2 Azkals to Lead Grassroots Sports Program
The Dumaguete City leg of Football For A Better Life (FFABL) grassroots program will be held at the Rusi Open Field in Daro, Negros Oriental from August 20-21. Leading the cast of coaches are current Azkals defender Simone Rota, former national team skipper Emelio “Chieffy” Caligdong, ex-Loyola Meralco Sparks FC striker Graham Caygill and hometown hero Ref Cuaresma, a former goalkeeper of the Azkals and a product of the Negros Oriental-Siquijor Regional Football Association.
The participants will be from 85 teams in the region. They will be segregated according to age groups – from the Under-8 category to the Under-17 bracket. Aside from teaching technical drills, the two-day football festival features a youth mini-tournament and a Men’s Open contest.
FFABL Grassroot Program runs 6 month
The FFABL is an initiative of insurance brand Pru Life UK together with Spears Activation. A six-month nationwide football program, it aims to promote the sport in far-flung areas of the country. It will be in the Visayas region after a successful edition in Gingoog, Misamis Oriental earlier this month. According to Percy Guarin, president of the Cagayan-Misamis Oriental Football Association, these events play a very significant role in promoting football in the countryside, encouraging young people to play the sport. The FFABL festivals, in partnership with the Azkals, have been going around the country for three years now.
Guarin, a veteran football organizer himself, said that aspiring booters get a chance to experience high quality football training with national team standouts such as Rota and Caligdong. Playing with them during the football clinic which highlights every FFABL event is a dream come true for football players of all ages. And for the grassroots football players, this dream will be planted and sowed in their hearts, he added.
