Philippines NT arrived Hanoi airport at 8 Pm today.
Vietnam FA
Tuesday, 30 November 2010
UMass is looking up!
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| Click on image for a larger view |
Relavent Quote: "Patriots spokesman Stacey James would say only, �The Kraft family has been very supportive of football at all levels of competition throughout New England. They are proud to have hosted Pop Warner, high school and college football games at Gillette Stadium. College football has a rich history in New England, and I know that the Krafts would welcome the opportunity to celebrate the college game�s rivalries and traditions at Gillette Stadium.�
If the Kraft family are on board for a UMass upgrade, that would the political and prestege push that could put UMass over the top.
The Blog would like to see ALL UMass games at Gillette. The fan base is in the East. Access to McGuirk is impossible due to the roads. UConn put their stadium near an interstate and Hartford. They knew no one was going to Storrs. The UMass fan base is already trained to use Gillette. Don't spend any money on McGuirk. Instead of a McGuirk upgrade, use the money for a new fieldhouse/training facility that would benefit all UMass sports.
There would be nothing wrong with being the "little brothers" of the Patriots.
Monday, 29 November 2010
Orlando Sentinel: Sun Bowl vs. Miami
?
? Gotta love the MAC.
It's the only conference where you can look reasonably horrible before a small crowd in Ohio in the last regular-season game and get what amounts to a reward.
Win the conference or division and go to Detroit, Boise or Mobile.
Finish somewhat farther back in the conference and go to El Paso or Las Vegas.
Or D.C.
It was that way last year for the Temple Owls, when they spit the bit at Ohio and lost, 35-17, in the defacto MAC East championship game and got the marquee opponent of the MAC postseason in UCLA before 20,000 Temple fans in D.C.
It appears to be that way again this season, the marquee opponent part, not the D.C. part.
I must admit that I thought the season was, for all intents and purposes, over with a 23-3 loss at Miami.
The Owls would not have been a hot team coming into the postseason.
Their one marquee player has been an injury question mark and they would not bring 20,000 fans on the road with them like they did last year.
Reading the reports, though, I'm thinking that the Owls will find their way to a bowl game, more likely than not in a sunny and warm (err, warmer) climate.
If I had to handicap it today, I would go with these numbers:
Orlando Sentinel says the Owls will go to the Sun Bowl to face Miami (Fla.) and I will take that.
The first thing you have to do when you read a bowl projection is skip over the ones that have "bleacher report" written next to the writer's byline.
It's a bunch of Joe Schmoes, like you and me, reports worth money Bleacher Report paid for them _ which is nothing.
?
? The people you have to pay attention to are the ones who are paid and answer to the person paying them.
That's why I'm giving credence to sites like CBSSportsline.com and people like Stewart Mandel of Sports Illustrated.
Those sites have the Owls going to either the Sun Bowl to play the U (the real Miami) or the Vegas Bowl to play Utah.
I'll take either one.
I will pass on playing Boise or Nevada in Idaho, which is where many of the Joe Schmoes on Bleacher Report have us going. Pass, because it's too much of a hardship for our fans.
The only reason I want to play a bowl is to get this bad taste out of my mouth that I've had the last couple of weeks and I want to be there when it happens. Since I haven't been eating garlic, it must be the losing that's eating at me.
I like what Michael Vick said after the game last night.
"I hate losing. It makes me sick. It makes me ill."
I hear ya, Michael. Losing makes me sick, too, and the only remedy is to win again.
I don't want to wait until next year for the cure.
It's only a reward, though, if you go there (wherever) and win. I want to see these Owls and especially the seniors go out with a swagger. I want to avenge the loss to UCLA and close the season the way it started _ bringing home a trophy. The season started with a Mayor's Cup Trophy.
I want it to end with a Sun Bowl or a Vegas Bowl Trophy.
You can only get that by playing the game.
Beating Utah or the real Miami is the best mouthwash I can think of right now.
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| It's not going to be this dark in El Paso on Dec. 31 at 2 p.m. |
It's the only conference where you can look reasonably horrible before a small crowd in Ohio in the last regular-season game and get what amounts to a reward.
Win the conference or division and go to Detroit, Boise or Mobile.
Finish somewhat farther back in the conference and go to El Paso or Las Vegas.
Or D.C.
It was that way last year for the Temple Owls, when they spit the bit at Ohio and lost, 35-17, in the defacto MAC East championship game and got the marquee opponent of the MAC postseason in UCLA before 20,000 Temple fans in D.C.
It appears to be that way again this season, the marquee opponent part, not the D.C. part.
I must admit that I thought the season was, for all intents and purposes, over with a 23-3 loss at Miami.
The Owls would not have been a hot team coming into the postseason.
Their one marquee player has been an injury question mark and they would not bring 20,000 fans on the road with them like they did last year.
Reading the reports, though, I'm thinking that the Owls will find their way to a bowl game, more likely than not in a sunny and warm (err, warmer) climate.
If I had to handicap it today, I would go with these numbers:
- 30 percent chance of Sun Bowl vs. Miami of Florida;
- 20 percent chance of Vegas Bowl vs. Utah;
- 15 percent chance of Humanitarian Bowl vs. Nevada or Fresno State;
- 5 percent chance of "some other bowl";
- 30 percent chance of no bowl;
Orlando Sentinel says the Owls will go to the Sun Bowl to face Miami (Fla.) and I will take that.
The first thing you have to do when you read a bowl projection is skip over the ones that have "bleacher report" written next to the writer's byline.
It's a bunch of Joe Schmoes, like you and me, reports worth money Bleacher Report paid for them _ which is nothing.
?
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| The MAAC Vegas Bowl in, well, you know. |
That's why I'm giving credence to sites like CBSSportsline.com and people like Stewart Mandel of Sports Illustrated.
Those sites have the Owls going to either the Sun Bowl to play the U (the real Miami) or the Vegas Bowl to play Utah.
I'll take either one.
I will pass on playing Boise or Nevada in Idaho, which is where many of the Joe Schmoes on Bleacher Report have us going. Pass, because it's too much of a hardship for our fans.
The only reason I want to play a bowl is to get this bad taste out of my mouth that I've had the last couple of weeks and I want to be there when it happens. Since I haven't been eating garlic, it must be the losing that's eating at me.
I like what Michael Vick said after the game last night.
"I hate losing. It makes me sick. It makes me ill."
I hear ya, Michael. Losing makes me sick, too, and the only remedy is to win again.
I don't want to wait until next year for the cure.
It's only a reward, though, if you go there (wherever) and win. I want to see these Owls and especially the seniors go out with a swagger. I want to avenge the loss to UCLA and close the season the way it started _ bringing home a trophy. The season started with a Mayor's Cup Trophy.
I want it to end with a Sun Bowl or a Vegas Bowl Trophy.
You can only get that by playing the game.
Beating Utah or the real Miami is the best mouthwash I can think of right now.
AFF Suzuki Cup - TV and Livestream
Star Sports will show Philippines matches in AFF Suzuki Cup.
Livestream at www.bet365.com , same as in the qualifiers. Need to register but no payment needed.
Livescores at www.futbol24 or www.spbolive.com
First match 2. December Philippines - Singapore , 17.00 in Vietnam (18.00 in Philippines)
Livestream at www.bet365.com , same as in the qualifiers. Need to register but no payment needed.
Livescores at www.futbol24 or www.spbolive.com
First match 2. December Philippines - Singapore , 17.00 in Vietnam (18.00 in Philippines)
MARTINEZ NO LONGER PFF PRESIDENT
MANILA (30 Nov 2010) - Jose Mari Martinez is no longer the president of the Philippine Football Federation (PFF) following a unanimous decision of the 7th Ordinary Congress of the federation which was held on the weekend at the Audio-Visual Room of the Philsports Complex in Pasig City.
Twenty-five presidents out of the 29 present members football associations (from a total 33) of the PFF voted to approve a resolution by the eight members of the Board of Governors recommending the removal and replacement of Martinez as president.
Mariano V. Araneta, the current head of the Iloilo Football Association was named as the interim president who will serve out the last year of Martinez� four-year term.
Araneta was also the chairman of the PFF�s Finance Committee who launched the probe into the federation�s finances.
Ismael Batiles of the Cagayan de Oro-Misamis Oriental Football Association was named the Executive Vice President.
The PFF Congress also took him to task for alleged misuse of the Financial Assistance Plans annual subsidy from the Federation de International Football Association (FIFA).
ASEAN FOOTBALL (AFF) website
Twenty-five presidents out of the 29 present members football associations (from a total 33) of the PFF voted to approve a resolution by the eight members of the Board of Governors recommending the removal and replacement of Martinez as president.
Mariano V. Araneta, the current head of the Iloilo Football Association was named as the interim president who will serve out the last year of Martinez� four-year term.
Araneta was also the chairman of the PFF�s Finance Committee who launched the probe into the federation�s finances.
Ismael Batiles of the Cagayan de Oro-Misamis Oriental Football Association was named the Executive Vice President.
The PFF Congress also took him to task for alleged misuse of the Financial Assistance Plans annual subsidy from the Federation de International Football Association (FIFA).
ASEAN FOOTBALL (AFF) website
Martinez insists ouster was illegal
Jose Mari Martinez said yesterday he�s both happy and sad about his ouster as president of the Philippine Football Federation (PFF) following a vote at the National Congress acting on a motion endorsed by the Board of Governors.
�I�m happy because now I know that all it takes is to pay off the representatives of the provincial associations for their votes but I�m sad because they did it in violation of the PFF Constitution and By-Laws,� said Martinez. �If it�s just a matter of money, that�s no problem. I was told the pay-off was only P50,000 to vote for my removal.�
Martinez said nobody can pin him down on accountability for the so-called missing funds amounting to about P2.8 million. �I dare anyone to take me to court,� he said. �If all they want is money, I can give it to them, anytime. When I want or need money, it�s there. Two weeks ago, I got a commitment for P2 million from my foreign sources. The first P1 million arrived and I used it to pay off obligations from the recent hosting of the under-16 ladies tournament. When I was told a budget of P150,000 was required for a tournament in Tagum, I gave my own money. But after what they did to me in the Congress, I got my money back.�
Martinez said his allies in FIFA, AFC (Asian Football Confederation) and AFF (Asian Football Federation) won�t take his ouster lightly.
�I�m definitely going to court,� said Martinez who attended the Congress at the PhilSports Audio-Visual Room last Saturday with two lawyers Arnold Perez and Voltaire de la Cruz. �I�m not worried. The vote they took was both amazing and shocking. One by one, I saw them voting me out. But the vote was illegal. For the Congress to call for a vote to remove the president, there must be an endorsement from the Board. A Board meeting was held a few hours before the Congress but it was not legal. You need a 30-day notice for a Board meeting. They forced a meeting at the PFF building. I was in my office in the same building but didn�t attend because there was no notice. They insisted on holding the meeting without my consent and brought up the motion but it couldn�t be lawful because it was an illegal meeting. We will bring this up in court because it was a clear violation of the PFF Constitution and By-Laws. This case isn�t over.�
Martinez said if necessary, he will call on his brother-in-law Tarsy Cruz, a top-notch lawyer from the Romulo, Mabanta, Buenaventura, Sayoc and De los Angeles group, to bring up the matter in court.
More : Philstar
�I�m happy because now I know that all it takes is to pay off the representatives of the provincial associations for their votes but I�m sad because they did it in violation of the PFF Constitution and By-Laws,� said Martinez. �If it�s just a matter of money, that�s no problem. I was told the pay-off was only P50,000 to vote for my removal.�
Martinez said nobody can pin him down on accountability for the so-called missing funds amounting to about P2.8 million. �I dare anyone to take me to court,� he said. �If all they want is money, I can give it to them, anytime. When I want or need money, it�s there. Two weeks ago, I got a commitment for P2 million from my foreign sources. The first P1 million arrived and I used it to pay off obligations from the recent hosting of the under-16 ladies tournament. When I was told a budget of P150,000 was required for a tournament in Tagum, I gave my own money. But after what they did to me in the Congress, I got my money back.�
Martinez said his allies in FIFA, AFC (Asian Football Confederation) and AFF (Asian Football Federation) won�t take his ouster lightly.
