By: Jan Marcus Montevirgen
TNC Pro Team ended their 15-game losing streak with a 2-0 sweep against AP.Bren in MPL Philippines Season 15, Saturday at the Green Sun Hotel in Makati.
For TNC, the win was a long time coming. After two seasons without a victory, they finally snapped their slump and secured a much-needed confidence boost.
In an exclusive interview with Tiebreaker Times, TNC partner Setsuna “Dogie” Ignacio shared his thoughts on the team’s performance against the retooled AP.Bren squad.
He revealed that this roster was carefully selected by him and TNC Team Manager Jemson Ignacio.
The lineup includes Tristan “Yawi” Cabrera, Lance “LanceCy” Cunanan, Salvick “Kouzen” Tolarba, Mark “Zaida” Palma, Frediemar “3MarTzy” Serafico, John “Lord JM” Sebastian, and Kyle “Koyl” Reyes.
“Sobrang saya kasi eto ay hand-picked ko na talaga, namin ni Boss Jem, sa mga player. Siyempre, grateful ako kay Sir Eric, Sir Josh, pati Sir Pao sa TNC na nagtiwala sa akin na i-hand pick yung mga player na ‘to,” Dogie said.
“Sobrang saya, like oh my god, kasi ibig sabihin neto may potential pa talaga sila to make greater things on the other side. Tulad ni Kouzen, akala nila hanggang doon na lang siya. LanceCy also. Si Yawi matetengga ba sa Indo? Si 3MarTzy asa na? Si Benny kalagitnaan napunta sa akin.”
TNC’s last victory came in Season 13 when they ended the regular season with a 2-0 win over Smart Omega.
Season 14, however, was rough.
TNC finished with a historic 0-14 record — the worst in MPL PH history — and placed eighth for the fifth time.
But with this win against AP.Bren, TNC proved they are capable of turning things around.
“So many unexpected things happened, pero ang saya ng win na ‘yon, sama-sama naming ice-celebrate ‘yon. It’s not the first and it will not be the last. We want to win more,” Dogie said.
Now that they have broken their slump, Dogie believes Season 15 is their chance to reach their full potential.
“We wanna be serious on this lineup this Season 15. Kasi it’s about time na eh. Kailangan naming basagin yung gate para malagpasan ‘to. Gusto pa naming manalo,” he said.
Despite this being Dogie’s first win since becoming TNC’s partner in Season 14, he clarified that the team’s goal isn’t to win the championship but simply to make the playoffs.
“The goal here is playoffs lang. Kapag nakapag-playoffs ‘tong lineup na ‘to, worth it na. I don’t wanna give them the burden na kailangan mag-champion or ganitong spot. Ayokong ibigay yung burden na ‘yon. Ang gusto ko lang ay mag-perform sila ng maganda, have fun, kasi Mobile Legends was made to have fun, hindi ito para i-pressure ang mga tao,” he explained.
Dogie emphasized the importance of maintaining discipline and improving in-game communication to sustain their momentum.
“Discipline. Yung discipline kailangan magtuloy-tuloy. Good comms lead you to a better victory and a good win. Katulad kanina, marami pang kulang sa comms but then malilinis pa ‘yon kasi ang maganda sa win na ‘to is nabo-boost yung morale nila pati na rin yung confidence.”,” he concluded.
