FERNANDEZ SAID PLAYING FOR THE NATIONAL TEAM IS GREATEST MOMENT
By Maloney L. Samaco
PhilBoxing.com
Tue, 11 Jun 2013
"El Presidente" Ramon Fernandez won four Most Valuable Player Awards capped by 19 PBA titles and a 1989 Grand Slam with San Miguel Beer in his storied 19 years as professional player in the Philippine Basketball Association. But he always considered his playing for the Philippine team as the best thing that ever happened to him in basketball.
"For me, I always consider playing for the national team as the culmination of my dream," Fernandez was quoted by the Philippine Star. "Playing in the PBA was just an icing in the cake."
He was one of the members of the 1973 Philippine team who were present to receive their plaques of recognition for winning the Asian Basketball Confederation crown exactly 40 years ago in Manila. FIBA-Asia was then known as ABC. The ceremony was held during the FIBA-Asia draw at the Manila Hotel last Thursday.
Also present during the ceremony were Yoyong Martirez, Manny Paner, Jimmy Mariano, and trainer Juan Cutillas. The other members of the team were Robert Jaworski, Francis Arnaiz, Bogs Adornado, Abet Guidaben, Big Boy Reynoso, Tembong Melencio, Ricardo Cleofas, David Regullano, and coach the late Tito Eduque.
Winning the ABC crown before thousands of cheering and flag-waving fans is the sweetest moment Fernandez cherished in his lifetime as a basketball player. He could only wish that the Gilas-Pilipinas team will have adequate time to prepare and work well for the bigger battles ahead.
?I hope the team would be able to jell considering that they know, more or less, each other,? he said. ?I hope the preparation would be enough.? He observed that the present preparations were shorter compared to the ones they had undergone. He recalled that they had early morning jogging at the Rizal Memorial Stadium and trained for a long period of time.
One of the 25 Greatest PBA players of all time, Fernandez said that the brand of international play has practically remained the same.
?Basically, it is still the same ? running, passing and shooting. The training, perhaps, has changed. The competition has definitely improved,? Fernandez observed.
The 1973 Philippine team ended the tournament without a single loss. They buried Pakistan, 133-55 in the opening day. Then one-by-one they defeated their opponents: India, 109-73; Indonesia, 108-77; Singapore, 130-49; and China, 88-81.
In the semi-final round, they edged Iran, 88-80; subdued Japan, 89-68; and won again over China, 101-64; and upended India, 110-84. In the finals they handcuffed legendary shooter Shin Dong Pa to grab the title against South Korea, 90-78.
The Maasin City native Fernandez was very proud to have their team compete with the best players of the world. "When we won the 1973 ABC, the team was kept intact for the 1974 world championships in Puerto Rico,? Fernandez recalled. ?We had quite a preparation.?
But they placed only 13th in the 1974 World Basketball Championships won by the Soviet Union. Nonetheless it was the last time the Philippines was able to play basketball in the World Championships.
Fernandez, now based in Cebu City, played also for the national team in the 1972 Asian Youth Championships where they became champions, the 1974 Asian Games in Iran, and the 1990 Asian Games in Beijing where they won the silver medal.
The 1973 RP Team was not the last national team to win an ABC crown. The Northern Consolidated Cement team of Ambassador Danding Cojuangco featuring naturalized players Dennis Still and Jeff Moore won the ABC crown in 1985 In Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia coached by Ron Jacobs.
They defeated second placer South Korea, 76-72 and third-placer China, 82-72, for the title. The team qualified for the 1986 World Basketball Championships in Madrid, Spain. But because of the EDSA Revolution in 1986, the NCC team was disbanded and the Philippine team withdrew its participation from the world championships.
The Philippines also won the gold during the inaugural ABC tournament in 1960 in Manila. Then won the crown again in 1963 in Taipei and in 1967 in Seoul, South Korea. But the 1973 crown proved to be the sweetest because it was the last to be won at home. Forty years later, the premier Asian basketball tournament is back in the Philippines.
Together with the whole basketball nation, Fernandez prayed that the Gilas-Pilipinas will rekindle the good old days of Philippine basketball and win the title and qualify again for the world championships.
Photo by spin.ph: Fernandez at the FIBA-Asia draw.
Click here to view a list of other articles written by Maloney L. Samaco.
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