�I�m definitely going to court,� said Martinez who attended the Congress at the PhilSports Audio-Visual Room last Saturday with two lawyers Arnold Perez and Voltaire de la Cruz. �I�m not worried. The vote they took was both amazing and shocking. One by one, I saw them voting me out. But the vote was illegal. For the Congress to call for a vote to remove the president, there must be an endorsement from the Board. A Board meeting was held a few hours before the Congress but it was not legal. You need a 30-day notice for a Board meeting. They forced a meeting at the PFF building. I was in my office in the same building but didn�t attend because there was no notice. They insisted on holding the meeting without my consent and brought up the motion but it couldn�t be lawful because it was an illegal meeting. We will bring this up in court because it was a clear violation of the PFF Constitution and By-Laws. This case isn�t over.�
Martinez said if necessary, he will call on his brother-in-law Tarsy Cruz, a top-notch lawyer from the Romulo, Mabanta, Buenaventura, Sayoc and De los Angeles group, to bring up the matter in court.
More : Philstar
Blog News--Nov 29th, 2010
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| Click on image for larger view |
I'm changing my ISP later today. My e-mail address will also be changing shortly.
If the blog should go dark for a while, you'll know what's up.
I'll be back tomorrow----hopefully----with some recruiting news.
Monday Nov 29th, 2010
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| Image by Mary Schwalm |
Ned Deane the Elder won letters for UMass football in 1973, 1974 and was Captain in 1975. He was All-Yankee Conference in 1974 and 1975 as well as being named first team All-American that year.
Ned Deane the Younger is looking at mostly Ivy League schools.
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This story features former UMass star James Ihedigbo, who has become a feature for the NY Jets. Ihedigbo wants to continue his father's legacy of charitable work in Africa.
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Keepers College Football Rankings has UMass finishing the season at #20.
He also Villanova as the lone CAA underdog in Saturday's playoffs.
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When UMass lost at Rhode Island, knocking us out of the playoffs, the UMass contingent took the loss with equanimity. Not so this Boise State fan. WARNING NOT WORK SAFE OR SAFE ANYWHERE.
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Sunday, 28 November 2010
PFF Congress boots out Mari Martinez
by rick olivares
The tumultuous and controversial three-year reign of Jose Mari Martinez at the top of the Philippine Football Federation is over as he was unanimously ousted in the PFF 7th Ordinary Congress held last Saturday November 27, 2010 at the Audio-Visual Room of the Philsports Complex in Pasig City.
Twenty-five presidents of the 29 present members football associations (out of the total 33) of the PFF voted to approve a resolution by the eight members of the Board of Governors recommending the removal and replacement of Martinez as president.
Mariano V. Araneta, current head of the Iloilo Football Association, was named interim president who will serve out the last year of Martinez� four-year term. Araneta was also the chairman of the PFF�s Finance Committee who launched the probe into the federation�s finances.
Ismael Batiles of the Cagayan de Oro-Misamis Oriental Football Association was named the Executive Vice President.
Martinez was accused and charged in court for the falsification of public documents when he had notarized a Secretary�s Certificate where one Henry Tsai was named a signatory to the PFF accounts in Banco de Oro and Bank of the Philippine Islands. The board unanimously claimed that there was no motion to include Tsai in the list of signatories.
Tsai, Martinez� old officemate at Soriamont Steamship Agencies which is owned by Andres Soriano, was first named as �Managing Consultant� and later as �Executive Vice President.�
The audit by Campos, Campos & Co. showed that over PhP 5 million of PFF funds were entrusted by Martinez to Tsai with close to PhP 4 million unliquidated. There were also numerous entries in the accounting where Martinez was purported to use the funds to pay for personal usage such as groceries, medical and credit cards bills, as well as shares in the Valle Verde Country Club.
The PFF Congress also took him to task for misusing the Financial Assistance Plans annual subsidy from the Federation de International Football Association.
In his first year as president, Martinez survived an ouster move when Asian Football Confederation Mohammed Bin-Hammam made a guest appearance and announced a gift donation to the PFF of PhP10 million. Opponents of Martinez decried the move as a �bribe.� Several members then of the opposition bailed out at the last moment when key persons wavered in the move.
Last Saturday, there was no such break in the ranks. In fact, it was even bolstered by a change in heart of several BOG members who were perceived to be allies of Martinez.
Those who voted in favor of the resolution were Eric Pocon (Agusan del Sur), Richard Montayre (Cebu), Abenir Labja (Compostela Valley), Mariano Araneta (Iloilo), Arturo Pacificador Jr. (Laguna), Alex Macabangkit (Iligan Lanao del Norte), Cabili Sinsuat (Maguindanao-Cotabato City), Felix Rivera (Masbate), Ismael Batiles Jr. (Cagayan de Oro-Misamis Oriental), Jug Jimenez (Misamis-Ozamiz), Juan Luis Carpio (Naga City-Camarines Sur), Jose Vito Borromeo (NCR), Mario Narola (Quezon), Dick Emperado (Negros Occidental), Mayor Joselito Pi�ol (North Cotabato), Ronald Patulin (Oriental Mindoro), Elipio Daypa (Quezon), Mario Garovillo (Rizal), Dave Araral (South Cotabato), Antonio Oculto (Sultan Kudarat), Mario Semorlan (Surigao del Norte), Glenn Caratativo (Tarlac), Antonio Buca (Zamboanga del Norte-Dipolog), and Flaviano Fucoy III (Zamboanga del Sur-Pagadian).
Renato Cosmod (Davao) and Jose Reneva (Camarines Norte) abstained from the voting while Leopoldo Arnaiz (Baguio) and Taghi Kashef (Legazpi-Albay) left without casting their votes.
�The decision has been made by a few,� noted Martinez who retreated to his old office at the PFF House of Football that was a few hundred meters from the Philsports Complex immediately after his removal. �I only worked for the best of football in this country but apparently, some people want my job because they are envious. Their move was unconstitutional. My lawyers will prepare a rebuttal and we will take this to the next level.�
Martinez conducted one last staff meeting at 8pm. As he closed out his meeting, he had one last pronouncement: �This is a sad day for Philippine football. But Mari Martinez will be back.�
Said Araneta of the whole affair, �There is such a thing as accountability. Obviously, there was none with the previous president.�
Araneta outlined some immediate concerns that the new administration of the PFF will put in effect. �First, we have to hire a lawyer to look into who is culpable in the missing funds and if we should file charges. Hopefully, we can recover them. Two, the BOG will meet every quarter to implement the programs that we want to put in place. We will get the chairman of each committee from the board so it is functioning. Third, we plan to revive the national tournaments maybe beginning with the Under-19. And fourth, we will look into the operations of the PFF and see how we can streamline the operations. Of course we will reach out to the AFC and to Mr. Hammam regarding the change in leadership and how this came about.�
Johnny Romualdez, Chairman Emeritus of the PFF and Martinez� predecessor said that he expects Martinez to contest his ouster with the AFC and FIFA. �It might be bloody but what can we do? We have to do the right thing. This is to save football in our country.�
Bleachers Brew'
The tumultuous and controversial three-year reign of Jose Mari Martinez at the top of the Philippine Football Federation is over as he was unanimously ousted in the PFF 7th Ordinary Congress held last Saturday November 27, 2010 at the Audio-Visual Room of the Philsports Complex in Pasig City.
Twenty-five presidents of the 29 present members football associations (out of the total 33) of the PFF voted to approve a resolution by the eight members of the Board of Governors recommending the removal and replacement of Martinez as president.
Mariano V. Araneta, current head of the Iloilo Football Association, was named interim president who will serve out the last year of Martinez� four-year term. Araneta was also the chairman of the PFF�s Finance Committee who launched the probe into the federation�s finances.
Ismael Batiles of the Cagayan de Oro-Misamis Oriental Football Association was named the Executive Vice President.
Martinez was accused and charged in court for the falsification of public documents when he had notarized a Secretary�s Certificate where one Henry Tsai was named a signatory to the PFF accounts in Banco de Oro and Bank of the Philippine Islands. The board unanimously claimed that there was no motion to include Tsai in the list of signatories.
Tsai, Martinez� old officemate at Soriamont Steamship Agencies which is owned by Andres Soriano, was first named as �Managing Consultant� and later as �Executive Vice President.�
The audit by Campos, Campos & Co. showed that over PhP 5 million of PFF funds were entrusted by Martinez to Tsai with close to PhP 4 million unliquidated. There were also numerous entries in the accounting where Martinez was purported to use the funds to pay for personal usage such as groceries, medical and credit cards bills, as well as shares in the Valle Verde Country Club.
The PFF Congress also took him to task for misusing the Financial Assistance Plans annual subsidy from the Federation de International Football Association.
In his first year as president, Martinez survived an ouster move when Asian Football Confederation Mohammed Bin-Hammam made a guest appearance and announced a gift donation to the PFF of PhP10 million. Opponents of Martinez decried the move as a �bribe.� Several members then of the opposition bailed out at the last moment when key persons wavered in the move.
Last Saturday, there was no such break in the ranks. In fact, it was even bolstered by a change in heart of several BOG members who were perceived to be allies of Martinez.
Those who voted in favor of the resolution were Eric Pocon (Agusan del Sur), Richard Montayre (Cebu), Abenir Labja (Compostela Valley), Mariano Araneta (Iloilo), Arturo Pacificador Jr. (Laguna), Alex Macabangkit (Iligan Lanao del Norte), Cabili Sinsuat (Maguindanao-Cotabato City), Felix Rivera (Masbate), Ismael Batiles Jr. (Cagayan de Oro-Misamis Oriental), Jug Jimenez (Misamis-Ozamiz), Juan Luis Carpio (Naga City-Camarines Sur), Jose Vito Borromeo (NCR), Mario Narola (Quezon), Dick Emperado (Negros Occidental), Mayor Joselito Pi�ol (North Cotabato), Ronald Patulin (Oriental Mindoro), Elipio Daypa (Quezon), Mario Garovillo (Rizal), Dave Araral (South Cotabato), Antonio Oculto (Sultan Kudarat), Mario Semorlan (Surigao del Norte), Glenn Caratativo (Tarlac), Antonio Buca (Zamboanga del Norte-Dipolog), and Flaviano Fucoy III (Zamboanga del Sur-Pagadian).
Renato Cosmod (Davao) and Jose Reneva (Camarines Norte) abstained from the voting while Leopoldo Arnaiz (Baguio) and Taghi Kashef (Legazpi-Albay) left without casting their votes.
�The decision has been made by a few,� noted Martinez who retreated to his old office at the PFF House of Football that was a few hundred meters from the Philsports Complex immediately after his removal. �I only worked for the best of football in this country but apparently, some people want my job because they are envious. Their move was unconstitutional. My lawyers will prepare a rebuttal and we will take this to the next level.�
Martinez conducted one last staff meeting at 8pm. As he closed out his meeting, he had one last pronouncement: �This is a sad day for Philippine football. But Mari Martinez will be back.�
Said Araneta of the whole affair, �There is such a thing as accountability. Obviously, there was none with the previous president.�
Araneta outlined some immediate concerns that the new administration of the PFF will put in effect. �First, we have to hire a lawyer to look into who is culpable in the missing funds and if we should file charges. Hopefully, we can recover them. Two, the BOG will meet every quarter to implement the programs that we want to put in place. We will get the chairman of each committee from the board so it is functioning. Third, we plan to revive the national tournaments maybe beginning with the Under-19. And fourth, we will look into the operations of the PFF and see how we can streamline the operations. Of course we will reach out to the AFC and to Mr. Hammam regarding the change in leadership and how this came about.�
Johnny Romualdez, Chairman Emeritus of the PFF and Martinez� predecessor said that he expects Martinez to contest his ouster with the AFC and FIFA. �It might be bloody but what can we do? We have to do the right thing. This is to save football in our country.�
Bleachers Brew'
Sunday---Nov 28th, 2010
Weren't the Hurricanes so short of QB's that they were playing a true freshman? It's a tough world in FBS coaching.
