Every team wants a piece of the Cool Smashers.
The Creamline Cool Smashers continue to be the creme dela creme of the PVL, so much so that they are looking unstoppable in their quest for another title in the Second All-Filipino Conference.
Making things even more impressive is that Creamline is dominating sans two of the team's best players in setter Jia de Guzman, who chose to bring her playmaking excellence to Japan, and middle blocker Ced Domingo, who chose to take her talents to Thailand.
It turns out, the vaunted Creamline culture Alyssa Valdez so aptly described previously, is even stronger than initially thought, melding talent, aptitude, and attitude into one mean fighting machine that is very hard to beat.
No wonder there is a palpable confidence in the Cool Smashers, an undeniable self-assuredness borne out of a tried-and-tested system, a championship pedigree, and a strong culture.
That confidence appears to be so ingrained that when asked about Creamline’s biggest threat, Michele Gumabao identified no one else but the Cool Smashers themselves.
“I think it’s really ourselves talaga (biggest threat to Creamline),” Gumabao said on One PH's Power & Play. “Nag-uumpisa talaga sa practice. Kunwari tinamad ‘yung isa, magkakahawa-hawa ‘yan. If you’re having a bad day, you really have to overcome a lot of things personally so that you can be the best teammate to your team. And pagdating sa game, it just has to come out kung ano ‘yung pina-practice namin.”
So far, the Cool Smashers have been able to unleash what they’ve been working on day after day at practice. They're still undefeated in five matches.
They have to, according to Gumabao, because they have got a big target on their backs.
“What also helps is gusto talaga kami talunin ng lahat ng team,” Gumabao admitted. “Kita naman talaga natin ‘yun, when they play against Creamline, they really bring their A-game, and ‘yun ‘yung gusto naman talaga namin.”
Gumabao and company are returning the favor.
“Also, (there’s) the respect that we want to show all the teams we are up against na we will play our best and pinaghahandaan namin sila,” added Gumabao, whose 43.92 spiking success rate tops the PVL at the moment. Best believe then that Creamline will be at its best when it takes on the F2 Logistics Cargo Movers this Tuesday at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
ALSO READ: 'Confidence within': Aby Maraño stays unfazed ahead of blockbuster showdown against undefeated Creamline
Catch the game live at 6 p.m. on One Sports, One Sports+, and the Pilipinas Live app.
(PM)