In a continued show of unwavering support for Philippine volleyball, the Spikers’ Turf has reaffirmed its commitment to the national cause by giving full leeway to Alas Pilipinas as it gears up for the Southeast Asian Games this December in Thailand.
As the country’s premier and only men’s volleyball league, Spikers’ Turf is embracing flexibility, allowing national team members to focus on training, camps and preparations – even if it means missing club matches during the upcoming Invitational Conference.
“We're really all-out in our support for the national team. That's why we're allowing them to practice or to go to camps or kung ano man yung plano ng national team,” said tournament director Mozzy Ravena during the recent press conference for the Invitational Conference held at Discovery Suites in Ortigas.
The decision underscores the league’s bigger-picture vision – not just for competitive club play, but for the broader development and success of Philippine men’s volleyball on the international stage.
Understanding that several local teams will be affected by the national call-up, the league has also introduced a fair solution – teams may bring in substitute players equivalent to the number of athletes they would lose to Alas Pilipinas.
Among the teams with national players are Cignal HD Spikers (Vince Lorenzo, Owa Retamar, Louie Ramirez and Lloyd Josafat), Criss Cross King Crunchers (Marck Espejo, Kim Malabunga and Eco Adajar), UST-Gameville (Josh Ybañez) and PGJC-Navy Sealions (Jack Kalingking).
These athletes were part of the historic Alas Pilipinas lineup that broke through in the recent World Champinships held here, reaching the post-elimination round.
“‘Yung mga teams na may national team players, they are allowed to get more players in substitute dun sa mga maglalaro sa national team. But it's also in their discretion kung papalaruin nila yung national team players nila. Kung hanggang kailan,” explained Ravena.
“Kasi hindi rin naman natin alam baka pwede pa naman maglaro. So bahala na sila dun. Basta kami, all out kami na sige lang, go lang. Tapos dadagdagan na lang namin kung ilan yung national team players nila. Pwede nilang palitan ng same number of players. So yan yung support namin.” She added.
Even as it prioritizes national interests, Spikers’ Turf will move forward with the Invitational Conference, which kicks off on Oct. 27 at the Filoil EcoOil Centre in San Juan. The season-ending tournament will feature 10 teams, including two exciting international guest squads – Kindai University from Japan and ProVolley Academy from Australia.
These teams will join the top four local squads after the elimination round in the round-robin semifinals, bringing an international flavor and valuable experience to Filipino players.
More than just a league that loans out players, Spikers’ Turf sees itself as a key training ground for the future stars of the national volleyball team.
“Syempre ang support ng Spiker's Turf is not only sa pahiram. Syempre if you look at the bigger picture, we really want to develop all the players para eventually mas marami silang pagpipilian sa national team pool or sa lineup. So kaya rin hindi rin naman namin ma-i-cut short yung tournament natin para dun sa iba mag-develop din,” said Ravena.
By continuing the tournament despite player absences, the league maintains competitive play and provides opportunities for rising stars to step up – strengthening the overall volleyball landscape in the country.
“Kasi in the future what we want is that siguro kada team may isa, dalawa. Para ma-spread out naman. Yun talaga yung goal, yun talaga yung dream. Na lahat magkaroon ng national team player. Pero yun nga, for now, yun yung pinaka solution na naisip namin. To let them go and practice for the SEA Games. Para malakas tayo sa SEA Games,” she added.
