Bad officiating in Mangaldan SK cagefest

By Jesus A. Garcia Jr.

I HAVE said it before and I will say it again: in any sports competition the most controversial persons are the referees, umpires, judges, table officials (timers and scorers) as well as the organizers. It already happened countless times, and it’s still happening, especially if the management is inept, flimsy, clumsy and acquiescent during the skirmishes. In such cases, the match would always end up in controversies accompanied by jeering, catcalls, boos, and at times marred by scuffles among the players or against the referees inside the court. And that is what is happening now in the 2012 Mangaldan SK Inter-Barangay Basketball Tournament.

The latest incident occurred last Thursday night (March 15) during the battle of barangays Maasin and Bari when the time official and scorer made a big blunder. They counted a basket by a Bari cager (last name Monje) that was not supposed to be counted since the buzzer already sounded before the ball was released from the hands of the cager. That bum call was immediately protested by the Maasin team headed by their coach and their barangay chair Abalos.  But his complaint came to naught because the table officials named Tony “Baang” Magalong and Jay de Leon insisted on counting it with the approval of the referees led by Danny Villanueva.

The crowd jeered Magalong and De Leon, the main culprits for the scoring bum call. Angry spectators began throwing water bottles inside the court in disgust. The verdict of the officials eventually prompted Maasin squad to quit in frustration when Bari was leading by just three points and with still 56 seconds remaining in the ball game. Rule says Maasin lost by forfeiture. And as of this writing I don’t know if Maasin, in contention for the semis with only two losses and with three victories, will still continue to play its remaining three games. They now think that the odds are against them what with the obvious attempt at cheating them of victory each time. In fact, a Bari former cager spoke to me on condition of anonymity said  “Baleg so inap ko ya labay dan paktaken so team na Maasin kasi amta da ya mairap ya kalabanen na Poblacion team so Maasin ed semifinals odino finals tan onor-onor labat iran naynay irayan opisyales no anto so ibaga nen big boss da.” I asked him whom he was referring to. The former cager who’s here for a one week respite to visit his birthplace, his children and grandchildren during the Mangaldan town fiesta celebration declined to name the guy, but said “taga ka Mangaldan met Jess ya singa siak tan media ka ni, katon aliwa ka siguron met-ta met ed nagagawa dia ed Mangaldan lalo la no sugal so patutung-tungan. “ I was quite embarrassed by his answer but I figured what he meant. So, let’s wait and see. Hopefully there will be no more untoward incidents.

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My big congrats to the USATV-Bombo Radyo basketball team for winning the 2012 Palarong Media basketball tournament that concluded on March 11. The team was undefeated (5-0), flooring Aksyon Radyo in the championship match to garner the P7,000 top prize and a certificate. The quintet was coached by National PRISAA Games-bound Angel Gumarang and Badz Agtalao. In the table tennis event, humility aside, this writer retained the diadem, sweeping the half-day tourney held on March 10 at RG Bowling Lanes and Billards Hall in Arellano Street, Dagupan City. DWPR anchorman Macky Delgado placed second and Gusting Tamayo finished third. We, the top three, were worth P1,500, P1,000 and P750, respectively and with certificate each.

Also congrats to UPang-PHINMA Flames for winning the Goodwill Game against the dreaded Mangaldan Selection, 101-93, held at Macario Ydia Development Center in Mangaldan last March 9. The exhibition match was in conjunction with the celebration of my town’s fiesta and sponsored by Mangaldan Town Fiesta Executive Committee 2012 under the leadership of hermano mayor and Liga ng Mga Barangay president Ritchie G. Abalos. The 2011 PRISAA-UCAAP Inter-Collegiate Basketball Tournament champion Flames was steered by veteran coach Jay Ronquillo.

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QUOTE OF THE WEEK: “Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord, and whose hope is the Lord. For he shall be like a tree planted by the waters, which spreads out its roots by the river, and will not fear when heat comes; but its leaf will be green, and will not be anxious in the year of drought, nor will cease from yielding fruit.” JEREMIAH 17: 7-8

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