IN ESPORTS, the role of a team manager is highly underappreciated as most of their duties are placed behind closed doors.
And oftentimes they get overlooked, as the tactical minds and the players get the nod for being the primary contributors towards a team's success.
However one should never forget the unsung role of managers as they are considered to be the hearbeat of the team.
They may not be the most strategic individuals inside the game, but their role of watching over the team's morale and mindset is crucial for the success of an org.
Take for instance ECHO PH's Mitch Liwanag. Throughout interviews from the press and Wolf Casts, Mitch has always been a guiding force, who had an important hand in Sunsparks and ECHO's success.
She may seem like a kind-hearted individual given her approachable nature, but she can also be strict and brutally honest when needed. Her recent interview with Wolf showed some hints on the other side of her spectrum.
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Mitch Liwanag: The Badass Boss of ECHO
How Mitch Liwanag forged a GOAT
With his two world championship and MPL trophies, there is a strong argument that Karl "KarlTzy" Nepomuceno should be heralded as one of the GOATs in the scene.
However prior to his 2nd ascent, there were questions raised on his personality, echoed by his statements regarding the tank jungler emblem back in Season 9.
After the ECHO super team suffered an embarassing defeat at the hands of Omega Esports in the playoffs, Mitch decided to rattle the cages.
The once stubborn KarlTzy had no choice but to adapt and Mitch had a hand in his evolution.
"Diba naalala mo three fighter setup kami [noong Season 9]?" said Mitch in an exclusive with Wolf Casts.
She then told KarlTzy saying: "Kailangan mo nang mag-jungle emblem kasi kahit anong mangyari, mabilis yung patch. Kahit anong ipilit natin doon sa three fighter setup, hindi talaga magwor-work kase nga sobrang daya ng retribution."
But it wasn't just the defeat against Omega that forced Karl's redemption arc as losing to Blacklist International also led to many learnings from the team.
During that time Blacklist was considered to be an unstoppable force of nature, which daunted many teams in the international stage and it seemed their dynasty could live on.
Inside ECHO's bootcamp, the Orcas struggled to find a loophole in the code.
Decoding Blacklist
"Hindi namin alam kung paano sila i-decode, sobrang lakas nila and we realized na utility jungler, kailangan talaga," reflected Mitch to Wolf.
She further explained: "Hirap kami noon mag-decode sa Blacklist so malaking lesson sa amin yung Blacklist International after that season. Nagusap-usap kami na wala na dapat doubts sa hero pool. Kung ano ang ipapagamit ng coach sa iyo, gamitin niyo."
And given the situation, Mitch gave her memorandum that will forever shape the history of MLBB esports.
"Gusto ko pagdating ng M4, sabi ko sa mga coaches, gusto ko lahat ng hero ginagamit. That time kase, SanFord was not actually comfortable with Yu Zhong, but it was actually a good draft for Blacklist."
With Karl fully embracing tank junglers and Sanford "SanFord" Vinuya exploring multiple EXP laners, ECHO's house of highlights slammed the Codebreakers.
The nonstop dives towards Kiel "Oheb" Soriano, courtesy of SanFord negated Blacklist and suffered a monumental loss against the Orcas.
The once dominant team has finally bled, opening up the floodgates to other teams like Onic Indonesia in MSC 2023.
Winning mentality
A key formula to ECHO's greatness stem from how Liwanag manages the egos inside the locker room.
In sports, allstar teams need man-managers who could balance the egos inside the locker room as seen with Chuck Daly's handling of the 1992 US Olympic Dream Team featuring Michael Jordan, Larry Bird, and Magic Johnson or Vicente del Bosque's reign with Real Madrid featuring Raul Gonzalez, Zinedine Zidane, Luis Figo, and Roberto Carlos.
Mitch Liwanag plays a similar role to the likes of Tristan "Yawi" Cabrera, KarlTzy, Frederic Benedict "Bennyqt" Gonzales and the rest of the ECHO roster.
Mitch may not be the best MLBB player in the scene, but she isn't afraid nor intimidated by the prestige from her players. She's also not a fan of the common Filipino phrase, 'bawi.'
"Kahit na veteran sila, na kapag ako na yung kumakausap sa kanila, nakikinig sila kasi I can't afford to lose. Kasi kung patatagalin natin, alam mo iyon 'bawi,' hindi ko tini-take yung word na iyon. Ayaw na ayaw kong narining yung 'bawi.' Kung kaya mong gawin ngayon, kung kaya mong i-adjust ngayon, i-adjust mo na," narrated Liwanag to Wolf.
She elaborated: "Lagi kong ipinapaintinde sa player, 'Malakas ka, ang problema sa iyo ikaw mismo. Ayaw mong mag-adjust, kasalanan mo."
"Malalakas personality ng mga players lalo na yung mga veteran, and they're asking me paano ko sila hina-handle. Treat them like normal because hindi porket veteran sila, they're perfect, everyday is a learning process so kailangan nilang matuto."
Compassion
But not everyting was about inside the game as the player's mentality from outside the game was also an important factor.
During the M4 World Championship, SanFord was having family problems as his father suffered from a stroke.
In an exclusive with SPIN.ph, Sanford's father revealed that his son was hesitant to travel abroad to compete in M4. But despite the tragedy, SanFord carried on with his campaign despite showing signs of vulnerability, something that Mitch revealed to Wolf.
"Nag-struggle si SanFord during that time because of sa nangyari sa dad niya during that time. So everytime bago mag-start yung game, he is crying. All we can do is to comfort lang siya, sa gilid mananahimik lang kami, let him have his own time kase valid naman yung emotions niya," revealed Liwanag.
But Sanford never let his emotions get the best of him as he re-entered the stage showing no emotions.
Mitch perfectly described Sanford's resilience saying, "After he cried, akyat sa stage, walang luha, tapang, motivation lang."
And it wasn't just limited to SanFord as Mitch Liwanag likewise took care of the other members of the team. Back in the Season 10 playoffs, KarlTzy suffered from a finger injury, and Mitch was able to address the problem.
Hall of Legends material?
From her role with ECHO PH, there's a reason why Mitch Liwanag is considered to be one of the most influential managers in the scene, and perhaps a GOAT-level manager in the MLBB esports scene.
In fact the numerous accounts in her recent managerial stint should explain why Sunsparks became a dominant force in the Philippines from Seasons 4 and 5, and why the original Sibol roster won gold in the 30th Southeast Asian Games, ending Indonesia's dominance.
While her peers namely Michael "Arcadia" Bocado, Brian "Panda" Lim, and Robert "Trebor" Sanchez are considered to be the brains, Mitch serves as both the team's heart and soul.
Just look at the team's overall mentality from both the MPL and MDL squads where Mitch described her teams as: "Walang parang bad blood, competition, brotherhood talaga, as in tulungan talaga."
There's nothing else that needs to be said except one thing: Hall of Legends material.
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