Archers raring to practice

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LONG holed up since the start of the deadly COVID-19 pandemic, La Salle coach Derrick Pumaren said the Green Archers are raring to hit the ground running.

“Next week pa ang start ng bubble training. We will start quarantine next week,” Pumaren told Malaya-Business Insight. “Iyong ibang players, may colds lang.”

The league is eyeing to launch its new season, set to be hosted by La Salle, in March.

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That plan hinges largely on government guidelines and policies as the country grapples with the surging new coronavirus infections brought about by the presence of what appears to be the highly transmissible Omicron variant in the National Capital Region.

Beginning last Jan. 3, Metro has been placed under the stricter Alert Level 3 status until Jan. 15 where contact sports is not allowed.

UAAP teams, however, could still hold face-to-face training since it will be under a bubble set-up.

The current quarantine restriction will be until Jan. 31.

The Archers, who last won the title in 2016 under former tactician Aldin Ayo, wound up with a 7-7 card for fifth in 2019 and failed to advance to the Final Four for the second straight year.

Six-foot-8 Gilas Pilipinas standout Justine Baltazar is expected to play his final year and lead La Salle’s charge.

The CHED gave the green light for the resumption of collegiate training under stringent health and safety protocols last November.

The move came on the heels of more contact sports being allowed in Metro Manila after the region was placed under Alert Level 2.

The CHED’s decision ended a long wait for the school teams’ return to physical training after the agency crafted and released the guidelines in October 2020.

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