17 booters impress coach in PFF Festival of Football

A TOTAL of 17 players impressed national coach Oliver Colina in the PFF Mindanao Festival of Football held at the Deca Homes Resort and Residences (DHRR) soccer field last March 18-20.

Darius Diamante, Javier Romero-Salas, Lorenzo Magno, Miguel Aquino, and Jake Bryan Ferolino of Davao City, as well as Agusan del Sur's Eric Pocon and North Cotabato's Mark Platon, Raymond Suano, Lawrence John Camiring, and Rene Boy Palabrica were among the top performers in the boys U13 class.


Janna Barcemo, Nina Ricci Yanto, Mary Joy Indac, Rheza Caminade, Ester Megami Vilela, Gabrielle del Fierro and Mica Corrales were selected to the girls U 14 training pool.

Davao Football Association (DFA) general secretary Erwin Protacio said the players will undergo another stage of the selection process for the national teams seeing action in the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) U13 Boys Festival of Football in Malaysia in May, and in the AFC U14 Girls Festival of Football in Vietnam in June.

Catalunan Grande's Yanto, Ateneo de Davao University's del Fierro and Barcemo formed part of the national team last year.


Butuan City and Sultan Kudarat also joined the festival at DHRR where participating teams received balls courtesy of the Japanese Football Association (JPA) during the opening rites.


Former Fifa referee Jaime Nicolau, meanwhile, conducted a two-day refresher's course to the officiating officials before the start of the festival that was held in cooperation with Department of Education, DHRR, Barangay Mintal, Barangay Tacunan, Mintal Police Station, 69th Infantry Battalion of the Philippine Army, Office of the City Mayor, Medvil Farms Inc., UP Mindanao, and Representative Isidro Ungab.


From Davao, the next selection is set on March 25 to 27 in San Carlos City, Negros Occidental.

Published in the Sun.Star Davao newspaper on March 23, 2011.