The Premier Volleyball League will introduce new rules to shorten the duration of matches for the Second All Filipino Conference, ensuring faster, livelier action when the season-ending tournament is fired off Sunday (Oct. 15) at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
“Since the introduction of the video challenge, humaba yung games natin lalo na kapag nag-five sets,” said PVL competition director Sherwin Malonzo during the event launch at Discovery Suites in Pasig City last Wednesday.
The organizing Sports Vision has guaranteed a conference to remember with a record 12 teams of varying strengths and styles set to slug it out in a single round-robin prelims with the top four advancing to the semis.
“We’re introducing one technical timeout for this conference. When the first team reaches 13 points, we’ll have the technical timeout. It may last for as short as one minute or as long as two minutes,” said Malonzo.
Starting this conference, teams will now have one regular timeout and one 30-second timeout for each set.
In previous tournaments, two technical times are called—when the first team hits eight and 16 points.
Coaches will also be allowed to talk to their players and hand out instructions during video challenges.
“Yung video challenge, it will still be the same—two per set. Hanggat tama kayo sa video challenge, hindi siya mababawasan at pwede ng kausapin yung players during video challenges,” said Malonzo.
However, teams will now only change courts once every game. This will be done right after the second set and will last for three minutes while the rest of the breaks in between sets will run for five minutes.
Malonzo said this will give more players time to rest as well as for the coaches to give out instructions and set up their respective plays.
“Ang change court natin will be once na lang—in the second set,” said Malonzo. “Each set, except for the second to third set, still a three-minute break but when we change court on the second set going towards the third set, it’s going to be a five-minute break just to give enough time to the coaches to give instructions also.”
“Advantage nun, yung three minutes all yours. Walang change court so you can get more to give instructions to the team or to rest yung players. Fifth set, walang change court.”
The format is a single round-robin elims with the top four advancing to the semifinal round with the No. 1 clashing with No. 4 and the Nos. 2 and 3 squads in a pair of best-of-three series. The winners will dispute the championship in a best-of-three playoff.
“Format natin, elimination round is going to be a single round robin so all 12 teams will play against each other, will have the opportunity to play against each other so that’s about 66 matches,” said Malonzo.
Each playdate will feature three matches with Gerflor and Nxled kicking off hostilities at 3 p.m. on to be followed by the 5 p.m. duel between Cignal and PLDT. Fancied Creamline opens its title defense against sister team Choco Mucho at 7 p.m.
Except for the Sunday opening, playdates are held on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays.