Aby Maraño and the rest of the Philippine Women’s National Volleyball Team are eager to put up a valiant stand for the home crowd when the second leg of ASEAN Grand Prix goes into full swing on October 4 to 6 in Sta. Rosa, Laguna.
“Ang sarap maglaro na may sumisigaw sa’yo eh. Iba kasi dun sa Thailand. Kaunti lang ang Pilipino,” Maraño told reporters in a press conference held at the Crimson Hotel on Thursday.
“Iba kasi yung may sumisigaw, tinatawag ang pangalan mo, kasi nakaka-add ng confidence and morale yun.”
A string of availability concerns have unfortunately hindered the participation of some members, such as Kalei Mau and Alohi Robins-Hardy. Still, Maraño asserted that the national team remains committed to surpass its bronze medal finish in Thailand.
“Ang goal namin siyempre maiangat kung ano ang tinapos namin last leg. Kakayananin natin yan. Lahat naman naaaral eh, lahat nadadala sa aral,” she asserted.
“‘Di kami napapagod na aralin kung ano ang laro na ginawa namin; ano ang dapat i-adjust; saan kami nagkamali; at ano ang kailangan naming i-improve; at aralin din ang kalaban kung saan namin sila pwedeng isahan.”
On Friday, October 4, the Nationals have a rematch with Vietnam — the only opponent in the first leg of the four-team tournament that they chalked up a win against.
The Filipina Spikers will go to battle without the Fil-Hawaiian duo. Meanwhile, the Vietnamese will be without their ace spiker Thi Thanh Thuy Tran, who’s currently in Japan for a tour of duty.
“Philippines team has now improved a lot. We lost the match in Thailand last two weeks, but in this tournament, we’re still not confident because one of our players cannot play here,” Vietnam mentor Nguyan Tuan Kiet said of his prolific scorer, who dropped a game-high 25 points in the bronze-medal match.
Facing off against a Vietnam side without its main hitter, Maraño and company vow to pounce on the opportunity. Still, they refuse to fall into the pit of complacency.
“Sa tingin ko malaking bagay din yun, pero kasi nawalan din kami ng players like Alohi and Kalei,” Maraño disclosed, as Robins-Hardy and Mau were ruled out due to Philippine passport and health concerns, respectively. “For sure another challenging match for us.
“We’re not taking it as wala si T4, magiging complacent kami. We’re gonna take it na mas ma-inspire kami to play our A-game.”
National team head coach Shaq Delos Santos then chimed in, “Always ready naman kami to play, especially ‘pag dadalhin mo yung bansa ng Pilipinas, kasi diyan natin mabibigay yung best natin. Kahit anong mangyari o anong result nito, bibigay namin yung best namin.”
