THE noise was already growing louder after PLDT’s shock sweep loss to Nxled. Then came another stunning defeat to an inexperienced Ho Chi Minh side.
And all of a sudden, the defending champions found themselves having to answer for more than just their struggles in their 2026 PVL Invitational title defense.
Social media criticism quickly piled up on the High Speed Hitters, with the conversation ranging from their supposed 'one-woman offense' leaning heavily on reigning MVP Savi Davison to calls questioning whether three-time PVL champion head coach Rald Ricafort should even remain at the helm.
READ: PLDT stops the bleeding with four-set PVL win over Farm Fresh
For a team already trying to sort itself out inside the court, PLDT has had just about enough of dealing with everything being thrown its way from outside.
“Hangga't kaya, hindi kami magpapadala sa outside noise. Kami, ako, coaches. Nanawa na rin ako kakabasa dahil wala naman magandang babanggitn sa atin,” said Ricafort.
“Pero nandu’n talaga kami sa point na kung hindi man maiwasan, mas importante pa rin ‘yung inner circle namin na mas solid.”
That has become the approach for a PLDT team trying to keep its focus on what it can control, even as the sport’s rapidly growing online following has made players and teams more exposed than ever to hostile commentary and attacks.
Captain Kath Arado may not be as active on social media as others, but she knows firsthand just how closely fans now follow volleyball and how quickly that attention can turn negative.
“Hindi talaga siya maiwasan kasi nga grabe na rin ‘yung social media ngayon at tutok talaga ang mga fans sa volleyball. Ako kasi personally, hindi talaga ako ma-social media so naiiwasan ko,” said Arado.
As captain, though, Arado makes sure to keep tabs on her teammates, understanding that each player handles the intensity and tenacity of social media differently.
“Kinukumusta namin yung bawat isa so du’n pala, nakikita namin na okay naman pala yung magkita," she added.
“May mga part naman talaga na may nakaktulong naman talaga ‘yung mga ganun negative sides ng pambabash. At least, ang gino-grow namin yung relationship namin as a team na kahit anong marinig namin pa outside or kami mismo inside, intact kami.”
'Whatever floats your boat'
Davison has perhaps been no stranger to that scrutiny more than most during her roughly three years in the country.
From criticism surrounding her citizenship to questions about having to carry too much of PLDT’s scoring burden, the reigning MVP has heard plenty from outside the team.
But for Davison, there is little reason to pile external pressure onto a group that already has more than enough expectations to deal with internally.
“We put enough internal pressure on ourselves to be better so it's not like we need the external pressure on top of that because that's when we begin to trouble is when there's so much going on around us that we're not able to focus on what the task is,” said Davison.
“For each of us, we handle it in different ways. Some people drive the pressure, some people like the calmness of it, so it's kind of up to you how you want to internalize it. But I know for us as a group, we like a clean slate going into every game.”
“We like not having the outside noise, but individually, whatever floats your boat.”
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