Kungfu Reyes addressed his decision to skip Chery Tiggo’s final game of the 2024 Premier Volleyball League All-Filipino Conference semifinals and focus on University of Sto. Tomas’ Final Four match against De La Salle University last Sunday.
With Chery Tiggo needing a huge miracle to advance to the All-Filipino Conference finals, Reyes decided to shift his attention to the Golden Tigresses, who were set to take on the third-seeded Lady Spikers on the same day in the Final Four.
“Di ko naman kasi ma-please lahat pero ang importante, yung foundation, yung baseline namin, nagkakaintindihan. ‘Yun naman ang importante, yung inner circle ng grupo. Talagang nagkataon lang na nagtapat yung dalawang game,” said Reyes, who shared that he received the green light from the Crossovers’ management.
“Still, ano naman, may punto naman, may punto per punto naman, pero at the end of the day, ang importante kung ano yung nasa loob. Nagkakaintindihan, yung sistema nandun naman, again, iba pa rin naman pag nandyan ako or doon sa kabila,” said Reyes.
(C) Nicks Hernandez/UAAP Season 86 Media Team
Chery Tiggo officially bowed out of finals contention after getting swept by defending champion Creamline, 25-16, 25-21, 25-20, while UST dethroned La Salle in a five-set showdown, 25-20, 16-25, 25-20, 19-25, 15-7, which marked their first finals appearance since Season 81.
Reyes shared that he weighed his decision carefully, saying that he went through numerous scenarios before coming up with a final decision. In the end, the significance of what was at stake for both teams and their respective chances proved to be the deciding factor for the veteran coach.
He also said that he has a formidable staff led by team manager and former head coach Aaron Velez, who is more than capable of taking over for him.
“So wine-weigh naman lahat. Talagang sabi nga, I think mas kailangan ako ng mga bagets kahit papano. Dito naman, naka-establish na kami dito sa Chery. Yung mga bagets kasi, kumbaga syempre ano yun eh, ilang games yun, ang dami tapos bigla akong mawawala saka yung kung anong nakataya,” explained Reyes.
“Dito naman, meron pa rin pero naano namin ahead of time na may mga series na ito yung mangyayari, may mga what ifs kasi. May mga chances nga na sabi ko kapag nag 1-1, tatayuan ko ng kahit kalahati dito tapos kalahati don parang ganun, may ganun na paguusap,” he added.
