ONLY one Creamline player in Japan-based setter Jia de Guzman was named to the Alas Pilipinas' women's national pool for the 2024 AVC Challenge Cup.
Departing head coach Jorge Souza de Brito told SPIN.ph that the inclusion of just one player from the newly-minted eight-time Premier Volleyball League (PVL) champions was by no means intentional.
According to the Brazilian coach, invitations were extended to the Cool Smashers since the first iterations of the training pool were formed last December, but the players subsequently declined.
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"The players from Creamline, they are invited. It's not that (they weren't included), they were invited but they declined," said de Brito.
Just last Sunday, Creamline beat sister team Choco Mucho in Game Two of the PVL All-Filipino Conference finals for its eighth championship in the country's pioneering collegiate league.
According to de Brito, three Cool Smashers were asked to join the pool, including de Guzman. He refused to disclose the names of the two other players who declined.
Despite their non-inclusion from the current pool, de Brito made it clear that Creamline players are still welcome to join the national team even when his coaching contract with the national team expires by June 30.
"They cannot come (to the national team) now but maybe in the future (they will)," he added.
From Choco Mucho, four were invited and two, namely Sisi Rondina and Cherry Nunag, agreed to be part of the pool, the coach said.
"The Choco Mucho players, they are there. We requested for four but we have two and it's good."
PVL clubs well-represented
The other PVL clubs are represented as well.
Cherry Tiggo had two players in the pool in Eya Laure and Jennifer Nierva, Cignal had libero Dawn Makandili-Catindig and Vanie Gandler, and PLDT had Dell Palomata.
Two Akari players, Faith Nisperos and Fifi Sharma, were later added provisionally to the pool.
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