Blacklist International got a major boost during its 3-0 sweep of Indonesian powerhouse RRQ Hoshi as Filipino fans trooped to the Suntec Singapore Convention Centre to show support to the PH bets.
Waving the Philippine flags, the fans cheered their lungs out and showed their energy – something that Blacklist coach Kristoffer “Bon Chan” Ricaplaza and his wards admitted to have given them a huge boost especially against a tough team like RRQ.
“We felt good they are energy boosters. There are a lot of Blacklist fans especially Filipino fans and they became our source of energy,” said the amiable coach during the post-game interview.
For the players, having the audience in the venue was a breath of fresh air and gave them some sense of normalcy considering that it’s been a while since they experienced playing in front of the crowd.
M3 organizers opened its doors to the audience in the last three playing dates from Dec. 17 to 19 and tickets had been sold out in only a week after sales.
The audiences, however, was still in a limited number with only 178 audiences allowed in every match as part of the protocols due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the threats of the new Omicron variant.
“When I heard that the last three days of the tournament we’ll have audiences, I’m actually more excited because I already experienced this during MPL S4 and MPL S5 and having the audience gives me energy,” said Blacklist captain Jonmar “OhMyV33nus” Villaluna.
Blacklist immediately felt some sort of homecourt advantage as the Filipinos in Singapore took the opportunity to cheer for their favorite players live and up close.
“Nakakatuwa ulit na magkaroon ulit ng audience habang naglalaro ka sa stage kasi pag nakakapatay kami sumisigaw sila tapos parang naboost yung energy ko pag naririnig ko na sumisigaw yung audience,” added Salic “Hadji” Imam.
The support from the crowd has been all out even during the group stage and the first stages of the playoffs when fans were still not allowed to spectate the games. Some fans even tried waiting outside the M3 venue hall in Suntec just to get a glimpse of their favorite players and show support to the PH bets.
Fortunately, the two Philippine teams remain in strong contention for the title with Onic PH standing tall and steady in the upper bracket and Blacklist now looking like the team that dominated the last two MPL PH seasons.