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| Team James or Team Phil? Make your choice |
On August 25, a charity football match benefiting the Tuloy sa Don Bosco Foundation in Alabang is to take place at the University of Makati, featuring the newest faces of Clear shampoo, James and Phil Younghusband of the Loyola Meralco Sparks FC and the Philippine Men's Senior National Football team. This is what we know as the Clear Dream Match.
The Clear Dream Match will feature not only feature those who ply their trade in the United Football League, but also feature celebrities who also have a knack for the sport. Fans selected the final pool of 40 from an all-star ballot of 60 players found on Clear's Facebook page. From that pool, Phil and James selected their roster in a draft that took place on August 11 at the Tuloy Sa Don Bosco Foundation.
Before the draft proper, a clinic was conducted with the kid beneficiaries alongside students from The Younghusband Football Academy (TYFA), with certain members from the final pool helping out. The highlight of the clinic is a futsal match involving all parties.
A coin toss conducted by sportswriter Rick Olivares determined who will be selecting first in the Clear Draft, which Team Phil managed to secure.
The first phase of the draft involved both Phil and James making their initial five picks. These particular picks are based from the entire pool available. The UFL's Golden Boot winner went with Kaya FC's Saba Garamoundi as his top overall pick to set the tone for his plan, as the rest of his initial selections reflected a desire to solidify his defense (Park Min Ho, Yves Ashime, Roxy Dorlas and Armand del Rosario, in order of selection). Contrast that with James going with a combination of Kaya FC and Green Archers United players (In order of selection: Anton del Rosario, Nate Burkey, Pat Bocobo, Jonah Romero and Patrick Deyto).
The next phase sees both players picking the remaining 15 players from a set pool of positions (Forwards, Midfielders, Defenders and Goalkeepers). Among the ones joining Team Phil are his Loyola teammates Davide Cortina (12th pick), Dexter Versario (13th pick) and Byeong Jeong Yeol (14th pick). As for those who wore the country's colors, Pachanga's Freddy Gonzales (15th pick) and Stallion FC's Ojay Clarino (16th pick) will be Phil's attack partners. On the other hand, the select group of players comprising Team James include his Loyola teammates Pat Ozaeta (9th pick) and Ref Cuaresma (20th pick), as well as former national team players Rudy del Rosario (6th pick) and Diliman FC's Reymark Fernandez (11th pick).
Celebrities dot both rosters, with Rafael Rosell (7th pick), Daniel Matsunaga (9th pick) and Paolo Bediones (8th pick) joining Team Phil while Jake Cuenca (10th pick) and Andrew Wolff (19th pick) gets to be with Team James. 2/3 of the fabled Boys Night Out are also participating and in fact, will be on opposing sides (Tony Toni is Phil's 10th pick, while Slick Rick is James' 12th pick).
The last phase of selections involve wild cards, to which Phil and James can select someone who was not included in the 40-man pool. James went first, going with the national team physical therapist Wally Javier, while Phil, apparently still being true to his plan, went with his Loyola teammate in Anto Gonzales. This phase also is where they revealed their coaching selections, with Phil choosing Randy Roxas and James selecting Vince Santos and Fr. John Cordero.
Ticket details for this charity match are on Clear's Facebook page. But if you can't see them live, you can watch it on AkTV. Coverage starts at 8PM after the NCAA Games.
Updates: Based from information secured by Rick Olivares, Ojay Clarino and Wilson Munoz were pulled out upon request by Penson Stallion Gilligan's, while Freddy Gonzales will be unavailable due to his own personal commitments. 2/3 of the vacancies were filled by Michael Menzi and Ousseynou Diop.
Team Phil
Forwards: Eric Tai, Yannick Tuason, Freddy Gonzales and Fabio Ide
Midfielders: Rafael Rosell, Paolo Bediones, Daniel Matsunaga, Tony Toni, Davide Cortina, Byeong Yeong Jeol, Ojay Clarino, Ousseynou Diop
Defenders: Park Min Ho, Yves Ashime, Roxy Dorlas, Armand del Rosario, Dexter Versario, Janrick Soriano, Alvin Ocampo.
Goalkeepers: Saba Garmaroudi, Wilson Munoz Michael Menzi
Wildcard: Anto Gonzales
Coach: Randy Roxas
Team James
Forwards: Nate Burkey, Patrick Bocobo, Rudy del Rosario, Eric Dagroh, Andrew Wolff
Midfielders: Marvin Kiefer, Jojo Durian, Jake Cuenca, Slick Rick, Mikko Mabanag
Defenders: Anton del Rosario, Jonah Romero, Patrick Ozaeta, Raymark Fernandez, Ronald Batisla-ong, Andrew Santiago, Nico Bolzico
Goalkeepers: Patrick Deyto, Ref Cuaresma
Wildcard: Wally Javier
Coaches: Vince Santos and Fr. John Cordero