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In the first round of the playoffs:
North Dakota State surges past Robert Morris.
Western Illinois is going to meet Appalachian State.
Georgia Souther ran over South Carolina State.
And Lehigh caged the Northern Iowa Panthers.
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Meanwhile, four CAA teams are waiting.
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PFF boots out Martinez as prexy
Cedelf P. Tupas
Citing total loss of trust and confidence, the Philippine Football Federation yesterday removed Jose Mari Martinez as president and voted Iloilo Football Association head Mariano �Nonong� Araneta to take the reins until the elections next year.
Acting on a board resolution calling for Martinez�s ouster, 25 of the 33 football associations voted to oust the former national player-turned official at the PFF Annual Congress.
Two FA presidents�Taghi Kashef of Legaspi-Albay FA and Leo Arnaiz of Baguio FA�left before the Congress voted on Martinez�s fate, while Rene Cosmod of Davao and Jose Reniva of Camarines abstained.
Araneta, who was nominated by M�lang Mayor and North Cotabato FA president Joselito Pinol, called for unity and pledged transparency as the PFF moves on from the controversy.
�Unity is essential to football,� said Araneta. �I want to work with the stakeholders to make football better.�
The board recommendation said it was proven that Martinez made unauthorized disbursement of PFF funds and falsified documents apart from his non-return of the P2.8 million he took from the federation�s coffers.
�That board meeting is unacceptable,� said Martinez, claiming that he wasn�t even invited to the meeting, a contention disputed by PFF general secretary Chito Manuel.
Inquirer.net
Citing total loss of trust and confidence, the Philippine Football Federation yesterday removed Jose Mari Martinez as president and voted Iloilo Football Association head Mariano �Nonong� Araneta to take the reins until the elections next year.
Acting on a board resolution calling for Martinez�s ouster, 25 of the 33 football associations voted to oust the former national player-turned official at the PFF Annual Congress.
Two FA presidents�Taghi Kashef of Legaspi-Albay FA and Leo Arnaiz of Baguio FA�left before the Congress voted on Martinez�s fate, while Rene Cosmod of Davao and Jose Reniva of Camarines abstained.
Araneta, who was nominated by M�lang Mayor and North Cotabato FA president Joselito Pinol, called for unity and pledged transparency as the PFF moves on from the controversy.
�Unity is essential to football,� said Araneta. �I want to work with the stakeholders to make football better.�
The board recommendation said it was proven that Martinez made unauthorized disbursement of PFF funds and falsified documents apart from his non-return of the P2.8 million he took from the federation�s coffers.
�That board meeting is unacceptable,� said Martinez, claiming that he wasn�t even invited to the meeting, a contention disputed by PFF general secretary Chito Manuel.
Inquirer.net
Saturday, 27 November 2010
Martinez ousted as PFF head
By Joaquin Henson
MANILA, Philippines � The Philippine Football Federation (PFF) underwent a change in leadership as Jose Mari Martinez was booted out as president by over a 2/3 vote of 32 provincial associations and Mariano Araneta was elected in his place during the National Congress at the PhilSports Audio-Visual Room in Mandaluyong yesterday.
But Martinez, accompanied by two lawyers, questioned the legal basis of his removal, insisting that Congress could not act on a motion for his ouster unless it was endorsed by the PFF Board of Governors. The speculation was he would go to court and try to hang on to his position despite a vote of 26 affirming his removal with two abstentions and five absensions.
The voting in Congress was witnessed by former PFF presidents Rene Adad and Johnny Romualdez, POC chairman Monico Puentevella and former POC president Cristy Ramos.
The Congress was preceded by a Board of Governors meeting at the PFF building in Pasig in the morning. Martinez refused to recognize the legality of the meeting and did not attend even as secretary-general Chito Manuel confirmed a quorum of 11 of 13 members.
Araneta said the Board was convened to continue the Oct. 29 session where action on certain matters was deferred. Tarlac representative Glenn Carecativo was elected by the Board to preside in Martinez� place. The Board endorsed a motion to raise the issue of Martinez� ouster before the Congress. Martinez said the Board meeting was unlawful.
Martinez was previously given an ultimatum to produce about P2.8 million of missing funds from the PFF coffers. When he failed to deliver, the Board decided to endorse his ouster at the Congress.
Araneta said the PFF will exhaust all means to get back the missing amount from those accountable as confirmed in an external audit report. �We will determine culpability,� he said. �No one will get away with this. We�re doing this for the love of football.�
After Martinez was ousted, the Congress voted Araneta as new president unanimously. �Now, the hard work begins,� said Araneta.
Aside from the change of leadership, the Congress also approved Leyte as a regular member and Sorsogon as a probationary member. The 2010 budget was ratified as the same for next year.
�We hope this ends the dissension in the PFF and we begin working together for the good of football,� said Araneta. �If Mari wants to contest the decision of the Congress, it is his right.�
Romualdez earlier issued a memorandum to the PFF provincial associations, calling for justice to be served. He urged Martinez to return to the PFF unauthorized payments and investments made without Board approval. He threatened Martinez with a legal suit and impeachment if the money was not returned. Romualdez made good his threat to remove Martinez when he couldn�t settle his accountability.
The Congress was initially set at the Legends Hotel but the PFF had to relocate because it still owed over P200,000 to the place and couldn�t pay up. The obligation was incurred in line with the recent PFF hosting of the under-16 ladies tournament which used the Legends Hotel as the host facility. The tournament wound up with a deficit of P2.2 million.
The PFF�s shaky financial condition was traced to poor management, resulting in the removal of Martinez as a signatory in all the organization�s bank accounts. It was estimated that the PFF receives an annual subsidy of over $400,000 from external sources, primarily FIFA, but has been unable to make both ends meet.
Araneta�s election as PFF president will give him the mandate to finish the remaining year in Martinez� term.
Philstar.com
MANILA, Philippines � The Philippine Football Federation (PFF) underwent a change in leadership as Jose Mari Martinez was booted out as president by over a 2/3 vote of 32 provincial associations and Mariano Araneta was elected in his place during the National Congress at the PhilSports Audio-Visual Room in Mandaluyong yesterday.
But Martinez, accompanied by two lawyers, questioned the legal basis of his removal, insisting that Congress could not act on a motion for his ouster unless it was endorsed by the PFF Board of Governors. The speculation was he would go to court and try to hang on to his position despite a vote of 26 affirming his removal with two abstentions and five absensions.
The voting in Congress was witnessed by former PFF presidents Rene Adad and Johnny Romualdez, POC chairman Monico Puentevella and former POC president Cristy Ramos.
The Congress was preceded by a Board of Governors meeting at the PFF building in Pasig in the morning. Martinez refused to recognize the legality of the meeting and did not attend even as secretary-general Chito Manuel confirmed a quorum of 11 of 13 members.
Araneta said the Board was convened to continue the Oct. 29 session where action on certain matters was deferred. Tarlac representative Glenn Carecativo was elected by the Board to preside in Martinez� place. The Board endorsed a motion to raise the issue of Martinez� ouster before the Congress. Martinez said the Board meeting was unlawful.
Martinez was previously given an ultimatum to produce about P2.8 million of missing funds from the PFF coffers. When he failed to deliver, the Board decided to endorse his ouster at the Congress.
Araneta said the PFF will exhaust all means to get back the missing amount from those accountable as confirmed in an external audit report. �We will determine culpability,� he said. �No one will get away with this. We�re doing this for the love of football.�
After Martinez was ousted, the Congress voted Araneta as new president unanimously. �Now, the hard work begins,� said Araneta.
Aside from the change of leadership, the Congress also approved Leyte as a regular member and Sorsogon as a probationary member. The 2010 budget was ratified as the same for next year.
�We hope this ends the dissension in the PFF and we begin working together for the good of football,� said Araneta. �If Mari wants to contest the decision of the Congress, it is his right.�
Romualdez earlier issued a memorandum to the PFF provincial associations, calling for justice to be served. He urged Martinez to return to the PFF unauthorized payments and investments made without Board approval. He threatened Martinez with a legal suit and impeachment if the money was not returned. Romualdez made good his threat to remove Martinez when he couldn�t settle his accountability.
The Congress was initially set at the Legends Hotel but the PFF had to relocate because it still owed over P200,000 to the place and couldn�t pay up. The obligation was incurred in line with the recent PFF hosting of the under-16 ladies tournament which used the Legends Hotel as the host facility. The tournament wound up with a deficit of P2.2 million.
The PFF�s shaky financial condition was traced to poor management, resulting in the removal of Martinez as a signatory in all the organization�s bank accounts. It was estimated that the PFF receives an annual subsidy of over $400,000 from external sources, primarily FIFA, but has been unable to make both ends meet.
Araneta�s election as PFF president will give him the mandate to finish the remaining year in Martinez� term.
Philstar.com
Recruiting 2011---A.J. Price
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| image by Kevin McGuire/Philly Inquirer |
Scout.com profile page here.
Price was the receiving leader at Dean with: 8 games 23-605 26.3 AVE 7 TD 87 Long 75.6 yards/game.
Price did a short stint at Penn State.
Price also holds an offer from Bowling Green and has interest from numerous FBS teams.
Saturday---Nov 27th, 2010
Former UMass star James Ihidigbo has a mention in this story about the Jets recent win over the Bengals.
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UNH TE coach Brian Barbato is the son for former UMass player Dennis Barbato (letter 1976).
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UMass basketball is playing a game in Curry Hicks Cage. Mrs Blog and I were at the last "Rage in the Cage" game back in '93.
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UNH TE coach Brian Barbato is the son for former UMass player Dennis Barbato (letter 1976).
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UMass basketball is playing a game in Curry Hicks Cage. Mrs Blog and I were at the last "Rage in the Cage" game back in '93.
PFF President Martinez ousted !!
At the PFF Congress Martinez has been removed a few minutes ago. 25 FAs voted for his removal. Nonong Araneta has been voted as new president to finish Martinez's term. Martinez vowed to fight the decision, and will elevate case to AFC
Thanks to Cedelf Tupas !!
More updates later...
Thanks to Cedelf Tupas !!
More updates later...
Today : Nakhon Pathom FC 8-0 Philippines
Philippines played today against Nakhon Pathom FC who play in Thai Division 1 League (level 2)
They finished as number 5 in the League and will be playing playoffs for Thai Premier League from 4 december
Nakhon Pathom FC Website
Nakhon Pathom FC Wikipedia
Latest :
Philippines lost 8-0 (!) today ,half time result was 4-0.
Nakhon Pathom FC
Friday, 26 November 2010
Al Golden can fix his team with one phone call
The Brumfield File:Sometimes numbers mean nothing.
- No. 2 all-time rusher in Pennsylvania history with 8,595 yards;
- Averaged 9.79 yards per carry against defenses designed to stop him;
- Over 100 TDs for his career;
- A 3.0 GPA;
Quotable:"You hate to say the word 'unstoppable,' but that's what Ryan is. He likes the challenges. The more he gets challenged, the better he plays. But what you like most about Ryan is that he's a great kid. Here's a kid that has every right to have an ego, and he doesn't. He gets along with everyone. It's why his teammates don't only want to play with him � they want to play for him."_Tom Barr, head coach, Owen J. Roberts
Sometimes the numbers all add up and the mathematical formula is pretty clear.
I found some numbers that were pretty fascinating over the last few days and I just want to share some here.
They tell the story of why this Temple season has a different, more hollow, feel for me than last year did.
They also show me the equation for getting the Owls out of this morass.
Temple football by the numbers:
- Al Golden is 0-14 against MAC teams with a winning record;
- Al Golden's two most impressive non-MAC wins were against Navy last year and against UConn this season;
- Against Navy last year, Bernard Pierce went for 268 yards and two touchdowns with a pretty anemic passing attack on his side;
- Against UConn this year, Bernard Pierce went for 179 yards with three touchdowns (again, with an anemic passer).
Al Golden or Bernard Pierce?
Certainly, you can make a case for Bernard Pierce to date.
