After Kuwait: The Future of Pinoy Futbol

July 28, 2011

Rain slowly began to fall as the final whistle blew on the dream of seeing the Philippine team in the 2014 World Cup Finals. The Filipinos on the pitch slumped to the ground hiding their faces from the thousands of supporters in the Rizal Memorial Stadium. Dead Silence.

Then a beat. A murmur at first. Then wave after wave of appreciation started flowing from the stands. 

The majority of the crowd had stayed with them all the way and were offering comfort and love to the fallen Azkals. They may have not brought our country to the Mecca of football in Brazil, but you can't help but feel they have given something much more valuable than that. The Azkals have given life back to Football.

Since their phenomenal rise to fame, I have begun to see strange things in the streets. Children kicking balls around parks and roads in Manila, football equipment from sports stores being sold out, and Philippine kits being donned around the city. It was never like this before the AFC Suzuki Cup shot the Azkals into the limelight. As my British friend has told me awhile back that coming to the Philippines"... was like coming to a wasteland in terms of football", but now there is a bright future ripe for the taking.

During that faithful game in Rizal, the Azkals showed every Filipino what football is about. It is about heart. The blood, sweat, and tears you shed for a dream. The ideal of a belief. This showing of the Azkals against Kuwait, I feel, has implanted amongst the Filipino a certain dream. This dream is for the future of Philippine football. A glorious dream that would unite the nation in something beautiful and honest.

Now... Where do we go from here? The future is now at the foot of the Filipino. The world is at our feet. 

Some say it's just a game... When will they realize... It is something more than that.

MABUHAY ANG FILIPINO FOOTBALL!

The Azkals and the rise of Philippine football

So there I was, standing in the middle of a crowd of 13,000 people in the Rizal Memorial Stadium. We have spent the better part of 90 minutes cheering for the boys in blue. They are called the Azkals, the new face of Philippine sports and pride. It was a surreal experience which left me asking myself "Is this real? Is this all really happening?". To understand why I ask things like this, we have to look back on where we were a few years ago.

2005 Philippines

The Philippines is all abuzz as it completes its preparations to host the SEA Games. My dad, who is a sports broadcaster among other things, shuffles through the notes of the sports he is assigned to cover. He comes up to me and asks "Is Chelsea a good team?" I reply with a "Yes, but I really don't like them". He then goes on to explain that two reserves, the now famous Younghusband brothers, are flying in from England to reinforce the RP XI. This sparked a curiosity, Chelsea players? Playing for the Philippines? Could this be the start of something big for football?

Sadly, no. Though it did plant the seeds for something greater. After a failed SEA Games campaign (in terms of football), Philippine football had another set of disappointments it had to deal with. There was the very controversial presidency of Mari Martinez, the failure to qualify for the Suzuki Cup on goal difference, the depressing fact that the Younghusbands left Chelsea and flew back to the Philippines to seemingly concentrate on show business, and fact that National championships weren't being played anymore. 

Local Football

Despite the sad state of Philippine football, it did not stop the local football scene from kicking the ball. In the area that I lived, there would be regular football played midweek and during the weekends. Lo and behold, from time to time the Younghusband brothers would join the pick up games. I thought if the best in the country are here playing on an obscure field in Alabang against players who just have football as a hobby, what hope does the Philippines have for football?

Suzuki Cup Qualifiers

I was over the moon with the qualification. I remember congratulating the Younghusband brothers, who  had become friends of mine,  over facebook and personally when we would run into each other in town. I was thinking that in a few more years, maybe we can make a splash in South East Asia. A big enough win against top opposition that would make the country stand up and take notice. For now, it was a silent party for the Philippine football fans. 

Vietnam

Unto the group stages, the Philippines were grouped with powerhouses Singapore, hosts Vietnam, and Myanmar. I looked at the opposition and I said... "Ok, we can beat Myanmar and pray that we don't get embarrassed by Vietnam and Singapore". Little did I know I was going to get the shock of my life. 

1-1 Against Singapore

2-0 Against Vietnam

0-0 Against Myanmar

2-0 against Vietnam!?!?!?! 

