OLIVER Almadro couldn't help but feel emotional after reaching his first-ever finals in the Premier Volleyball League (PVL).
Almadro's best finish in the PVL had been at fourth place in his nearly four years of coaching his previous team Choco Mucho.
Oliver Almadro on first PVL finals apperance
And on Thursday, the seasoned mentor made a milestone in his career after Petro Gazz, where he joined just early this year, punched the last spot in the 2023 PVL All-Filipino Conference Finals.
"I'm not expecting to be in the finals right away. I really didn't expect this," he said after the Angels outlasted PLDT in straight sets, 25-17, 25-23, 25-15, in the Game Three semifinals at Mall of Asia Arena.
Almadro was filled with gratitude for the two-time PVL champion for bringing him to the gold-medal series.
"I really thank these girls kasi they trusted me right away... And you know, finals right away. It's a big blessing eh kasi everybody wants to be in this position," he shared.
Although his squad has already faced Creamline in the Finals thrice in the past conferences, this will be Almadro's first encounter with the defending champions in the title series this conference.
This only fuels Almadro as he vowed to instill his passionate coaching in the veteran team.
"Many teams will underestimate us. Many teams will be, 'Oh, wala naman yung Petro Gazz, hindi naman sila yan, wala naman yan'. But we will show the performance, it will show for itself," he said.
"Walang problema sa talent, they have the talent. What I can instill in them is that character. Alam naman nila na passionate ako, intense ako. Pinipigil nga nila ako, okay coach, kaya namin," he added.
The Angels will try to avenge their straight-sets loss to Creamline during the elimination round when they square off in Game One of the best-of-three finals on Sunday at Mall of Asia Arena.
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