Going forward, to use a term Al Golden fancies, going forward, Al Golden is most responsible for Temple's success.
That's because the one thing he can supply is out there for the taking.
Bernard Pierce. Or at least a Bernard Pierce clone.
Certainly, we'd all like to see the Bernard Pierce of last year show up for his junior season (and the bowl game if the Owls are lucky enough to secure one).
What Al Golden failed to do "going backward" was make sure the Owls had a running back with Pierce's ability or close to it backing up Bernard should Bernard have gone down.
Let's face it.
Bernard had some injury issues after last year ended. Temple should have been better prepared than to replace him with a 5-5, 150-pound guy, no matter how good that 5-5, 150-pounder was.
The No. 1 running back recruit was a guy named Myron Ross (now Myron Myles) out of Wissahickon. Myron's a nice back, like Matty Brown, a nice back, not a Gosh-darn superstar.
I don't think Myron Myles on his best day can give Temple going forward what Matty Brown did.
And that, quite frankly, wasn't enough against Ohio and Miami.
And it won't be enough going forward.
He struggled to go over 1,000 yards in his senior year at Wissahickon.
Bernard Pierce was a Gosh-darn superstar, a 2,000-yard back, at Glen Mills.
We all kind of knew he would be something special in college.
So what Al Golden can do going forward is get me another Bernard Pierce as an insurance policy should the real one go down.
Short of cloning Bernard and waiting 18 years for the gestation period, I have a sure-fire answer:
Ryan Brumfield of Owen J. Roberts.
Brumfield, like Pierce, is a gosh-darn superstar.
I wrote about this kid in Friday's Inquirer.
He's five inches taller than Matty Brown (5-10) and 30 pounds heavier (180). He's a tenth of a second faster (4.4 compared to 4.5) and he's a lot shiftier and stronger. He's not quite Bernard (6-0, 218) but he's proven to be more durable.
Think a bigger version of Paul Palmer and that's what I'm talking about.
Brumfield has an offer on the table from Buffalo (Al Golden, I beg you, please don't let this kid go to Buffalo) and "interest" from Pitt, Penn State and Rutgers.
If Temple gets involved now, the Owls can have him.
The Owls should get him.
Temple needs Brumfield and Brumfield needs Temple.
That's a one plus one that adds up to two superstar runners for the Owls.
Congress decides PFF head's fate
By Joaquin Henson
MANILA, Philippines - The Philippine Football Federation (PFF) is set to hold its National Congress at the PhilSports audio-visual room this morning and unless there is legal basis to hold off a motion for the removal of Jose Mari Martinez as president, it is likely that representatives of 33 provincial associations will call for a vote of no-confidence.
Martinez recently evaded an attempt by five members of the PFF Board of Governors to file a resolution calling for his ouster before the Congress by voting to break a 5-5 tie in exercising his right to resolve the deadlock. But since the escape act, there has been a clamor for Martinez to account for about P2.8 million of missing funds from the PFF coffers with at least two of those who voted in his favor now insisting on an immediate settlement of the obligation or face removal.
Mariano Araneta Jr., president of the Iloilo Football Association and newly appointed chairman of the PFF finance committee, said yesterday he will raise the issue of accountability in the Congress preparatory to a call for Martinez� ouster.
�I think those who voted against the resolution for Mari�s removal have realized the future of football is at stake and we all want a clean slate,� said Araneta.
A 2/3 vote in Congress will remove Martinez as president with secretary-general Chito Manuel empowered to call for an election within 60 days. Araneta said former PFF president Rene Adad and POC chairman Monico Puentevella will attend the Congress to observe the proceedings.
Former PFF president Johnny Romualdez warned that unless the missing funds are recovered, FIFA may suspend its subsidy to the organization under the Financial Assistance Program. Ernie Nierras, who is in charge of the national women�s football team, estimated that the PFF receives at least $400,000 a year from external sources.
Romualdez cited no figures but it was estimated that Martinez is liable for about P2.8 million, including an amount that disappeared in an unauthorized investment, excesses in his personal account and unliquidated sums. Romualdez said if Martinez does not settle his accountability by today, he should resign or face impeachment and a legal suit. If Martinez is able to produce the missing funds, Romualdez said he will be spared from a court case but not from a vote of no-confidence.
�The Filipino is compassionate and forgiving,� said Romualdez. �If amounts are returned, mistakes might be forgiven. If Mari and his executive vice president (Henry Tsai) decide otherwise, a court suit by the Board and impeachment by Congress are called for. The loyalties of members of the Board and Congress are to football and not to any one man who gives them free trips abroad and other perks.
�There are rumors that elections in FIFA, AFC and AFF next year will be used to solicit funds to fight an impeachment and any court case. These are not believable and candidates surely realize the Philippine vote can still be theirs even with a new PFF president. In the unlikely event these rumors turn out to be true, members of the PFF Congress should take the money and vote with their conscience.�
Nierras said the coaches, players, managers and parents involved in the national women�s program will speak out to denounce Martinez in the Congress.
�We�ve raised at least P6 million on our own to finance the national women�s program since 2008,� said Nierras. �We�ve received about P1.2 million from the PSC. But the PFF has given only about $12,000 when it has the obligation of setting aside 20 percent of its subsidy for the women�s program. We held the AFC under-19 girls tournament here recently and incurred a deficit of P208,000 which the PFF is supposed to cover. The entire budget was P3.7 million. Then, we held the under-16 tournament and we still have a payable of P2.2 million. There is supposed to be money for these tournaments but the funds are missing.�
Araneta said the conduct of the Congress could be �messy� as he expects Martinez to exhaust every possible ploy in derailing a motion for his ouster.
Romualdez took issue with Martinez in helping himself to PFF funds. �He must pay all amounts FIFA is charging the PFF in connection with the South Africa World Cup trip he took with his cohorts,� he said. �No past PFF president has ever upgraded any FIFA, AFC or AFF trip and extended hotel stays without paying for the amounts in excess of what these entities normally pay for.�
Martinez was stripped of signing authority in all PFF bank accounts when the audit confirmed his accountability for the missing funds. But Martinez rejected calls for his resignation because he claims the support of AFC president Mohamed Bin Hammam of Qatar. Martinez explained that with his foreign connections, he has saved the PFF over P15 million in costs because of sponsorships. He said if the Board removes his P20,000 monthly allowance and P8,000 monthly salary for a driver, he should pocket 20 percent of what he delivers to the PFF in terms of savings.
Martinez returned from a brief trip to attend an AFC meeting in Kuala Lumpur the other day with the promise of Hammam�s full backing of his administration.
Philstar.com
MANILA, Philippines - The Philippine Football Federation (PFF) is set to hold its National Congress at the PhilSports audio-visual room this morning and unless there is legal basis to hold off a motion for the removal of Jose Mari Martinez as president, it is likely that representatives of 33 provincial associations will call for a vote of no-confidence.
Martinez recently evaded an attempt by five members of the PFF Board of Governors to file a resolution calling for his ouster before the Congress by voting to break a 5-5 tie in exercising his right to resolve the deadlock. But since the escape act, there has been a clamor for Martinez to account for about P2.8 million of missing funds from the PFF coffers with at least two of those who voted in his favor now insisting on an immediate settlement of the obligation or face removal.
Mariano Araneta Jr., president of the Iloilo Football Association and newly appointed chairman of the PFF finance committee, said yesterday he will raise the issue of accountability in the Congress preparatory to a call for Martinez� ouster.
�I think those who voted against the resolution for Mari�s removal have realized the future of football is at stake and we all want a clean slate,� said Araneta.
A 2/3 vote in Congress will remove Martinez as president with secretary-general Chito Manuel empowered to call for an election within 60 days. Araneta said former PFF president Rene Adad and POC chairman Monico Puentevella will attend the Congress to observe the proceedings.
Former PFF president Johnny Romualdez warned that unless the missing funds are recovered, FIFA may suspend its subsidy to the organization under the Financial Assistance Program. Ernie Nierras, who is in charge of the national women�s football team, estimated that the PFF receives at least $400,000 a year from external sources.
Romualdez cited no figures but it was estimated that Martinez is liable for about P2.8 million, including an amount that disappeared in an unauthorized investment, excesses in his personal account and unliquidated sums. Romualdez said if Martinez does not settle his accountability by today, he should resign or face impeachment and a legal suit. If Martinez is able to produce the missing funds, Romualdez said he will be spared from a court case but not from a vote of no-confidence.
�The Filipino is compassionate and forgiving,� said Romualdez. �If amounts are returned, mistakes might be forgiven. If Mari and his executive vice president (Henry Tsai) decide otherwise, a court suit by the Board and impeachment by Congress are called for. The loyalties of members of the Board and Congress are to football and not to any one man who gives them free trips abroad and other perks.
�There are rumors that elections in FIFA, AFC and AFF next year will be used to solicit funds to fight an impeachment and any court case. These are not believable and candidates surely realize the Philippine vote can still be theirs even with a new PFF president. In the unlikely event these rumors turn out to be true, members of the PFF Congress should take the money and vote with their conscience.�
Nierras said the coaches, players, managers and parents involved in the national women�s program will speak out to denounce Martinez in the Congress.
�We�ve raised at least P6 million on our own to finance the national women�s program since 2008,� said Nierras. �We�ve received about P1.2 million from the PSC. But the PFF has given only about $12,000 when it has the obligation of setting aside 20 percent of its subsidy for the women�s program. We held the AFC under-19 girls tournament here recently and incurred a deficit of P208,000 which the PFF is supposed to cover. The entire budget was P3.7 million. Then, we held the under-16 tournament and we still have a payable of P2.2 million. There is supposed to be money for these tournaments but the funds are missing.�
Araneta said the conduct of the Congress could be �messy� as he expects Martinez to exhaust every possible ploy in derailing a motion for his ouster.
Romualdez took issue with Martinez in helping himself to PFF funds. �He must pay all amounts FIFA is charging the PFF in connection with the South Africa World Cup trip he took with his cohorts,� he said. �No past PFF president has ever upgraded any FIFA, AFC or AFF trip and extended hotel stays without paying for the amounts in excess of what these entities normally pay for.�
Martinez was stripped of signing authority in all PFF bank accounts when the audit confirmed his accountability for the missing funds. But Martinez rejected calls for his resignation because he claims the support of AFC president Mohamed Bin Hammam of Qatar. Martinez explained that with his foreign connections, he has saved the PFF over P15 million in costs because of sponsorships. He said if the Board removes his P20,000 monthly allowance and P8,000 monthly salary for a driver, he should pocket 20 percent of what he delivers to the PFF in terms of savings.
Martinez returned from a brief trip to attend an AFC meeting in Kuala Lumpur the other day with the promise of Hammam�s full backing of his administration.
Philstar.com
UFL - UFC sets 2-day tryout in San Carlos
MANILA-based Union Football Club (UFC) headed by its general manager Charlie O. Cojuangco has set a two-day try-out on December 4 & 5 in San Carlos City.
The activity is in line with the upcoming United Football League in Manila next year, which the club intends to participate in.
UFC's goal is to give opportunities to potential players in the Visayas area to play in a semi-professional football competitions in Manila and avail some benefits provided by the club.
At present, UFC advances to the quarterfinals tomorrow with an undefeated record of 3-0, keeping on top of Bracket A in the ongoing United Football Clubs Association (UFCA) Cup.
The team headed by its Uruguayan-Spanish coach Maor Rozen is composed of players Janrick Soriano (Talisay City), Lemuel Unabia (San Carlos City), Kent Guevarra & Louie Magallanes (Bago City), Jason Cutamora (Dumaguete), Neckson & Nicolas Leonora & Mark Sorongon (Sta. Barbara) and some players from Manila.
Interested football players to join the tryout may contact UFC Visayas Coordinator Paulline Javelona at 0922-8210466. (Jerome S. Galunan Jr.)
Sun Star Bacolod
The activity is in line with the upcoming United Football League in Manila next year, which the club intends to participate in.
UFC's goal is to give opportunities to potential players in the Visayas area to play in a semi-professional football competitions in Manila and avail some benefits provided by the club.
