<e/m> By: Jan Marcus Montevirgen
MPL Philippines Season 14 proved to be the toughest challenge yet for Blacklist International, as they underwent a significant roster overhaul, a stark contrast to Season 9 when only Kent “KEVIER” Lopez was brought in to replace Danerie “Wise” Rosario as the team’s jungler.
Despite falling short of the playoffs, Blacklist’s head coach Kristoffer “BON CHAN” Ricaplaza acknowledged that this season was his most challenging in his four-year tenure with the team. This time, his players came from various teams in different regions, presenting a unique challenge.
“Yung mga players na nanggaling sa ibang region, sobrang hirap [nilang] i-unlearn kung ano yung mga nakagisnan nila doon. Meron kasing [instance] na gusto ko silang maglaro the way na gusto kong laruin yung ML, and nadadala [pa rin] nila yung mga nakagisnan nilang laro,” BON CHAN said in an exclusive interview with Tiebreaker Times.
“For example, si Lord JM gusto niya yung mga patayan, tapos kay MP the King, yung farming lang. Iba kasi dito sa Pilipinas eh. Kapag in-apply mo yung mga ganong gameplay, galing sa ibang region dito sa Pinas, hindi siya uubra. Sobrang malaking kaibahan,” he added.
Blacklist struggled early in the season, grappling with their identity as a team. This resulted in a 1-6 record during the first half of the regular season, with their sole victory coming against TNC Pro Team.
However, as the season progressed, the team began to find its footing and showed marked improvement in the latter half.
“At first, hinayaan ko silang maglaro sa gusto nilang laro. Hinayaan ko [sila] baka makakita ako ng bagong identity sa team na ‘to. ‘Sige. Play it at your own risk. Hindi ko muna ia-apply yung sistema na nakagisnan namin. Tignan ko kung ano yung mababago ko or kung maba-buff sa kung anong meron kayo,’” shared the two-time world championship coach.
“And noong ginawa ko ‘yon, sobrang lopsided ng laro. Hindi kami makapalag. As in lose-streak kami, one-sided yung laro. Doon ko na-realize na hindi pwedeng ganito. ‘Sige, maglaro kayo sa way na gusto ko.’ Mahirap din na adjustment para sa mga players. Mahirap mag-unlearn ng mga bagay. Dito pa lang sa pa-end ng [regular] season, doon pa lang nila nakuha.” he added.
In order for Blacklist International to fully grasp BON CHAN’s system, the players had to endure his strict discipline, something he had never enforced in his earlier coaching seasons, dating back to Season 5.
“Dati, hindi naman ako ganon sa mga dati kong players. Maluwag lang. Nagtatawanan lang kapag nagkaka-error. Pero this time, hindi talaga. Kailangan kong baguhin yung sarili ko. Kailangan kong maging strict, disiplinahin sila, para ma-apply talaga yung gusto kong laro,” he revealed.
With the team now aligned with their coach’s expectations, Blacklist closed the regular season on a high note, defeating Aurora 2-1 in a three-game series.
Heading into the playoffs with a chance to qualify for the world championship for the third time, BON CHAN stressed the importance of maintaining focus, even though expectations for the team had been low.
“Siguro ‘wag kaming magpabaya. ‘Wag kaming makuntento na nakapasok lang kami sa playoffs na wala namang nage-expect. Minsan, medyo pangit na mindset yung walang nage-expect. Maganda na mag-aim kami to the highest kung ano man yung na-set naming goal na mataas,” he concluded.
