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By ADRIAN STEWART CO
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Sunday, February 5, 2017
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WHILE basketball is said to be a sport for the big boys, Ilonggo guard Billy Ray Robles hopes to prove that a diminutive guard like him also has a chance to make it big in the PBA.
The Estancia, Iloilo-native Robles was officially signed by the Rain or Shine Elasto Painters recently after serving as the team’s practice player since the start of the 2016-2017 Oppo PBA Philippine Cup.
“Nacha-challenge ako kasi dati sa Iloilo lagi akong sinasabihan (nung mas matatangkad sa akin) na maliit ako kaya wala akong panama sa kanila kaya pinag iigihan ko talaga,” said Robles.
Robles, who was inserted into the Painters lineup following the injury of veteran Jireh Ibanes, made his PBA debut in Painters’ 103-80 win over the Blackwater Elite on Friday night at the Smart-Araneta Coliseum. The Ilonggo guard was held scoreless with one assists in over three minutes of play.
Before taking his talents to Manila, the 24-year-old Robles became one of the key players in the varsity team of the Northern Iloilo Polytechnic State College. He has also won several titles and MVP plums while playing in small leagues in Iloilo.
“Maliit pa lang ako mahilig na talaga ako sa basketball,” said Robles. “Kaya sumasali rin ako sa mga paliga dito sa Iloilo at minsan nagcha-champion naman at nakakapag uwi ng MVP award.”
Despite graduating with a degree in marine engineering, Robles chose to try his luck in Manila where he played for Hog’s Breath Razorbacks and the Racal Tile Masters in the PBA D-League.
He also had his stints with Racal’s sister team Caida Tile Masters in the Pilipinas Commercial Basketball League (PCBL), where he was named as MVP despite falling short in the finals of the tournament.
“Kahit sinong naglalaro ng basketball naman ay pangarap ang makatuntong sa PBA. Kaya ako palagi ko lang pinagbubuti ‘yung laro ko kasi alam ko darating din ‘yung time ko na makalaro dyan,” he said.
The 5-foot-10 Robles became the third Western Visayas-based players on the Painters’ side aside from two-time PBA MVP James Yap and Jeffrei Chan, who are both from Bacolod City.
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It is already February and yet it is still uncertain whether the 2017 Philippine Football Federation (PFF) Smart Under-22 Amateur Football Championship to be held in Iloilo City will still push through.
PFF tournament department head Cyril Dofitas said they are still to meet with the tournament sponsor to finalize the details and budget before releasing the schedule of the tournament, which was originally scheduled for late January.
“As of now, we have yet to release the exact date of the tournament,” Dofitas said in a statement. “We will send the official announcement to provincial football associations the soonest.”
The PFF Smart Under-22 Amateur Football Championship is a youth football competition for players below 22 years of age organized by the Philippine Football Federation (PFF) and sponsored by Smart Communications.
The tournament, which is participated by youth teams of the PFF’s member associations, is organized as a means for the national federation to scout players for the Philippine national youth teams.
It was first launched in September 2015 but the inaugural edition officially started in Oct. 4, 2015 in Tarlac when the qualifying phase for the final round began. The final round was hosted in Bacolod in January 2016.
The Negros Occidental Football Association, represented by the University of St. La Salle-Bacolod, is looking to defend the championship in the annual tournament in case it pushes through./PN
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