HISTORY HAS PROVEN that Coach Brian "Panda" Lim is very stubborn when it comes to his roster as he barely utilizes his reserve players.
Sure he managed to use his subs as seen from Dexter "Exort" Martinez and Clarense "Kousei" Camilo back in Season 9, but those were due to dire reasons.
He did manage to finally use his MDL prospect John "Irrad" Tuazon back in Season 11, however it can be argued that things were already too late as Irrad made his impact only during the playoffs.
Now, it seems Coach Panda has decided to make a drastic shift this Season 13 as he has decided to use rookie Jhondy "Nibor" Ranque over the veteran and superstar EXP laner, Nathanael "Nathzz" Estrologo against Omega Esports on the opening day.
It was a move that no one expected, especially with Nathzz being one of the best performers for RSG in previous seasons, and why did Coach Panda made the bold move? Here's what he revealed to the media.
"I'm excited for this season because it's the first season where I'm trying to utilize all seven players because as everyone knows and lots of rumors say that Coach Panda, even if he has sub players, he'll treat them as hamsters lang, he won't let them play. Tapos lagi akong nagsti-stick sa comfort main five players ko."
"Pero this season, gusto kong gamitin yung opportunity to use the sub players and try to use other strategies as well."
Nibor did manage to impress in his debut match, and what's even shocking was his overall background. Looking at his competitive history, Nibor is an enigma.
"He is only 15-years-old, never siyang naka-experience ng MDL, amateur bootcamp lang, more than two months na, when he was bata pa, and he came to the MPL kaagad. Tapos unang laban ng RSG, naglalaro na siya, tapos he played really well pa," said Coach Panda.
How Nibor was discovered?
Who would've thought that a player with no MDL experience and a very limited amateur background would end up making a strong impression on his debut, which now begs the question: How on earth did Coach Panda find this hidden gem.
During the offseason, there has been rumors centered on the future of RSG PH especially with players departing left-and-right, and given what Coach Panda revealed during the press conference, it seems Nathzz could've followed the offseason exile.
"Unang-una, sabi ng RSG management, we need to find someone who can replace Nathzz because Nathzz is too matigas yung ulo. Hindi joke lang (laughs)...because Nathzz, we don't know until when we'll have Nathzz in our team, just how EMANN, tapos si Irrad, and si Theo left our team," explained the RSG head coach.
So in order to solve the potential crisis, RSG conducted player tryouts, and the results produced a blessing out of nowhere.
"So what we did is we started tryouts. Sa una, for formality. I never expected to find someone in the tryouts who will be better than Nathzz, because we all know Nathzz, pagdating sa stage, he is a monster talaga, lalo na kapag good mood siya."
Nathzz vs. Nibor
Nibor's emergence into the scene, somewhat brought back memories when Nathzz first came as a rookie back in Season 8.
Looking back at that season, Nathzz' mechanical foundation was the cornerstone for RSG to become one of the most exciting teams to watch, and it seems history could once again repeat itself with Nibor.
When describing the two players, Coach Panda saw something in Nibor.
"When I first saw Nathzz, malakas yung mechanics. If I compare 15-year-old Nibor vs. 15-year-old Nathzz, mas better si Nibor, why? Si 15-year-old Nathzz was iyakin, laging emotional, tapos ayaw niya mag-communicate. His emotions are random, pero si Nibor, he is willing to listen."
He added: "Batang-bata talaga, he loves Jollibee, fast food, he likes chocolates, he likes to joke around, but when it comes to practice, he is trying to do his best, and most of all he is willing to learn. That's what I like about my players."
However he did note that Nathzz actually learned how to manage his emotions as seasons went by.
"Nathzz is actually a better person now compared to before," as mentioned by Coach Panda.
This ultimately proves the potential that Nathzz has which was developed by Coach Panda, and it seems the two-time MPL champ coach will once again answer the call with Nibor.
What Nibor needs to develop
Nibor, like the then 15-year-old Nathzz, still needs to work on his mentality and this was something that Coach Panda observed on his very first game against Omega.
"Yung mga bagong players lalo na si Nibor, yung concern niya is that takot pa siyang magkamali. Tournament na ito e, hindi na siya scrim."
So how does Coach Panda unleash the full force of his rookie prospect? He gave some words of encouragement to his player.
"Sabi ko, 'Ok lang magkamali, ok lang na kahit 10 deaths ka, ok lang na 0-2, basta the journey continues on."
"Then isipin mo na may sarili kang mundo, you're just playing inside your room lang. Tapos all you have to do is listen to your teammates, play online sa Discord. Tapos tapangan mo, huwag kang matakot magkamali."
Yet the jitters remained and even though RSG secured an important 2-1 victory over rivals, Nibor still needs to learn how to be aggressive.
"So that's what he did but he could'be played better regarding the aggressiveness because medyo kinabahan sa mistakes, but for the first time he really played well naman."
The new measures
And as he witnessed Nibor's very first MPL experience, it seems Coach Panda will have to make changes.
Looking back, he realized that things could've gone better.
"One of the reasons why we couldn't dominate like sobra is because parang too much hesitation, too much ingat, too much calculations during the tournament kaysa sa scrim."
What's certain is that the team needs to learn how to perform well when the pressure rises.
"So I'm gonna try to integrate a training method starting next week. How to translate our performance from scrim into the tournament. That is the lason that I need to cure."
Now that he will be banking on his entire roster for this season, comes a new set of opportunities and challenges for Coach Panda.
"So now I can see new opportunities, means new chances of growing as a team.
He further elaborated: "Of course, there's a downside if you focus on seven players, na-spread yung focus mo sa mga players. But then again I'm willing to take that risk, and accept the opportunity para in the end, everyone from the team will grow including me."
History has also proven that Coach Panda has developed players from the grounds all the way to the top as seen from Jonard Cedrix "Demonkite" Caranto, Nathzz, John "Irrad" Tuazon, and Eman "EMANN" Sangco. Will Nibor end up following their footsteps?
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