Arvie “Aqua” Calderon is having a career resurgence under coach Brian “Panda” Lim in RSG PH.
Playing in his second season under the Southeast Asian Games-winning coach, the 19-year-old Aqua is slowly making a case for himself as one of the best support players in the league.
“Parang ano po e, sobrang gigil naming maglaro ngayon kaya ganun yung pinapakita namin,” said Aqua following RSG PH’s 2-0 domination of Omega Esports.
The reason for his inspired play? Coach Panda’s unwavering faith in him.
During the post-game interview, it was revealed that it was Aqua himself who chooses that hero that he wants to play in the team’s MPL matches.
“Yes po, [ganun po]. Hinahayaan lang ako ni Coach Panda kung anong gusto kong gawin tapos ano, support lang siya ginagawa ko,” said Aqua.
“Parang sobrang tiwala lang sakin ni Coach Panda kahit anong gawin ko sa laro,” he added.
Prior to his RSG PH stint, Aqua’s first three seasons in the league have been a tumultuous roller coaster ride.
The 19-year-old played the jungler role in his MPL debut with Blacklist International back in Season Five. In the following season, Aqua slid to the side lanes due to the arrival of Kairi “Kairi” Rayosdelsol.
But after two consecutive early playoff exits, Aqua was axed from the Tier One-backed squad.
He was then picked up by Cignal Ultra for Season Seven. There, he played the jungler role anew. But unlike his first two seasons in the league, his time with Cignal produced a different result. For the first time, Aqua missed the playoffs entirely following a winless regular season campaign.
Everything changed for the Valenzuela-bred player when RSG PH signed him up for the MPL Philippines’ eighth installment.
Next up for Aqua and RSG PH is TNC on Friday at 6:00 PM.