I was at a party when the game was going on, and we flipped on the telly to check by how much we were losing. I flipped it to the channel and we were up 1-0, we were all gobsmacked at the party and couldn't be bothered with anything else. Then Phil Younghusband gets the ball in the box... fakes out two defenders... and makes it 2-0. The Philippines explodes with a newfound love for football.

World Cup Qualifiers

Before I knew it.. There I was.. Soaked in the rain.. With 13,000 screaming Filipinos at my side.. It was beautiful, the game was coming to life at long last. The Azkals have just made it 4-0 to get past the first round of the World Cup Qualifiers for the first time ever. I never thought I would see the day that football would be this loved in the country. I never thought that I would walk towards a stadium in the Philippines clad in the colors of the Azkals with thousands by my side screaming for the love of football and the country. 

Some may say that this is just a game, but I tell you this. If you were there amongst the 13,000 that rainy day. You would understand, that it is something much more than that.

Tiff is in town!

Tiff, walking through town during her brief visit to the Philippines.

I have new belief in camera phones.

demo reel 2011

my first attempt at a demo reel, so please be gentle.

2010-11

Playing in the dark

In low light, some would adjust their aperture and shutter speed or use flash.

Personally I like using a 20-30 second shutter speed setting with the smallest aperture possible and a stable surface. Here are a few pictures I took of my cousin's birthday party while playing with this setting.

(these are low-res versions)

Post-Ondoy

Some pictures I took after the typhoon Ondoy a year ago. I just ran into it while going through my mac and decided to post them. 

Mi Siblings!

Paolo Gabriel Ruiz del Rosario: 1/3 actor, 1/3 footballer, 1/3 film major.

Ysabella Mattea Marie Ruiz del Rosario: 100% cute.

Richard Joshua Ruiz del Rosario II: 1/2 Boy, 1/2 Mystery.

International FC

This is International FC

This bunch (and a few more others who aren't pictured) 

is responsible for my footballing life. With them I have grown

 as an athlete and as a person in a sport I truly love.

More power to us!

JCS teaser

Jesus Christ Superstar teaser!

shot and edited by yours truly in the Naga Metropolitan Cathedral.

Bicol

Shooting for thesis. Like a boss.

Sophia

Here is something I am immensely proud of. I am actually thinking of submitting it to a contest in DLSU.

Sinulog!

Sinulog was insane! I know this was a late post cause of how busy I was, but damn... I still can't get it out of my mind. It was a party like no other in that street. People singing and dancing as far as the eye could see. If you wanted a drink, all you had to do was open your mouth and people would shower you with beer or harder drinks. It was like nothing else.

Some things are just worth the pain

Football, for me is worth almost the whole of one's entirety. Put the body on the line and fight 'til the end. It is where the whole world stops for 90 minutes to bear witness to the one thing they all understand. You can say its just a game, but this is about heroes and tribes. Loyalty and devotion. It is a passion and a belief.

This is the beautiful game.

10 Things a Lasallian should know (for the 2010 general elections)

Me and my TELPROD class' first attempt at a production as a class. We were asked to come up with a Public Service Announcement for any cause we felt worth fighting for. So, given that the election was looming close, we decided to address voter education.

Epiphany

Wow, I almost completely forgot about this. This is "Epiphany" which is my very first attempt at anything serious as a video. This was shot in the 1st term of my second year for my Television Production (TELPROD) class back in 2009. My basics here are still very rough, but it was a great and fun learning experience. This was shot using a digicam in the span of a whole afternoon and 10 minutes in the evening.

This video is about a young boy's first encounter with the idea of death. 

The First Post

Here is the first post of what hopefully is a blog that actually lives throughout the first year of its existence. 

In the past, I had found it difficult to keep one due to the amount of maintenance that it usually requires. Though this time it is safe to say I am quite a bit older since my last attempt, and I might just possess the patience to keep this up. This blog will be used as a place where I can keep most if not all the work I am proud of, and my thoughts on things worth talking about.

So here is to a long and meaningful new blog!