By Ronie Magcamit
Melbourne – This was the set date when a small group of badminton enthusiasts held their first ever tournament. The Badminton Anti Socials Group (BAD-AS) started as a handful of Pinoy amateur badminton players back in 2023, and started to grow as a regular social club who regularly meet every Thursday. You will see them smashing and dropping at the EN Sports Arena at 99 Bald Hill Road, Pakenham. But how did this group come up with this idea of a tournament?
Upon learning of a planned medical mission in the Philippines by a small Melbourne-based Christian ministry called Reason of the Hope (ROTH), the group decided to raise funds and support this initiative, thus “Smash for a Cause” was conceptualised. BAD-AS first couple Alex and Vi Alaba with the assistance of the core group namely Ronan and Lyn Montera, Ronie Magcamit and Jovet Saspa went on soliciting from friends in the community. And the support was overwhelming! Who answered the call? They were Kuya JJ Asian Grocery, Care Builder’s Group, AK Dental, Cebuano Association of Australia, MTB Grease Monkey, Ballener Ongoing Bookkeeping, Ballener Worx and Creations, Nexstep IT Support, AVJ Ceramics, Anthony Avitabile and Cranbourne Medical Centre. Thanks to the amazing sponsors who made this event possible.
The event turned out to be a huge success! There were 10 teams with four players each divided into two groups who slugged it out for the first ever tournament trophy. A big congratulations to the relentless Thanos Grippers team for bagging the championship with the more than capable Shuttle Acers coming as runner ups. All the teams showed great athleticism and everyone really enjoyed the games.
There were celebrations and cheers as the awarding wraps up. Hoping and looking forward to the next one. Hopefully sooner than later. ‘Til next year!
