Pressure of expectations catches up to Alas Men, admits Bagunas

Team captain Bryan Bagunas admitted that the weight of expectations took its toll on Alas Pilipinas as they bowed out of gold medal contention in the 33rd Southeast Asian Games on Thursday in Bangkok, Thailand.

Those expectations were shaped by a breakthrough run earlier this year, when the Philippines turned heads at the FIVB Volleyball Men’s World Championship—stunning African champions Egypt, pushing Asian powerhouse Iran to the brink, and coming a single point away from advancing to the Round of 16.

With that performance, many fans believed the team could carry that momentum into the Southeast Asian Games and mount a serious challenge for gold. Instead, the burden of those lofty hopes appeared to overwhelm the squad, leaving them short of the mark on the continental stage.

“Tingin ko na-overpressure yung team na kailangan pagpunta pa lang dito, nasa utak na namin namaka-medal aga,” said Bagunas after Alas’ straight-set defeat at the hands of Thailand in the semifinals.

“Siguro andun yung pressure kasi ataas ang expectations sa amin ng Filipino volleyball fans at lahat ng sumusuporta sa amin. Hindi namin inisip na dapat one game at a time kasi alam naman natin na short tournament ang SEA Games at lahat naghahanda,” he added.

Alas Men head coach Angiolino Frigoni also addressed the high expectations surrounding his squad, pointing out what he felt were unrealistic comparisons to their World Championship campaign.

While they managed to hold their own against some of the world’s top teams in that tournament, Frigoni stressed that the SEA Games posed a different challenge altogether, with teams like Indonesia and Thailand boasting years of experience and cohesion that made every match a tough battle.

“Everybody is, I don’t know, because we played good in [the] world championship, they are thinking that we can win all the matches now. We never [won] against Thailand this year, never, and never last year,” said the Italian coach.

“What they are thinking? That we are magical? And because we played against Iran and against Egypt very good, they think that we [can] win against Thailand? How many times we win against Thailand? Never. What number we are in the ranking? 80. 80 in the ranking. So, I am not happy, of course. We could do better,” he added.

Bagunas also pointed to a lack of urgency and intensity that had defined their earlier performances, saying the team struggled to match Thailand’s execution and energy throughout the match.

“Alam mo ’yun, parang wala yung fire sa amin. Every point, parang pilit yung celebration namin. Talagang akala mo… alam mo ’yun? Parang wala kami sa loob ng court. Talagang kulang yung kumpiyansa namin sa loob,” said the Osaka Bluteon standout.

Despite their gold medal hopes slipping away, Alas Pilipinas Men still has a chance to accomplish their primary goal of returning to the podium when they face Vietnam in the bronze medal match on Sunday at 4 p.m.

Bagunas emphasized the importance of quickly moving on from the painful loss, regrouping, and rediscovering their intensity if they hope to secure a medal.

“Sabi namin sa isa’t isa, hindi pa tapos yung laban. May chance pa rin kami maka-medal. So laban lang, walang susuko, at kailangan pagtrabahuhan pa,” said the former Spikers’ Turf MVP.

“Hindi pa naman tapos yung laban. May chance pa rin kami maka-medal. Kailangan lang namin pagtrabahuhan pa atsaka yun kailangan namin mag-prepare nang maayos.”

#WATCH: NANDUN YUNG PRESSURE

Alas Men skipper Bryan Bagunas admits the pressure got the best of them in their #SEAGames2025 campaign 🏐🇵🇭#ReadMore 👉 https://t.co/EXlP5vobRk

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— Tiebreaker Times (@tiebreakertimes) December 18, 2025