At present, UFC advances to the quarterfinals tomorrow with an undefeated record of 3-0, keeping on top of Bracket A in the ongoing United Football Clubs Association (UFCA) Cup.
The team headed by its Uruguayan-Spanish coach Maor Rozen is composed of players Janrick Soriano (Talisay City), Lemuel Unabia (San Carlos City), Kent Guevarra & Louie Magallanes (Bago City), Jason Cutamora (Dumaguete), Neckson & Nicolas Leonora & Mark Sorongon (Sta. Barbara) and some players from Manila.
Interested football players to join the tryout may contact UFC Visayas Coordinator Paulline Javelona at 0922-8210466. (Jerome S. Galunan Jr.)
Sun Star Bacolod
Recruiting 2011-Lance Burlingame
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| Image by Stuart Cahill |
Boston Herald story here.
ESPN player profile here.
Note that he is being coached by former Minuteman captain Nick Salmon. Salmon earned letters in 1986, 1987 and was Captain in 1988. He was a 6-2 258 pd OT for UMass during his playing days.
Friday--Nov 26th, 2010
Despite finishing 6-5, UMass ended up 18th in the Dunkle Sports Index.
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UNH hopes the off week will allow some injured players to be available for Bethune-Cookman.
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Montana's Eric Stoll lost a half-inch of ring finger against Montana State last week, but stayed in the game and made twelve tackles.
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I watched some of the Turkey Day Classic between Tuskegee and Alabama State. Note that DII Tuskegee has now beaten both FCS-level teams in the SWAC championship game...
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The 8-3 Liberty Flames are not happy at being the last team out of the 2010 playoffs.
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UNH hopes the off week will allow some injured players to be available for Bethune-Cookman.
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Montana's Eric Stoll lost a half-inch of ring finger against Montana State last week, but stayed in the game and made twelve tackles.
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I watched some of the Turkey Day Classic between Tuskegee and Alabama State. Note that DII Tuskegee has now beaten both FCS-level teams in the SWAC championship game...
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The 8-3 Liberty Flames are not happy at being the last team out of the 2010 playoffs.
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Thursday, 25 November 2010
UFL - Quarterfinals Beckons for Global Smartmatic and Stallions
It is starting to become clear who will be progressing to the Quarterfinals of the LBC-UFL Cup, as superior teams have stamped their authority and flexed their muscles in their respective groups.
Although there were no matches held at the weekend, November 18�s midweek encounters between Global Smartmatic v Loyola ATR KimEng and Nomads v Stallions were surely more than enough to whet the Filipinos� growing appetite for quality football action. With the Quarterfinals just around the corner and as clubs start to feel the massive pressure to win in every match, the tension is quickly building among the teams.
Global Smartmatic proved they could more than handle the strain however, bouncing back from a heartbreaking defeat to Union by booking their place in the last eight with a 2-0 win over Loyola ATR KimEng. The victory seals Group D�s qualifiers into the next round, with Union and Global Smartmatic playing on November 28 to determine who will take top spot.
Guest team Stallions are making a name for themselves in the LBC-UFL Cup, proving they belong amongst the nation�s elite as they edge ever closer to qualification in Group B. Still unbeaten with seven points, another win on December 5 against Japan will seal their progress into the Quarterfinals on December 19.
Five matches will be held on Sunday, November 28, check www.footballalliance.ph for all fixtures, results and news. This is the UFL. IT�s OUR Game!
UFL website
Although there were no matches held at the weekend, November 18�s midweek encounters between Global Smartmatic v Loyola ATR KimEng and Nomads v Stallions were surely more than enough to whet the Filipinos� growing appetite for quality football action. With the Quarterfinals just around the corner and as clubs start to feel the massive pressure to win in every match, the tension is quickly building among the teams.
Global Smartmatic proved they could more than handle the strain however, bouncing back from a heartbreaking defeat to Union by booking their place in the last eight with a 2-0 win over Loyola ATR KimEng. The victory seals Group D�s qualifiers into the next round, with Union and Global Smartmatic playing on November 28 to determine who will take top spot.
Guest team Stallions are making a name for themselves in the LBC-UFL Cup, proving they belong amongst the nation�s elite as they edge ever closer to qualification in Group B. Still unbeaten with seven points, another win on December 5 against Japan will seal their progress into the Quarterfinals on December 19.
Five matches will be held on Sunday, November 28, check www.footballalliance.ph for all fixtures, results and news. This is the UFL. IT�s OUR Game!
UFL website
AFF COUNCIL ALLOW CHANGES TO REGISTRATION OF 30 PLAYER
DILI (25 Nov 2010) - Following the unanimous decision of the AFF Council this afternoon, it was decided that the eight teams playing in the AFF Suzuki Cup 2010 next month will be allowed to make changes to their registration of 30 players.
But they will only be allowed to make three changes to the list and where they have to submit the final list by Saturday afternoon.
On the day of the team managers� meeting (30 Nov in Jakarta and 1 Dec in Hanoi), teams will have to trim down the list to 22 players of which 20 can be registered on match days.
The decision to allow the last minute change was due to the fact that several teams suffered heavy casualties at the Asian Games in Guangzhou and where they have had to look for alternatives.
aseanfootball
Philippines host 2011 AFF Futsal Championship
The AFF Futsal Championship 2011 will be held in the Philippines provided they pass an inspection visit in early January.
Aseanfootball
Aseanfootball
Thanksgiving 2010
Former UMass star Jeromy Miles has been moved to the active roster for the Cincinnati Bengals.Official Bengals notice here.
Matty V has a story about Miles here. BTW, the Bengals play at 8:20 tonight.
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This article mentions UMass brothers Ryan Carter and Woody Carter IV.
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The CAA has it's weekly press release up.
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TSN has an article about "20 playoff teams, 20 indispensable players".
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The Blog and Mrs Blog wish all UMass coaches, players, parents,fans and blog community a happy Thanksgiving.
Wednesday, 24 November 2010
Tune-up games await PHL eleven in Bangkok
The Philippine national men�s football team left for Bangkok on Wednesday to play tune-up matches before plunging into action in the preliminary stage of the ASEAN Football Federation (AFF) Suzuki Cup 2010 in Hanoi, Vietnam.
The Suzuki Cup will be jointly hosted by Vietnam and Indonesia from December 2 to 9. Matches will be held at the Gelora Bung Karno and Gelora Sriwijaya stadiums in Jakarta and Palembang, and at Hanoi�s My Dinh National and H�ng �?y stadiums.
Despite encountering problems during their training, like lack of a regular practice venue, the Nationals� American coach Simon Alexander McMenemy remains optimistic of their chances in the tournament AFF-organized tournament.
McMenemy said his wards face a tough campaign after being grouped with defending champion Vietnam, Singapore and Myanmar in Group B of the tournament that offers a total of $100,000 prize money.
"Realistically, we�re the underdogs, with Singapore and defending champion Vietnam in the group," said McMenemy. �But anything we achieve in this tournament will be a bonus. It will be difficult because they are stronger and most of their players are full-time professionals,"
"We can beat Myanmar. We can gain three points against them and if we can be competitive against Singapore, then we have a good chance," added McMenemy.
"That will be the gauge," said MccMenemy. "It has to be a continuation of the good that this team has done during the qualifier."
Veteran players Ali Borromeo and Anton Del Rosario were also optimistic about their chances.
"We have to make a big impact against Singapore. If we can do that, then we have a good chance to advance," said Borromeo.
"Actually, we can match up with them. Our team is very passionate and we really want to do well," added Del Rosario. � JVP/KY, GMANews.TV
The Suzuki Cup will be jointly hosted by Vietnam and Indonesia from December 2 to 9. Matches will be held at the Gelora Bung Karno and Gelora Sriwijaya stadiums in Jakarta and Palembang, and at Hanoi�s My Dinh National and H�ng �?y stadiums.
Despite encountering problems during their training, like lack of a regular practice venue, the Nationals� American coach Simon Alexander McMenemy remains optimistic of their chances in the tournament AFF-organized tournament.
McMenemy said his wards face a tough campaign after being grouped with defending champion Vietnam, Singapore and Myanmar in Group B of the tournament that offers a total of $100,000 prize money.
"Realistically, we�re the underdogs, with Singapore and defending champion Vietnam in the group," said McMenemy. �But anything we achieve in this tournament will be a bonus. It will be difficult because they are stronger and most of their players are full-time professionals,"
"We can beat Myanmar. We can gain three points against them and if we can be competitive against Singapore, then we have a good chance," added McMenemy.
"That will be the gauge," said MccMenemy. "It has to be a continuation of the good that this team has done during the qualifier."
Veteran players Ali Borromeo and Anton Del Rosario were also optimistic about their chances.
"We have to make a big impact against Singapore. If we can do that, then we have a good chance to advance," said Borromeo.
"Actually, we can match up with them. Our team is very passionate and we really want to do well," added Del Rosario. � JVP/KY, GMANews.TV
Recruiting 2011--Trae Weathers
UMass is interested in Trae Weathers a 6-1 215 pd RB/LB from Revere, MA.Boston.com has the story here.
ESPN player profile here. ESPN player page here.
Also receiving interest from UNH, Boston College and Bryant.
A Brendon Hall/ESPN Boston image.
Wednesday ----Nov 24th, 2010
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| Anthony Nelson leaps for the endzone |
Anthony Nelson has been named an ESPN Academic All-American. The CAA website has more here.
Nelson had a heck of a year for the Minutemen.
- 12-74 yards rushing 6.3 AVE
- 61-820 yards receiving 4 TD's
- 4-103 yards punt returns 25.5 AVE
- 9-242 yards kick returns 26.9 AVE
1. Massachusetts....... 11 16 236 0 14.8
Compare Anthony's average with highly touted Richmond returner Justin Rogers.
1. Justin Rogers....... RICH SR 11 15 186 0 54 12.4
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Andrew Gaddess previews this Saturday's first round playoff games. Interesting factoid: Lehigh, the Patriot League champion is going against #16 Northern Iowa. The Mountain Hawks played two CAA teams this year and lost by a combined total of 66-10.
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Spencer Ridenhour, a Penn State transfer, who had a brief career with the Minutemen, is in trouble again.
Tuesday, 23 November 2010
Thanks for a nice season, everybody
"And that's the way I used to play linebacker."
"But, coach, I'm a QB."
"Oh yeah, I forgot."
Goodnight and good luck.
I think that was Edward R. Murrow's line, but I was too young to remember him.
Let's face it.
The season is over, thanks to the BCS schools who derailed the teams-with-worse-records-can't-be-chosen-over-better-records rule at the end of last season. That means eight-win teams with small fan bases are in jeopardy of getting shut out this year.
Last year, no eight-win team could have been taken over nine-win Temple (excluding bowl tie-ins). This year, any six-win team can be taken over eight-win Temple.
The BCS schools pushing that rule change through is another example that big-time college football is corrupt to the core. The rich get richer. The poor get poorer.
If you think anybody is going to bend over backwards to invite an eight-win Temple team to a bowl, your thinking process is all wrong.
The only bowl that would want us, The Military Bowl, is spoken for with two tie-in participants eligible.
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| Geez, I hope Al Golden decides to stay at Temple but my gut tells me he's gone |
That was the former Eagle Bank Bowl and we helped them out big-time by putting 20K fannies in the seats last year vs. UCLA.
Can we even put 1K fannies at any other bowl?
No.
It's all about the Benjamins in college football, in case you forgot.
It was a nice season, not a great season, not even a good season.
Why?
Because you can't return 21 starters at 16 positions and not improve from 9-3 to 10-2 or better.
And you certainly can't go from 9-3 to 8-4.
?
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| Bruce Arians, the only logical choice as next Temple coach. |
So there is blame to be assessed (in this order):
1) Matt Rhule. Sorry, Matt, you do not deserve to be back as offensive coordinator. You are a defensive guy, a career linebacker and a career linebacker coach. There are way too many weapons (Rod Streater, a 318-pound average offensive line, Michael Campbell, Bernard Pierce, Matt Brown, Delano Green, Erod, AJax, etc.) for this team to struggle putting points on the board. There already is an accomplished offensive coordinator on the staff. His name is Rob Spence and he turned scoreboards into adding machines at places like Clemson and Syracuse. He deserves at least a chance to move up and show what a lifelong offensive mind can do.
