Up, Up, And Away!

It's a bird! It's a plane! No, it's Marikina United flying high!

Don't take that to mean flight school lessons with Snoop Dogg, the ShoeMakers have been doing quite well in recent matches and they've set up camp at the top of the leaderboard. After 11 matches, the Sublime Supremo has chalked up a 9/2/0 tally with 29pts to date. No wonder the man's been about as chipper as a 16 year old on the morning after prom night!

A definite need for more clinical finishing is still evident despite the glowing standings but MQ has assured us that this is still being evaluated. Frustrations have forced a player who wasn't so happy about his playing time to request that he be released from his contract. With a handshake and a stiff drink, Ramon Vicioso was allowed to leave the squad (and his Obel Tiger) behind to join NK Alex. 'I hope he finds what he's looking for. Every time I played him, he just never wowed me, you know? Like he wasn't sure which way he was going.. perhaps he'll do better over there.' MQ said.

The man had a San Miguel Cerveza Negra in his left hand, freshly chilled in a cooler of ice and water, which he wiped down with a small towel. Popping the cap, he sat down and told our little band of fans, reporters, and friends what he had been busy with lately. 'I've been researching almost daily, on top of actually managing the club to reach its current status. Luck may have played a huge role as I learned everything I could from mentors from here and abroad. Hopefully, the lessons I've picked up should help us strengthen MUFC to produce superlative results consistently for many seasons to come!' Pausing to pop a piece of tequila marinated grilled chicken into his mouth (bursting with cuervo, calamansi, pangasinan pink salt, sweet basil and labuyo!), he smiled and added, 'I even almost smoked a cigarette once or thrice.. but I didn't. Given the great difficulties I had when I was first starting to quit, I had no desire to repeat the mistakes I made in my youth. It doesn't say very much about us when we repeat mistakes, does it?'

The evening went on with the usual banter, ribbing, and shooting the breeze full of holes. No more shop talk, though. I think he just wanted to touch base and give us a short update. After all, the standings at this point pretty much tell us what we need to know.

Gabriel Isagani, Philippine Daily Star