that is why I decided to come back to my hometown to help level up the sports in our province. The thing of beauty is that our LGUs are united for this common goal.”

In calling the shots for the Vanguards, Laure will be assisted by esteemed Cebuano bench tactician Edsel Say Vallena. A former collegiate standout and commercial veteran, Vallena was chief strategist of the Cebu Institute of Technology-University (CIT-U) Wildcats in the Cebu Schools Athletic Foundation, Inc. before the global health crisis put CESAFI’s activities to a grinding halt.

“We got new players but with right attitude. We are slowly applying our system to them. It’s a long process but hopefully we will be ready when game day comes,” shared Vallena, who also founded the One-on-One Training Camp that has already produced some hardcourt stars, most notable among them is PBA cager Paul Desiderio.