Why do we consistently make slow, white quarterbacks look like Fran Tarkenton? Because we don't blitz anywhere near enough to sack these guys 10 yards behind the line of scrimmage, like we should
2) Mark D'Onofrio. Why do we consistently make slow, white quarterbacks look like Fran Tarkenton? Because we don't blitz anywhere near enough to sack these guys 10 yards behind the line of scrimmage, like we should. We should punch these guys in the mouth (figuratively, of course) early and often and make them uncomfortable back there.
I've been a big Mark D'Onofrio supporter to take over Al Golden's job once Al Golden leaves.
No more.
I'll take a 57-year-old Bruce Arians, a guy who is not afraid to blitz, over Mark D'Onofrio any day of the week. I've never seen a more passive defensive coordinator when it comes to attacking the other guy's quarterback.
Fifty-seven is not old anymore.
I never thought it was.
When I was 21 and working at the Doylestown Intelligencer, I wrote a column that Temple should hire John Chaney as its new basketball coach.
I got called into the office of the Managing Editor, Jim McFadden.
"Mike, don't you think 50 is a little old for a new basketball coach?" he said.
"Fifty's not old," I said.
My boss smiled.
"You get a raise," McFadden said.
He was 50, too.
The point is if you can do the job, it doesn't matter how old you are.
Bruce can do the job.
Bruce can recruit. He knows Temple. He loves Temple. He will put other quarterbacks on their asses and make them give the ball to us early and often.
He's a Super Bowl winner.
An NFL pension is no longer an issue with him, like it was last time. He's making $600,000 and his boss is Mike Tomlin. At Temple, he would be making $1.2 million with no boss.
This move makes sense for both Bruce and Temple,
If there ever was a time for Bruce Arians at Temple, it is now.
Do I think Al Golden is leaving?
Geez, my heart says he stays but my head says he's gone.
If my heart was right tonight, we would have won, 23-3, instead of lost, 23-3.
So I think my head is right this time, too.
The tug might be too strong this year.
Yes, he's as good as gone. Benjamins also figure into the Al Golden saga. We don't have them. Other schools do.
I salute him.
What a terrific job he's done here and I can't thank him enough.
If he failed this year at all, it was sticking with his Penn State boy, Rhule, for way too long.
Golden proved that you can win at Temple, just like Arians did some 20 years ago.
When Al leaves, let's keep this momentum and move forward with the only other guy who's proven he can win here. I don't want to go back to the days that existed between those two regimes. Hiring Jerry Berndt, Ron Dickerson and Bobby Wallace was a crap shoot. I don't want any more crappy crap shoot hirings.
I want a sure thing next time and Bruce Arians is the only sure thing out there right now. He's the round peg that fits nicely into Temple's round hole.
Azkals get a boost for the upcoming Suzuki Cup
by rick olivares
The Philippine Men�s National Football Team got a nice send off yesterday November 23, 2010 at the Philippine Football Federation (PFF) House of Football as Gatorade, the world�s leading sports drink, came on board as a team sponsor on the eve of their participation in the Asean Football Federation Suzuki Cup 2010 that will be held in Hanoi, Vietnam from December 1-19.
�Having Gatorade behind us is literally a big boost for us,� said an exuberant Dan Palami, the national team manager. �The press con, the media being present � I don�t think this team has ever seen so many media persons in one room interested in writing about them � and having the backing of a multinational like Gatorade definitely lifts up our spirits.�
�Football is one of our three priority sports for 2011,� underscored Gatorade Brand Representative Ton Gatmaitan. �We are excited to be able to be behind not just the national team but also Philippine football in general. Not only will we provide them with powered Gatorade to last them from Thailand (where the team will train briefly) all the way to Vietnam but we will also have equipment such as coolers, towels, water bottles, and next year even sweat tests to determine a hydration plan for all of the players.�
The Nationals qualified for the biennial tournament when they placed second in the Qualifying Stage last month in Vientiane, Laos. The Philippines beat Timor Leste 5-0 in its first match before they drew their final two matches against eventual group winner Laos 2-2 and Cambodia 0-0.
Laos and the Philippines will join the top six seeded ASEAN nations � Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, Singapore, and Thailand � in a battle for the AFF Suzuki Cup trophy and US $100,000. The Azkals, as the nationals are fondly nicknamed, are bracketed with defending champion Vietnam, dangerous Singapore, and Myanmar.
�I�m expecting three very very tough games where we�re the underdogs in every match.� said head coach Simon McMenemy who had one international cap with Brunei as a contracted foreigner and was a former assistant manager with non-English Premier League team Worthing Football Club. �Being here is already achievement but were certainly not satisfied with that. We�re in for a tough fight but if we start out well against Singapore in our opening match then who knows how far we can go? Anything we achieve in the tournament is a bonus. We know we are capable of beating the other teams. Whether that works in our favor on game day or not, without wanting to be very clich�-ish about it, football is a very strange game where the ball is round and anything can happen. The way the lads have been training, we are certainly capable of doing things.�
�None of the other countries are expecting anything from us,� noted team captain Alexander Borromeo. �We always play better when we�re underdogs and we�re in high spirits now so that has to be a good combination.�
The composition of the national team is a balance of veterans like Emelio �Chieffy� Caligdong, Borromeo, Ian Araneta, Anton del Rosario, Phil and James Younghusband, Neil Etheridge, Matthew Hartmann, and Eduard Sacapa�o; and newcomers Michael Atienza, Jerry Barbaso, Yanti Barsales, David Basa, Christopher Camcam, Jose Alfe Caminos, Joel Ballo-Allo, Jason de Jong, Mark Anthony Ferrer, Roel Gener, Robert James Gier, Peter Jaugan, Ray Anthony Jonsson, Manuel Ott, Ray Mark Palmes, Jose Paolo Pascual, Gino Angelo Pavone, and Kristoffer Relucio.
Assisting McMenemy is former Ateneo High School and Air Force coach Edwin Cabalida, Edzel Bracamonte, and Rolando Pi�ero as well as physiotherapists Walfred Javier and Josef Malinay.
The Philippines sees its first bit of action on December 2 when they go up against Singapore at 5pm at the My Dinh Stadium.
They play hosts Vietnam on December 5 at 730pm once more at the My Dinh Stadium before they close out their group stage assignment Myanmar of December 8 at 5pm at the Hang Day Stadium.
Bleachers' Brew
Cebu Football - UC booters score in Aboitiz Cup
THE UNIVERSITY of Cebu (UC) posted its first win in the Men's League of the 13th Aboitiz Football Cup by outclassing DB Magone FC, 3-1, last weekend at the Aboitiz Sportsfield, North reclamation Area in Mandaue City.
DBUFC also put up an impressive performance to beat the University of Southern Philippines Foundation (USPF), 2-1.
In the Men's Cup, USPF Alumni and DBUFC 1 inflicted identical 4-3 whippings of their opponents.
USPF Alumni dismissed SRRU while DBUFC 1 slipped past DBUFC 2.
In the Boys 17, Blessed John blanked USPF, 1-0. In the Boys 14, Abellana National School (ANS) Pomeroy ended its match against Don Bosco Technology Center 1(DBTC) in a 1-all draw.
The other matches had MTI annihilating Cebu International School (CIS), 7-0, and Sacred Heart School-Ateneo de Cebu (SHS-AdC) routing Blessed John, 6-0.
In the Boys 12, the younger SHS-AdC did not fare so well after bowing to Springdale, 3-1, while Subangdaku Football Club (SFC) and DBTC 1 did not concede any goals against their respective opponents.
SFC blanked SJSM, 2-0, while DBTC 1 outclassed ANS Pomeroy, 5-0.
DBTC C enjoyed a 13-0 lashing of Bright Academy in the Players 10 division.
Other matches had Giuseppe FC blanking DBTC B, 4-0; SHS-AdC winning over SFC, 4-1; and CIS giving DBTC D a 4-0 whipping.
In the Players 8, DBTC 2, DBTC 3 and DBTC C all added to their number of wins.
DBTC 2 won over DBTC A, 4-0; DBTC 3 squeaked past DBTC B, 3-2; and DBTC C triumphing against DBTC 4, 3-1. /CORRESPONDENT MARS G. ALISON
Cebu Daily News
DBUFC also put up an impressive performance to beat the University of Southern Philippines Foundation (USPF), 2-1.
In the Men's Cup, USPF Alumni and DBUFC 1 inflicted identical 4-3 whippings of their opponents.
USPF Alumni dismissed SRRU while DBUFC 1 slipped past DBUFC 2.
In the Boys 17, Blessed John blanked USPF, 1-0. In the Boys 14, Abellana National School (ANS) Pomeroy ended its match against Don Bosco Technology Center 1(DBTC) in a 1-all draw.
The other matches had MTI annihilating Cebu International School (CIS), 7-0, and Sacred Heart School-Ateneo de Cebu (SHS-AdC) routing Blessed John, 6-0.
In the Boys 12, the younger SHS-AdC did not fare so well after bowing to Springdale, 3-1, while Subangdaku Football Club (SFC) and DBTC 1 did not concede any goals against their respective opponents.
SFC blanked SJSM, 2-0, while DBTC 1 outclassed ANS Pomeroy, 5-0.
DBTC C enjoyed a 13-0 lashing of Bright Academy in the Players 10 division.
Other matches had Giuseppe FC blanking DBTC B, 4-0; SHS-AdC winning over SFC, 4-1; and CIS giving DBTC D a 4-0 whipping.
In the Players 8, DBTC 2, DBTC 3 and DBTC C all added to their number of wins.
DBTC 2 won over DBTC A, 4-0; DBTC 3 squeaked past DBTC B, 3-2; and DBTC C triumphing against DBTC 4, 3-1. /CORRESPONDENT MARS G. ALISON
Cebu Daily News
Tuesday --Nov 23rd, 2010
In the spring I would kill for some football news. Yesterday there was a flood of information.
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Rhode Island officially joins the NEC.
Rhody's HC Joe Trainer was chosen CAA Coach of the Year.
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The CAA released the 2010 All-conference awards.
From the UMass website:
Junior linebacker Tyler Holmes was named the CAA Co-Defensive Player of the Year on Monday. He was also named to the CAA First-Team along with senior receiver Anthony Nelson and senior lineman Greg Niland. Junior tailback Jonathan Hernandez and junior receiver Julian Talley were on the second team and senior tailback John Griffin took third-team honors. Holmes is the first UMass player to earn league defensive player of the year honors since Shannon James was the Atlantic 10's top player in 2004. Prior to James, the last honoree was Brian Corcoran in 1994.
One notable omission:
Passing average/game
1. Kyle Havens......... UMAS SR 11 345 219 7 63.5 2692 20 244.7
Total offense
1. Kyle Havens......... UMAS SR 11 -62 2692 384 2630 239.1
Havens was also 4th in passing efficiency.
Tyler Holmes was the CAA Co-Defensive player-of-the-year.
Matty V has an article on the UMass CAA player awards.
Holmes is also a Buck Buchanan Award finalist.
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UMass also released the annual UMass football awards.
From the UMass website:
AMHERST, Mass. -- The UMass football team held its annual team banquet on Sunday as head coach Kevin Morris and his staff handed out the team awards for 2010. Junior linebacker Tyler Holmes was named the Team MVP while senior linebacker Mike Mele was named the Defensive MVP and senior receiver Anthony Nelson was honored as the Offensive MVP.
Here's a look at the team's honors from 2010:
The Team MVP was awarded to junior linebacker Tyler Holmes, who racked up 110 tackles, to tie for the team's lead with Mele. Holmes, who was a three-time CAA Defensive Player of the Week, is a top Buck Buchanan Award Candidate as the top FCS Defensive Player. Holmes led UMass in tackles for a loss with 12 for 45 yards, interceptions with five for 70 yards including two for touchdowns against Maine to set a UMass school record for a game and season. He also led UMass in sacks with five and had two forced fumbles along with six passes defended.
