Athletes have always embraced challenges, and that is why the upcoming Premier Volleyball League All-Filipino Conference’s new format has them even more excited.
Under the new format, the AFC will be split into three series over seven months, all culminating in the Philippine Grand Championship. The country’s premier volleyball league has made sure to add a new layer of intrigue to each series.
The first series, dubbed Siklab, will feature an “all-to-play” requirement, while the second series, Sigla, will do away with that rule, allowing coaches to field their best combinations and find the right mix of players heading into the playoffs.
The first two series will crown their own champions through a 1-vs.-4 and 2-vs.-3 semifinal format, with the higher-ranked teams holding a twice-to-beat advantage.
(C) PVL Images
The championship will then be decided through a best-of-three series.
Each game will carry added importance as teams earn points based on their final rankings. Those points will be used to determine the seedings for the third series, Sinag.
In Sinag, the top two teams will advance directly to the best-of-three semifinals, while the remaining squads will figure in a stepladder playoff.
The new format was welcomed by the coaches who attended the 10/10 press conference for both the PVL and Spikers’ Turf at the Novotel Manila on Monday.
“Siyempre, challenging po ulit. Knowing na tatlong series yung magiging basis for the Grand Championship. Pero for sure, makakatulong pa rin sa improvement ng volleyball. So, we’re looking forward sa challenges saka sa competition,” said PLDT head coach Rald Ricafort.
“In my opinion, the idea of having a long conference is a very good one. It’s a very good one even if it’s split into three different phases,” said Nxled tactician Ettore Guidetti.
(C) PVL Images
Siklab will kick off on October 10 at the SM Seaside Cebu Arena as part of the PVL and Spikers’ Turf’s 10th anniversary celebration.
Capital1 and Choco Mucho will open the curtains at 1:00 PM, while Creamline and Akari will cap the day at 6:00 PM.
Sandwiched between those matches will be the Spikers’ Turf showdown between Savouge and Alpha Insurance, part of organizer Sports Vision’s drive to elevate men’s volleyball.
“Siguro po, as a player, yun nga, sabi nga ng coaches na it’s a very challenging season for us. Unang una, we need to stay healthy for the rest of the series. But yun, one series at a time. And focus muna tayo dun sa October to December,” said Daquis.
“And yun, excited naman ako na makita yung mga teams na maglalaro. At alam ko, nakahanda lahat.”
