IT'S been a long time since San Miguel's Rodney Brondial posted jokes about the misadventures of a fictitious seaman friend. The posts had a loyal following on line and suddenly, the posts disappeared.
It turned out that the SMB coaching staff had banned the use of cellphones in practice during the team's campaign in the PBA Philippine Cup, which the Beermen subsequently won by a 4-2 margin in their best-of-seven title series with TNT.
READ Brondial's jokes with June Mar in practice spread good vibes online
After the title was secured, the players, including Brondial, got to use their cellphones again. Brondial said the posts will soon reappear and there will be many, he teased.
“Pinagbawal lang nitong nakaraan kasi bawal daw muna cellphone,” said Brondial.
The 34-year-old Brondial said the ban started after the Beermen missed the playoffs in the PBA 49th Season Commissioner’s Cup. The loss apparently stung SMB management and the coaches that they did away with all perceived distractions.
So when the cellphones were taken away, Brondial's posts on the misadventures of his fictitious seaman friend went off the air.
“Di ba natalo kami tapos ang goal namin, maging seryoso muna,” said Brondial, whose last seaman joke was posted last March. “Nung tumigil ako mag-upload, nag-focus muna kami."
The tactic bore fruit this July as San Miguel completed its redemption by capturing the 49th Season Philippine Cup.
Brondial played a key role in the title run, helping the Beermen impose their dominance off the boards as a second-string forward. The former Adamson Falcon had 10 rebounds in the 107-96 Game Six clincher last Friday.
“Okay naman, may napuntahan naman,” said Brondial of the team's decision to restrict the use of cellphones.
Brondial promised followers that the ‘Tropa Kong Seaman’ skits will be making a comeback. He said so in a Facebook post, saying, “Kuwentuhan na ba?”
“Pero siyempre, abangan niyo ‘yan, panalo na tayo eh,” said Brondial. “Marami akong inipon.”
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