Defensive MVP Mike Mele tied Holmes for the team lead in tackles with 110. He had 2.5 TFLs for 17 yards along with a sack, forced fumble and fumble recovery.
Offensive MVP Anthony Nelson led UMass in receiving with 61 catches for 830 yards. He piled up a team-best 1,249 all-purpose yards. He racked up 242 yards on kickoff returns, 103 on punt returns and 74 rushing yards.
The Most Improved Defensive Player Award was shared by seniors James Carven and Brandon Flanagan. Carven started the final two games of the season, playing all 11 and finished with 35 tackles and two pass break-ups. Flanagan started all 11 games at nose tackle and had 30 tackles on the season with two passes defended.
The Most Improved Offensive Player Award went to senior quarterback Kyle Havens and sophomore center Quinton Sales. Havens threw for 2,692 yards and a 63.5 completion percentage along with 20 touchdowns. He finished with a 144.1 pass efficiency rating and 244.7 passing yards per game. Sales, started five games at center and was solid snapping the ball to Havens all season long.
The Most Valuable Players on Special Teams went to seniors Woody Carter IV and Scott Duggan. Both players was key to coverage and blocking units all season long. Carter and Duggan each made 11 tackles and made many key blocks to spring big releases on the season.
The Iron Man Award for best work in the Weight room went to Holmes and redshirt freshman Jamar Smith.
The team's Academic Awards were claimed by senior cornerback Ke'Mon Bailey and senior center John Ihne.
Offensive Scout Team Players of the Year were redshirt freshman quarterback Jesse Hunt and sophomore wide receiver James Lizotte, who transferred in from Holy Cross.
The Defensive Scout Team Player of the Year was freshman defensive back Ryan Collins.
The awards were about as I expected. I had been meaning to mention that Jamar Smith looked like he had put on some muscle. The blog is looking forward to him running the rock next year.
James Lizotte has FBS size at 6-3 210.
Not much biographical information about FR Ryan Collins. Walpole Times has an article on Collins.
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Rhode Island officially joins the NEC.
Rhody's HC Joe Trainer was chosen CAA Coach of the Year.
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From the UMass website:
Junior linebacker Tyler Holmes was named the CAA Co-Defensive Player of the Year on Monday. He was also named to the CAA First-Team along with senior receiver Anthony Nelson and senior lineman Greg Niland. Junior tailback Jonathan Hernandez and junior receiver Julian Talley were on the second team and senior tailback John Griffin took third-team honors. Holmes is the first UMass player to earn league defensive player of the year honors since Shannon James was the Atlantic 10's top player in 2004. Prior to James, the last honoree was Brian Corcoran in 1994.
One notable omission:
Passing average/game
1. Kyle Havens......... UMAS SR 11 345 219 7 63.5 2692 20 244.7
Total offense
1. Kyle Havens......... UMAS SR 11 -62 2692 384 2630 239.1
Havens was also 4th in passing efficiency.
Tyler Holmes was the CAA Co-Defensive player-of-the-year.
Matty V has an article on the UMass CAA player awards.
Holmes is also a Buck Buchanan Award finalist.
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UMass also released the annual UMass football awards.
From the UMass website:
AMHERST, Mass. -- The UMass football team held its annual team banquet on Sunday as head coach Kevin Morris and his staff handed out the team awards for 2010. Junior linebacker Tyler Holmes was named the Team MVP while senior linebacker Mike Mele was named the Defensive MVP and senior receiver Anthony Nelson was honored as the Offensive MVP.
Here's a look at the team's honors from 2010:
The Team MVP was awarded to junior linebacker Tyler Holmes, who racked up 110 tackles, to tie for the team's lead with Mele. Holmes, who was a three-time CAA Defensive Player of the Week, is a top Buck Buchanan Award Candidate as the top FCS Defensive Player. Holmes led UMass in tackles for a loss with 12 for 45 yards, interceptions with five for 70 yards including two for touchdowns against Maine to set a UMass school record for a game and season. He also led UMass in sacks with five and had two forced fumbles along with six passes defended.
Defensive MVP Mike Mele tied Holmes for the team lead in tackles with 110. He had 2.5 TFLs for 17 yards along with a sack, forced fumble and fumble recovery.
Offensive MVP Anthony Nelson led UMass in receiving with 61 catches for 830 yards. He piled up a team-best 1,249 all-purpose yards. He racked up 242 yards on kickoff returns, 103 on punt returns and 74 rushing yards.
The Most Improved Defensive Player Award was shared by seniors James Carven and Brandon Flanagan. Carven started the final two games of the season, playing all 11 and finished with 35 tackles and two pass break-ups. Flanagan started all 11 games at nose tackle and had 30 tackles on the season with two passes defended.
The Most Improved Offensive Player Award went to senior quarterback Kyle Havens and sophomore center Quinton Sales. Havens threw for 2,692 yards and a 63.5 completion percentage along with 20 touchdowns. He finished with a 144.1 pass efficiency rating and 244.7 passing yards per game. Sales, started five games at center and was solid snapping the ball to Havens all season long.
The Most Valuable Players on Special Teams went to seniors Woody Carter IV and Scott Duggan. Both players was key to coverage and blocking units all season long. Carter and Duggan each made 11 tackles and made many key blocks to spring big releases on the season.
The Iron Man Award for best work in the Weight room went to Holmes and redshirt freshman Jamar Smith.
The team's Academic Awards were claimed by senior cornerback Ke'Mon Bailey and senior center John Ihne.
Offensive Scout Team Players of the Year were redshirt freshman quarterback Jesse Hunt and sophomore wide receiver James Lizotte, who transferred in from Holy Cross.
The Defensive Scout Team Player of the Year was freshman defensive back Ryan Collins.
The awards were about as I expected. I had been meaning to mention that Jamar Smith looked like he had put on some muscle. The blog is looking forward to him running the rock next year.
James Lizotte has FBS size at 6-3 210.
Not much biographical information about FR Ryan Collins. Walpole Times has an article on Collins.
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Monday, 22 November 2010
Miami: The most important game so far (seriously)
Temple quarterback Mike Gerardi discusses the Miami game.
You hear it all the time.
"This is the most important game of the year."
Usually, it's hyperbole.
Not this year. Not with Temple.
The next game is always the most important because it's the next game but Temple has had more games that were "most important" for other reasons, too, than any season I can remember in my 30 years of following the team.
Against Villanova it was the most important game because you could not retain any credibility in your hometown by losing to that school again.
Against CMU it was most important because it took down the reigning MAC power.
Temple at Miami (O)Against UConn it was most important because it send a message to the Big East flirting with Villanova that, hey, there was a better-looking girl on the same block.
TV/RADIO: ESPN2; WPHT-AM (1210).
Records: Temple, 8-3 overall,
5-2 Mid-American Conference;
Miami, 7-4, 6-1.
Series: Temple leads, 3-1.
Against Penn State, it would have been a statement game nationally for the program.
And so on and so forth ....
It was true last week against Ohio and it is true Tuesday night at Miami.
Each game was and is more important than the prior game.
Here's the reason why Tuesday night's game with Miami is the MOST important:
Last week, Temple AD Bill Bradshaw sent out a questionaire to Owl fans about which bowl they consider most appealing to travel to, listing Boise, Mobile and Detroit as possible destinations.
My strong educated guess is that Boise was a runaway winner _ for last place. There will be no fans (other than athletic support personnel and parents) going to that game. Maybe the Boise alumni club (one person) will arrange a trip on a motorscooter.
Go to Mobile or St. Petersburg or Dallas and there are likely to be thousands of Owl fans, who will be watching tonight from home or area P.J. Whelihan locations where there will be organized Temple viewing parties. All locations will be having viewing parties with the biggest one at Blue Bell in Montgomery County.
Those fans know if the Owls don't win in Miami (Ohio) tonight (7 p.m., ESPN2), they are likely ticketed for Boise.
Or worse.
Home.
That's where it stands right now.
Even though head coach Al Golden assumed that the Owls were going bowling for the second straight year in the post-game press conference after the Ohio loss, a closer examination of the available data indicates that Temple could be left on the outside looking in with a loss.
That's because it's a 50/50 shot that all of the bowls MAC teams are listed as backups will be filled with primary conference tie-ins.
Win, and it's impossible to keep a nine-win Temple team out.
Lose, and it's a 50/50 shot at no bowl at all.
So this is the most important game of the year.
Until the bowl game.
Waking up football in The Philippines
As teams in the northern hemisphere prepare to don their gloves, hats and thermals for the upcoming months, the biennial AFF cup in the humidity of South East Asia offers a more tropical alternative. The tournament has been held since 1996 with Thailand and Singapore each enjoying standout success since its inauguration. One country however, which has traditionally been less successful is The Philippines, a nation whose adoption of basketball as the national sport, marks it out from the rest of Asia. However, under the guidance of Englishman Simon McMenemy, the national team made it through an intensely tight qualification campaign and is gearing up towards the tournament which will this year be played in Vietnam. Today we take a look at the job McMenemy faces and speak to the man himself about the challenges and rewards in promoting the profile and quality of football in The Philippines.
More : the Soccer Lens
More : the Soccer Lens
UFL - Kaya Slapped with Heavy Fine
With accordance to Article 39 section 1 of the UFL Rules and Regulations, Kaya has been fined P200,000 for their withdrawal from the current LBC-UFL Cup.
Article 39 Section 1 - A fine of Two Hundred Thousand Pesos Philippine Currency (PHP 200,000.00) shall be imposed on clubs for withdrawing after the submission of the Official Entry Form but before the submission of the Team Registration Form.
UFL website
Article 39 Section 1 - A fine of Two Hundred Thousand Pesos Philippine Currency (PHP 200,000.00) shall be imposed on clubs for withdrawing after the submission of the Official Entry Form but before the submission of the Team Registration Form.
UFL website
Monday --Nov 22,2010
The UMass Daily Collegian says UMass is out of the playoff picture.
Matty V looks at the season that might have been for the Minutemen.
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Meanwhile, UNH heads for the playoffs for the seventh straight time.
The CAA website has an article on the NCAA playoff selection show. The CAA received two of the top five seeds for the tourney.
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In the Blog's opinion, probably the hottest team in the tourney is William & Mary. As the #2 seed, they also get home games through the semifinals. The Tribe has won eleven in a row at Zable stadium.
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Craig Halley of TSN looks at playoff field in his "Inside the FCS Huddle" column.
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Keeper's College Football rankings has FCS playoff predictions here.
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Matty V looks at the season that might have been for the Minutemen.
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Meanwhile, UNH heads for the playoffs for the seventh straight time.
The CAA website has an article on the NCAA playoff selection show. The CAA received two of the top five seeds for the tourney.
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In the Blog's opinion, probably the hottest team in the tourney is William & Mary. As the #2 seed, they also get home games through the semifinals. The Tribe has won eleven in a row at Zable stadium.
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Craig Halley of TSN looks at playoff field in his "Inside the FCS Huddle" column.
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Keeper's College Football rankings has FCS playoff predictions here.
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Sunday, 21 November 2010
PFF - The Game of their lives Part 2
Frenemies and a bad investment. The truth, however, is somewhere between the lines. The third party in the PFF troubles sits down to be interviewed.
by Rick Olivares
This coming November 27, 2010, the 32 football associations under the Philippine Football Federation (PFF) will come together in Manila to convene for its year-end Congress.
The Congress will be significant for one thing � that disgruntled members will try to seek the vote of 2/3s of the assembly to oust the current federation president Jose Mari Martinez who is accused and has been taken to court for a variety of alleged offenses and violations stemming from falsification of public documents to misappropriation of monies given to the PFF through the Financial Assistance Program of the F�d�ration Internationale de Football Association (FIFA). FIFA provides $250,000 a year not counting the Vision Asia project that provides a similar amount.
In the midst of the contentions between the two parties is one Henry L. Tsai.
