By dodo catacutan jr.
PBA CHAIRMAN Buddy Encarnado said Sta. Lucia coaches and players had no ‘sinister intentions’ and only voiced their concerns over league officiating when they trooped to the commissioner’s office on Wednesday.
Encarnado said going to the media was an alternative they thought would be appropriate. In the end, he said, they decided to go direct to the PBA and discuss the matter with Commissioner Noli Eala and technical chief Perry Martinez because that was legal and proper.
He said all that the coaches and players wanted was to review the game tape with league officials and point out the "miscalls" that came late in the game which according to him contributed to the team’s loss to Ginebra last Sunday.
Despite saying it was not a protest, the entire team arrived at the PBA offices wearing black armbands.
"We didn’t hold a press conference or attack the officiating in the media, because that would be like washing your dirty linen in public," he said. "What (the players and coaches) did was go straight to the officials concerned and discuss the problem there.
"We felt that was the most proper way to do it. There was nothing illegal, nothing sinister about it. What they did was well within the parameters set by league rules."
Encarnado said he has been ‘grieving’ for days now but has held back, cognizant of the fact that his position as chairman should take precedence over the interest of his team.
If he had anything to do with what was regarded as the first protest action to be lodged by a team in the 29-year history of the league, it was to advise his players to air their concerns the proper way.
"We encouraged them to do it the right way," he said. "Now if I’m guilty by doing that, so be it."
Asked about the black armbands Chua and the rest of the Realtors wore during the visit to the league offices, Encarnado said the gesture was not a sign of protest over officiating but the team’s way of condoling with new team manager, lawyer Ariel Magno, whose father passed away last week.
Newspaper offices,
The Bulletin included, however, were advised through text messages that there would be a protest action by Sta.Lucia players and coaches that afternoon. The message also said the protesters would wear black armbands. The message requested for a photo coverage.
Encarnado denied this was ever the case.
"The problem with some people is that they put one and one together and assume something. Some people are even trying to drive a wedge between me and the commissioner, when the truth is that we’re doing well and working well together," Encarnado said.
"Hindi kami ang problema. The issue here is officiating," he added.
Encarnado said officiating is a major concern that should be firmly addressed. "We demand the best from our players, so is it wrong to demand as much from the referees?" he asked.
What bothered the team, he said, was that Eala concurred with all the miscalls the Realtors pointed out when they reviewed the game tape – only to issue a statement later in the day to say he found nothing very wrong with the way the match was called.
Sta. Lucia coach Al Chua echoed Encarnado’s sentiment.
"Noong kausap namin, nag-agree s’ya dun sa mga mali na tinuro namin," he said. "Nung pagtalikod, iba na ang sinabi."
