One on one with Requintin

BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN

Thursday, August 26, 2010

Q: Can you tell us a little bit about yourself?

A: I'm 30 years old this year and hail from Dagupan City in the Pangasinan Province in the Philippines. I first came to Brunei in 2006 and I'm employed as a machinist. I played for Lyceum-Northwestern University from 1996-2000 while studying Electronics and Communication Engineering.

Q: When exactly did you start playing?

A: I started by myself when I was 10 years old in 1990 because I enjoyed watching the PBA (Philippine Basketball Association). My first sport was actually volleyball but I dropped it because it was boring compared to basketball which was more popular in the Philippines. My coach (Juan Castro) also advised me that I got the ability to become a good player in the sport as well.

Q: How was training initially?

A: It was very hard. I couldn't even handle the ball and all we did were drills. It's only after three months that we perfect the basics that we get to touch the ball.

Q: What is your most memorable achievement in basketball in Brunei?

A: I would have to say it was being able to represent Brunei in the China-ASEAN CBO Male Basketball Invitational Games in 2008 where we finished fifth.

Q: How was it like playing there?

A: It was difficult to adjust to that place because the weather was cold.

Q: How can you compare playing there to Brunei?

A: It's more relaxing here because I get to play with my compatriots even during competition. There were a lot of tall players there and the competition was really tough.

Q: What do you think about winning the 2010 Sultan's Cup? (Requintin played together with Geve Leones for Sharks to defeat tournament favourites, Palm Café, 95-90 in the final on August 21)

A: When the tournament started, people were telling us that we were the underdogs. I told my teammates and management about it and we studied our game properly. We worked hard on our defence and communication during practice that really helped us win the competition.

Q: Would you say that it was one of the best wins? (Because Linktech were runners-up to Babes Boutique in both the 2010 Brunei Pepsi Cup and LBC Cup last year)

A: I would say that it was the best because we lost to the same players on two occasions. We planned beforehand and it's great to beat the tournament favourites.

Q: Your teammate, Geve Leones, says that you are his favourite player. What do you think? Read More…

Source: The Brunei Times