Meet the woman behind world-class Filipino esports talents
MANILA, Philippines — When Coach Michael "Arcadia" Bocado was contemplating an offer to go overseas and be part of Indonesia’s RRQ Hoshi, he had to consult one person.
“Una kong kinausap is yung country manager namin [sa ECHO],” Bocado told members of the press during the M4 World Championship.
ECHO’s country manager, Mitch Liwanag, is well known in the Mobile Legends scene, having been part of esports organizations like Digital Devils, BREN Esports, Sunsparks, and finally Aura PH, which rebranded to ECHO back in 2021.
Bocado shared that he confided in Liwanag, a person he considered family after having been together since the start of his coaching career, about wanting to get out of his comfort zone and consider the offer to coach abroad.
“Tinanong ko siya, ‘Mitch anu sa tingin mo? May ganito akong offer.’ Hiningi ko rin yung insights niya. Si Mitch kasi parang family na talaga turing ko sa kanya and she was very supportive of whatever my decision is. She was all for my growth,” said Bocado.
Besides Bocado, another coach in the M4 was also a former member of Aura PH/ECHO — Steve “Dale” Vitug, who had previously retired in 2021 but would later return to the Mobile Legends scene after being acquired by Myanmar’s Falcon Esports.
Meeting her former charges on the world stage along with her current ECHO roster, Liwanag was bursting with pride for all their achievements.
“I’m very very proud of them kasi lahat kami nakarating sa M4 kasi yun yung pinaka mahirap na puntahan, yung worlds. I know kayang-kaya nila makaapak sa M4 becuase I know how good they are. So seeing them, every morning, sama samang kumakain ng breakfast, lahat kami nandito, nakaka-proud talaga. Kahit ibang country na yung nirerepresent nila, alam mong Pinoy na Pinoy sila. You just can’t help but be proud,” Liwanag told Philstar.com during the M4 World Championships.
During a group interview on organizational management, Liwanag shared that being manager in an esports organization was like being the mother of the team.
“You have to be the second parent to them. As a mother [myself], ginaguide ko [sila] on how [they] should handle things,” said Liwanag during MPL PH Season 10.
In M4, when asked about how she handled members of her team leaving to pursue international careers, her maternal instincts were still front and center.
“I understand their side if they want to explore. It’s fine with me as long as they tell me in advance. Of course I want to know [if] yung lilipatan ba nila maganda, and maganda ba yung offer sa kanila. [Kailangan] alam ko na talagang maggogrow sila sa company na yun. If not, of course mag-uusap kami, will give them advice but if that’s your final decision then it’s fine with me as long as they’re happy with their decision,” explained Liwanag.
Speaking of the talents the Filipinos have and what makes them strong contenders in the Mobile Legends scene, Liwanag attributes it to the talent of the players, as well as the background of most of the Filipino coaches.
She added, “I guess right know mas may alam lang siguro yung Filipino teams and coaches, mas advance tayo ng kaunti and those are due to the coaches. Right now kasi, most Filipino coaches are previous players [and] they know what heroes to pick, what strategies to use because most of them started in the amateur scene. Galing sila sa pinaka una and alam nila yung nararamdaman ng mga players, mas hands on sila. Makikita mo yung coaches parang father figure sa mga players, laging may pagmamahal. Teams in other countries are more systematic but for Filipinos, may halong puso and I think that’s what makes the difference.”
Besides having Bocado and Vitug have glowing coaching careers in Indonesia and Myanmar respectively, Liwanag adds one other achievement under her belt as she witnessed her current ECHO team lift up the M4 World Championship trophy.
“Being a manager is hard, it’s my passion. Halos 24 hours [ang shift mo]. We make sure na wala na silang iisipin, they just have to play. Of course you want it to be professional but when you see your players very down, you get sad as well because you also love them as your own son or daughter,” lamented Liwang back in MPL PH Season 10.
The same can be said in times of great joy with manager and players alike crying tears of joy as they were named the world’s best.
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