SINCE the infamous brawl two years back, the Philippines has constantly spoken of mending fences with Australia.
No less than Samahang Basketbol ng Pilipinas (SBP) president Al Panlilio has expressed his desire to extend an olive branch to our Australian counterparts, hoping that one day, both nations can move forward from the skirmish.
Old wounds are tough to heal, but there's really nothing easier for us to rebuild our bond with the Boomers than taking it to the hardcourt.
Lucky for us, there's a history of the two nations engaging in exhibition matches over the years.
Spin.ph takes a look at those games.
2002 Selecta-RP Team series vs Melbourne Tigers
Preparing for the 2002 Asian Games in Busan, the Selecta-RP Team tested its mettle against a bevy of international teams.
Led by Danny Seigle, Asi Taulava, and Jeffrey Cariaso, the Philippine team was a solid collection of that year's top PBA talents.
Also part of the team were Eric Menk, Olsen Racela, Danny Ildefonso, Dondon Hontiveros, Noy Castillo, Andy Seigle, Rudy Hatfield, Kenneth Duremdes, Chris Jackson, and Mick Pennisi.
One of those exhibition opponents were the Melbourne Tigers.
Australian legend Andrew Gaze led the Aussie crew together with former Philadelphia 76er Mark Bradtke and ex-PBA imports Lanard Copeland (Pepsi) and Marcus Timmons (Ginebra) in a two-game series in August 2002.
Melbourne got the better of Selecta-RP, 80-76, in its first meeting at Cuneta Astrodome on August 29, where Copeland scored 19 points and Gaze adding 16.
Cariaso's missed jumpers in the last two minutes would have tilted the game in the Nationals' favor, leading to charities for the Tigers to ice the game in the clutch.
Seigle led the Philippines with 27 points in that first game.
Selecta-RP rebounded two days after, with Menk's buzzer-beating triple helping the home side equalize the two-game series with a 94-91 conquest at Araneta Coliseum.
Racela seized the spotlight in that duel, firing 20 points built on four triples. Duremdes chipped in 19 while Menk had 18 to his name.
Timmons paced the Tigers with 19 points, while Bradtke and Gaze combined for 35 in the loss.
For national team coach Jong Uichico, the stint was crucial in the Nationals' preparation for the Asiad the following month.

"The structure is already there. All we need is to refine it," he was quoted in a Philippine Daily Inquirer report.
Danny Seigle, however, suffered an Achilles injury in the next tuneup against Qatar, forcing him out of the roster weeks before the Asian Games.
That led to a fourth place finish for the Philippines which saw it suffer a heartbreaker against hosts Korea in the semifinals and a collapse against Kazakhstan in the bronze medal game.
2009 RP-Australia Goodwill Games
Powerade Team Pilipinas, which was bracing for the wars in the 2009 Fiba Asia Championship in Tianjin, faced off against a collection of Australian players in a two-game series in April.
Bannered by veterans Taulava, Pennisi, Kerby Raymundo, and Jayjay Helterbrand, the Nationals also paraded James Yap, Gabe Norwood, Kelly Williams, and Ranidel de Ocampo, as well as newcomers Arwind Santos, Sonny Thoss, Willie Miller, Cyrus Baguio, Ryan Reyes and Jared Dillinger.

Tha Australian side, however, was a ragtag crew, to say the least, leaning on NBL players Bruce Bolden, Graeme Dann, Anthony Susnjara, and Eban Hyams.
Unsurprisingly, the Philippines coasted against the Motolite-Australia Great White Sharks, building an early 19-point edge, 33-14 to cruise to an 87-63 mugging at the Big Dome.
Raymundo was efficient with his 13 points on a 4-of-5 shooting to lead the hosts.
Feeling that the opposition lacked in punch, the PBA reinforced the visitors with imports Tiras Wade of Talk 'N Text and Shawn Daniels of Burger King for the second game two days later.
And the reinforcements did their job, helping Motolite-Australia Hoopdreamz compete in the second game.
The Filipinos had to sweat it out before pulling off a 93-89 overtime victory, with Raymundo exploding for 15 points in the fourth quarter before finishing with 24 points. Santos was also big in the extra frame, scoring seven of his 12.
It was the kind of game coach Yeng Guiao wanted his wards to partake in, especially after Asi Taulava's muffed freebies in the last 2.8 ticks almost won the game for Powerade Team Pilipinas in regulation.
"We found a way to win this game and that, to me, is what's important. It shows the character of this team, which is of refusing to lose," said the fiery mentor in a Philippine Star report.
The Philippines, unfortunately, bombed in the 2009 Fiba Asia Championship, ranking eighth, including another tough defeat to Korea in the classification phase.
2019 Gilas Pilipinas series vs Adelaide 36ers

A full decade removed from the last tuneup games between the two nations, Gilas struck a deal with Adelaide to faceoff in a two-game series as the Philippines prepared for the 2019 Fiba World Cup in China.
It was the first time that an Aussie team flew to the country since the infamous brawl in 2018.
Helping the cause was 36ers coach Joey Wright, who played as a PBA import before with Presto.
Roger Pogoy impressed in the first outing, erupting for eight of his 10 points as he helped the Philippines win over Adelaide, 92-83, at the Meralco Gym.
Naturalized player Andray Blatche powered Gilas with a near triple-double effort of 19 points and 18 rebounds, and nine assists, while Japeth Aguilar added 17 points.
It was a solid showing for the Philippine side which included June Mar Fajardo, Paul Lee, Mark Barroca, Raymond Almazan, Gabe Norwood, Troy Rosario, Beau Belga, and young guns CJ Perez and Robert Bolick.
That's not the case, however, in the second game as the 36ers dealt Gilas a rude 85-75 sendoff.
That ruined what was supposed to be a celebratory game for Kiefer Ravena, who had his first taste of action since his Fiba-imposed 18-month ban and racked 11 points in his return.
Blatche once again led the hosts with 16 points, six rebounds, and five assists as the Filipinos struggled to get going and only shot 40-percent from the floor, as well as a tough 6-of-23 clip from threes.
Adelaide leaned on Daniel Johnson's 16 points and seven rebounds as the four-time NBL champions equalized the series.
It turns out, it was a harbinger of what's to come as the Philippines went winless in China and placed dead-last among 32 teams, losing all of its five games by an average losing margin of 29.4 points.
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