American football gains toehold in the grassroots

MANILA, Philippines - Tim Beasley, coach of the Philippine Punishers team of the American Football Federation of the Philippines (AFFP), insists Filipinos, despite their built and physique, can play American football.

“It really depends on the position; physical (requirement) is varied. We have players who are about 300 lbs who play offensive/defensive like, players slightly smaller who play lineback. We have a couple of players about 4-11, 5-feet, maybe 120 lbs, who play rightback. So it doesn’t matter what your size is as long as you know how to play the position,” said Beasley.

The American coach, together with offensive/defensive line players Michael Magnabijon and JM Manlangit and middle line backer Redd Miguel sat down with mediamen yesterday to promote American football in the Philippines.

And according to them, the sport is already making a steady progress in the country.

“It’s becoming really big. We’ve held five fundamental clinics last year and a total of 150 people attended. As I go through the country, I can see organizations in Subic, Bacolod, Cebu and Davao with grassroots programs and growing American football and flag football. There’s a lot of potential, really. You have millions of people, it really can take off,” said Beasley.

The AFFP has formed the Phl Punishers, the first 11-man team to represent the Phl in international competition against teams from Guam, Hong Kong, Saipan, Shanghai, Korea and Beijing. The Punishers also volunteer their services to teach fundamentals of the game to Filipinos.

Beasley said local players dominate the composition of the Punishers team. Out of 50 in the pool, about 40 are Filipinos, with the rest Americans, Australians, and a Chinese.

“Everybody likes to be a modern gladiator. Basically, we consider ourselves warriors in the field. And we create a bond, we become brothers out there,” said Miguel, one of the Pinoy players in the team.

“I’ve always wanted to play the sport,” said Manlangit, a hulking offensive/defensive line. “Plus I didn’t believe I was destined to play basketball. So I said, this is the type of body I have so I might as well play football.”

The Punishers will fly to Hong Kong to play the Cobras in an international friendly on May 11, seeking to make it 3-0 in their head-to-head clashes. Another matchup against Guam is in the works.

“Eventually, we’re looking at having an international football league with Hong Kong and teams from China, Saipan and Guam. If basketball can have an international league with the ABL (Asean Basketball League), why can’t American football?” said Beasley.