Talisay City begins tryouts for Governor's Cup title defense

CEBU CITY, Philippines — Back-to-back defending champion Talisay City has officially begun preparations for its title defense in the returning Governor’s Cup Inter-Cities and Municipalities Basketball Tournament, which is set to tip off on Sept. 28.

Now carrying the name Talisay Aksyon Agad, the team has moved on from its former Aquastars identity and appointed veteran coach Ronald Bucao, who also mentors the University of the Visayas Baby Lancers, to lead its campaign.

In an interview with CDN Digital, Bucao said the team launched citywide tryouts on July 1 to assemble Talisay City’s official roster for the prestigious provincial tournament.

Bucao takes over from former head coach Rey Gurrea, who guided Talisay City to back-to-back Governor’s Cup championships in 2018 and 2019 during the administration of then-Governor Hilario “Junjun” Davide III.

READ: Cebu Governor’s Cup Inter-Municipalities Tournament Returns Sept. 28

This year, however, Bucao faces a different challenge as the tournament shifts from the previous under-21 category to an under-18 competition.

“Last season sa Gov’s Cup, dili pa ako ang nagdala ug coach ato nga time. Unya ang category ato kay 21-under, ug para nako mas dali siya pormahon kay matured na ang mga players ug kahibaw na modiskarte sa duwa,” Bucao said.

(Last season in the Gov’s Cup, I wasn’t the one handling the team as a coach yet. The category back then was 21-under, and for me, it was easier to mold the team because the players were already matured and they knew how to improvise and adapt to the game.)

“Dako ug challenging gyud ni nga tahas para nako ang umaabot nga Gov’s Cup isip coach sa Talisay City nga team, especially bag-o ang category. Pero paningkamotan namo nga maka-compete gihapon mi ug ma-defend namo ang title sa Gov’s Cup.”

(This is a big and challenging task for me — the upcoming Gov’s Cup as head coach of the Talisay City team, especially since the category is new. But we will do our best to stay competitive and defend our Gov’s Cup title.)

Despite the challenge, Bucao enters the tournament with momentum after steering Talisay Aksyon Agad to the Gullas Cup championship last year, redeeming the team’s heartbreaking runner-up finish against archrival Minglanilla in 2024.

The veteran coach said commitment and teamwork will be the foundation of the squad he hopes to build.

“As a coach, gusto gyud nako each player committed ug full-hearted sa tanang mga duwa nga among sagubangon puhon. Unya makaporma ko ug team nga ang tanan mo-contribute in all aspects of the game,” he said.

(As a coach, I really want each player to be committed and full-hearted in all the games we will face in the future. Then I can form a team where everyone contributes in all aspects of the game.)

Talisay City tryouts

Tryouts are ongoing at the Talisay City Sports Complex in Poblacion from 8 p.m. to 10 p.m. and are open to qualified Talisay City residents.

While retaining the championship remains the ultimate objective, Bucao emphasized that the team will approach the tournament one game at a time.

“Ang main goal gyud siguro sa tanan team mao gyud ang championship, pero we will take [it] one game at a time. Kinahanglan pa gyud ang sakripisyo ug paningkamot sa whole team ubanan sa pag-ampo ug pagsalig sa Ginoo para makab-ot namo ang kalampusan,” Bucao said.

(The main goal of the whole team is probably the championship, but we will take it one game at a time. The whole team still needs sacrifice and hard work, accompanied by prayer and trust in God, for us to achieve success.)

READ: PBA: New coach Jimmy Alapag, NLEX highlight Governors’ Cup opener

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