Sam-Sam Gullas (CDN FILE PHOTO)
As the old adage goes, one bad apple can spoil the entire bunch.
This was what was in the mind of University of the Visayas (UV) team manager and assistant vice-president Gerald Anthony “Samsam” Gullas as he decided to keep Nigerian import Jeffakins Aguara off the team for good in spite of the latter’s apologies and pleas for a second chance in the wake of the ugly near-fight between him and teammate Franz Arong last week.
Gullas explained his decision yesterday afternoon before flying to Manila to attend to his duties as Congressman of Cebu’s First District.
In the talk, Gullas stated that he came upon the decision after consulting with the Green Lancers as well as the coaching staff.
LACK OF TEAM CHEMISTRY
Gullas came upon several warts previously unknown to him during the investigation.
“Initially, I thought that this was an isolated incident but apparently, this has happened several times already,” Gullas said. “It happened in Cordova when he (Aguara) was playing with Team B. I also got feedback that there has also been scuffles with his teammates during practice.”
In talking with every player currently on the squad, Gullas learned of the lack of chemistry between Aguara and the rest of the Lancers. He cited various blights such as indifference during practice to communication issues.
Gullas admitted that he was swayed by Aguara’s letter of apology and was leaning towards putting him back in but the face-to-face meeting with the latter opened another can of worms. “When I confronted him with the feedback from his teammates, all he said was his teammates were mad at him for taking their playing time.”
Taking all these in addition to the much-publicized scuffle between Aguara and Arong in their 61-67 semifinal loss to the University of San Carlos (USC) into mind, Gullas stuck to his original decision to kick Aguara off the squad. “I just cannot have this kind of attitude affects the team negatively.”
Gullas, though, kept the door open for Aguara to prove his worth and don the Green Lancers’ jersey once again in the future. “If he proves himself in Team B just like what (former import) Steve Akomo is doing, then why not?”
Cebu Daily News tried to contact Aguara for his feedback on Gullas’ decision but did not get an answer as of press time.