Eric Gonzales experienced a whirlwind of emotions during the past 24 hours.
Saturday afternoon, TNT Katropa head coach Nash Racela was nowhere to be found inside the Meralco Gym during his team’s practices. A few hours later, Gonzales was tasked to serve as the Katropa’s interim head coach for TNT’s game against Columbian.
It was an opportunity he had to seize.
“Siyempre thankful ako sa management, kila boss MVP [Manny V. Pangilinan] lalo na kay boss Virgil [Villavicencio] also,” admitted Gonzales, who was named to TNT’s staff by Racela two months ago. “Thankful ako sa kanilang lahat, nagulat ako sa nangyari.
“Very fast yung nangyari tsaka yung last night, magkasama kami ni coach Nash. Hindi niya alam,” he furthered.
“Kanina tinext niya pa ako, ‘Coach, with confidence.'”
Gonzales previously handled the then-Globalport Batang Pier two years ago. But the last time he coached was back in the 2018 PBA D-League Aspirants’ Cup for the Batangas-EAC Generals.
With this, the 45-year-old strategist was visibly exhausted, as his first game as chief tactician for the MVP Group’s flagship franchise went into overtime. As the dust settled, TNT escaped with a 118-14 win.
And he’d hoped for as much, as he dedicated the game to his friend, mentor, and colleague.
“Hindi niya alam ang heart ko, sana manalo kasi dine-dedicate ko sa kaniya yung game na ito.”
Though Gonzales does not know until when he will still be handling TNT, he vows to work harder than ever to turn things around for the Katropa.
“Kailangan po talaga mag-prepare kasi nasa ilalim na po kami. Mahirap po talaga yung sitwasyon namin. Wala namang magic – kailangan talaga magtulong tulong,” he said.
“Collaborative – yun lagi sinasabi nila boss. Tulong tulong.”