Last September 24, 2010, Richard Montayre of the Cebu Football Association and Dick Emperado of the Dumaguete Football Association filed a case against Martinez for falsification of public documents when he appointed Tsai to the position of Executive Vice President and transferred PFF funds into the latter�s account �for safekeeping� both without board approval. Both actions are not only a violation of the corporation code but also the federation�s by-laws and FIFA rules. Martinez admitted that the �appointment� of Tsai was �an honest mistake� and pledged to resolve the mess.
Who is Henry Tsai and what was role did he play in the PFF?
In a conversation with Tsai over coffee at the UCC in Burgos Circle at Bonifacio Global city last Wednesday evening, November 17, 2010, the former shipping man recounted how his relationship with Martinez and the PFF came about.
Both Martinez and Tsai worked together for four years at Soriamont, a shipping company, but lost contact with one another for almost 20 years. After a chance encounter at Amici Restaurant in Connecticut Street, Greenhills in mid-2009, Martinez invited Tsai to help football. Tsai initially declined describing himself as �bored and retired.�
Martinez outlined four responsibilities for Tsai should he accept the offer: one, to help with the marketing; two, to fund the PFF�s activities; three, to put up a shop at the basement of the PFF House of Football where he could sell football training equipment and other paraphernalia purchased from Taiwan (the rent for the basement was pegged at PhP40,000 a month); and four, to provide some living quarters for then-men�s national team coach Desmond Bulpin.
Tsai mulled the offer over because he was �never a sportsman� and he�d be like �a fish out of water.� But he eventually accepted and he infused the federation�s coffers with over PhP 3 million and lent a newly purchased Toyota Fortuner to Martinez for official use. �Without a promissory note that I would get paid back.� he added. �It was a gentleman�s agreement.�
�We didn�t have any money,� recounted Martinez. �We have so many programs and not enough money. So I asked Henry to invest.�
�The reason why Mari borrowed money from me was because by year-end wala nang pera ang PFF. There was nothing for payroll, 13th month pay, utilities, everything,� explained Tsai. Ironically, Tsai did not charge any interest to the loan except that he wanted to be paid back �the minute the aid money from FIFA arrives. I�m a good friend that�s why.�
At the start of 2010, the PFF�s Treasurer, Antonio �Bok� Marty, tendered his resignation but Martinez prevailed upon him to stay a few more months. When it became apparent that they could no longer convince Marty to stay, former PFF marketing officer Gerry Ledonio recommended to Martinez that Tsai be given a position to maximize his abilities.
The title bequeathed to Tsai was �Executive Vice President�.
Said Tsai of that move: �I didn�t want to be a part of anything because what do I know about football? I was there because Mari needed help. If you check, my salary was for only one peso. But Mari wrote three lines in the minutes of the meeting that was without the approval of the Board of Governors.�
The three lines Tsai was referring to was the Secretary�s Certificate to the PFF accounts with Banco de Oro and Bank of the Philippine Islands. Curiously, there were two different certificates. The one dated January 7, 2010 and signed by then PFF General Secretary Cyril V. Dofitas stated that Martinez and Tsai were approved by the board to sign any checks pertaining to the federation�s two accounts.
Members of the board of governors recall approving no such motion when they met up in Leyte on November 28, 2009. And it was because of this �falsification of public documents� that Martinez� access to the PFF accounts were suspended and the basis for the complaint filed by Montayre and Emperado.
There was another Secretary�s Certificate, once more authenticated by Dofitas, who has since moved back to his native Iloilo following his mid-year resignation, dated January 21, 2010, this time stating there was a board resolution on November 28, 2010 that added Tsai to the signatories for the PFF�s BDO account.
In both certificates, the position stated next to Tsai�s name read: �Managing Consultant.�
Tsai admitted that he knew that there was no board resolution to his addition but when (PFF Finance Officer) Dennis Lacuesta asked me to sign some papers, I thought ayos na. But I was only with the PFF to sign checks nothing more. I also wanted to collect my money.�
But in documents obtained from PFF sources, Tsai did more than sign checks.
In the April 2010 edition of The Goalpost, the PFF�s official newsletter, it is written that the National Men�s Futsal Team that participated in the Asian Football Confederation Championship Qualifiers in Jakarta, Indonesia from February 20-25, was headed by Tsai.
On June 7, 2010, the Valle Verde Country Club, Inc. issued several memos to the PFF stating that the unpaid accounts of Ledonio, Martinez, and Tsai will lead to the suspension of the accounts and membership shares auctioned off.
In a memo dated June 15, 2010, Tsai informed the PFF�s security detail about the rules for access to the office.
One month later, Martinez and Tsai had a falling out and have hurled one accusation after another against each other. Each claiming the other party owes him money.
Martinez accuses Tsai of duping him into investing PFF money into an illegal venture (the Campo Verde Estates in Tagaytay that is not registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission and has a cease and desist order to prevent the passage of a sale which we read more of in Part 3) in order to gain more money. �I realize it was wrong but I am determined to recover the money. I did this because we needed to make extra funds for our programs.�
However, according to Tsai, his fallout with Martinez began when he believed that the PFF passbook and its inflows from AFC/FIFA were being kept from him. He said that while his initial loan of PhP 2 million was paid by the PFF, the succeeding loans were not.
Yet in the final audit by Campos, Campos & Co., the accounting firm found out that Tsai had unliquidated cash advances that totaled up PhP 3,371,707.35. Even worse, the PFF has been left with a serious fund shortage of PhP 2,094,000.00 all the way until the end of 2010.
Last November 7, 2010, Tsai filed a complaint against Martinez and Marty for estafa and the violation of the bouncing check law at the Office of the City Prosecutor in Pasig City.
While Tsai says that their friendship is over, he does not wish to destroy Martinez. �All I want is my money back. And the Fortuner.�
Bleachers' Brew
by Rick Olivares
This coming November 27, 2010, the 32 football associations under the Philippine Football Federation (PFF) will come together in Manila to convene for its year-end Congress.
The Congress will be significant for one thing � that disgruntled members will try to seek the vote of 2/3s of the assembly to oust the current federation president Jose Mari Martinez who is accused and has been taken to court for a variety of alleged offenses and violations stemming from falsification of public documents to misappropriation of monies given to the PFF through the Financial Assistance Program of the F�d�ration Internationale de Football Association (FIFA). FIFA provides $250,000 a year not counting the Vision Asia project that provides a similar amount.
In the midst of the contentions between the two parties is one Henry L. Tsai.
Last September 24, 2010, Richard Montayre of the Cebu Football Association and Dick Emperado of the Dumaguete Football Association filed a case against Martinez for falsification of public documents when he appointed Tsai to the position of Executive Vice President and transferred PFF funds into the latter�s account �for safekeeping� both without board approval. Both actions are not only a violation of the corporation code but also the federation�s by-laws and FIFA rules. Martinez admitted that the �appointment� of Tsai was �an honest mistake� and pledged to resolve the mess.
Who is Henry Tsai and what was role did he play in the PFF?
In a conversation with Tsai over coffee at the UCC in Burgos Circle at Bonifacio Global city last Wednesday evening, November 17, 2010, the former shipping man recounted how his relationship with Martinez and the PFF came about.
Both Martinez and Tsai worked together for four years at Soriamont, a shipping company, but lost contact with one another for almost 20 years. After a chance encounter at Amici Restaurant in Connecticut Street, Greenhills in mid-2009, Martinez invited Tsai to help football. Tsai initially declined describing himself as �bored and retired.�
Martinez outlined four responsibilities for Tsai should he accept the offer: one, to help with the marketing; two, to fund the PFF�s activities; three, to put up a shop at the basement of the PFF House of Football where he could sell football training equipment and other paraphernalia purchased from Taiwan (the rent for the basement was pegged at PhP40,000 a month); and four, to provide some living quarters for then-men�s national team coach Desmond Bulpin.
Tsai mulled the offer over because he was �never a sportsman� and he�d be like �a fish out of water.� But he eventually accepted and he infused the federation�s coffers with over PhP 3 million and lent a newly purchased Toyota Fortuner to Martinez for official use. �Without a promissory note that I would get paid back.� he added. �It was a gentleman�s agreement.�
�We didn�t have any money,� recounted Martinez. �We have so many programs and not enough money. So I asked Henry to invest.�
�The reason why Mari borrowed money from me was because by year-end wala nang pera ang PFF. There was nothing for payroll, 13th month pay, utilities, everything,� explained Tsai. Ironically, Tsai did not charge any interest to the loan except that he wanted to be paid back �the minute the aid money from FIFA arrives. I�m a good friend that�s why.�
At the start of 2010, the PFF�s Treasurer, Antonio �Bok� Marty, tendered his resignation but Martinez prevailed upon him to stay a few more months. When it became apparent that they could no longer convince Marty to stay, former PFF marketing officer Gerry Ledonio recommended to Martinez that Tsai be given a position to maximize his abilities.
The title bequeathed to Tsai was �Executive Vice President�.
Said Tsai of that move: �I didn�t want to be a part of anything because what do I know about football? I was there because Mari needed help. If you check, my salary was for only one peso. But Mari wrote three lines in the minutes of the meeting that was without the approval of the Board of Governors.�
The three lines Tsai was referring to was the Secretary�s Certificate to the PFF accounts with Banco de Oro and Bank of the Philippine Islands. Curiously, there were two different certificates. The one dated January 7, 2010 and signed by then PFF General Secretary Cyril V. Dofitas stated that Martinez and Tsai were approved by the board to sign any checks pertaining to the federation�s two accounts.
Members of the board of governors recall approving no such motion when they met up in Leyte on November 28, 2009. And it was because of this �falsification of public documents� that Martinez� access to the PFF accounts were suspended and the basis for the complaint filed by Montayre and Emperado.
There was another Secretary�s Certificate, once more authenticated by Dofitas, who has since moved back to his native Iloilo following his mid-year resignation, dated January 21, 2010, this time stating there was a board resolution on November 28, 2010 that added Tsai to the signatories for the PFF�s BDO account.
In both certificates, the position stated next to Tsai�s name read: �Managing Consultant.�
Tsai admitted that he knew that there was no board resolution to his addition but when (PFF Finance Officer) Dennis Lacuesta asked me to sign some papers, I thought ayos na. But I was only with the PFF to sign checks nothing more. I also wanted to collect my money.�
But in documents obtained from PFF sources, Tsai did more than sign checks.
In the April 2010 edition of The Goalpost, the PFF�s official newsletter, it is written that the National Men�s Futsal Team that participated in the Asian Football Confederation Championship Qualifiers in Jakarta, Indonesia from February 20-25, was headed by Tsai.
On June 7, 2010, the Valle Verde Country Club, Inc. issued several memos to the PFF stating that the unpaid accounts of Ledonio, Martinez, and Tsai will lead to the suspension of the accounts and membership shares auctioned off.
In a memo dated June 15, 2010, Tsai informed the PFF�s security detail about the rules for access to the office.
One month later, Martinez and Tsai had a falling out and have hurled one accusation after another against each other. Each claiming the other party owes him money.
Martinez accuses Tsai of duping him into investing PFF money into an illegal venture (the Campo Verde Estates in Tagaytay that is not registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission and has a cease and desist order to prevent the passage of a sale which we read more of in Part 3) in order to gain more money. �I realize it was wrong but I am determined to recover the money. I did this because we needed to make extra funds for our programs.�
However, according to Tsai, his fallout with Martinez began when he believed that the PFF passbook and its inflows from AFC/FIFA were being kept from him. He said that while his initial loan of PhP 2 million was paid by the PFF, the succeeding loans were not.
Yet in the final audit by Campos, Campos & Co., the accounting firm found out that Tsai had unliquidated cash advances that totaled up PhP 3,371,707.35. Even worse, the PFF has been left with a serious fund shortage of PhP 2,094,000.00 all the way until the end of 2010.
Last November 7, 2010, Tsai filed a complaint against Martinez and Marty for estafa and the violation of the bouncing check law at the Office of the City Prosecutor in Pasig City.
While Tsai says that their friendship is over, he does not wish to destroy Martinez. �All I want is my money back. And the Fortuner.�
Bleachers' Brew
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