He joined La Nueva Provincia in 1995. He works in the Sports section and was a collaborator in Regional and Local News of this same medium. He specializes in basketball. He was part of the staff of Encestando y Zona de Básquet magazine for 10 years. He had experience in the program Radial Contrabásquet, on Radio La Red.
Twitter: @rodriguezefe
Instagram: ferodriguez_
The years changed Leonardo La Bella’s priorities and in this stage that he is going through before turning 40, he made a decision that reaffirms what he was building with a group of friends that basketball gave him: sharing the Bahiense del Norte B team, in the Tercera tournament.
“I spoke with some teams and assuming that I no longer have the legs to be able to continue playing in the First Division, I prioritized playing with my friends instead of doing so in the Second Division in another club; I think it is the best closure for all these years,” he justified.
And he supported: “Playing with my friends is what I was missing.”
This “band” is made up of Federico Sureda, Mariano Moretti, Juan Manuel Pites, Andrés Tavella, Bruno Massa, José Straguzzi, Darío Faure, Agustin De Beistegui, Alejandro Vilariño, César Massa, Cristian Brugniere and Julián Reta, mostly from the same group.
The decision was helped by the fact that Leo did not have a good time playing in the Second Division last season.
“Sometimes I wanted to do things on the field that I couldn’t. Last year,” he recalled, “I had a lot of injuries and here I think I’m going to take it more relaxed, calmer, laughing and enjoying myself as I want for the end of my career.”
-Weren’t you enjoying it?
-It was difficult. Because you get older, you have other demands and the truth is that when I was on the field, the last time at El Nacional, I enjoyed it and saw that I could continue playing a little more, but the years do not come alone. Now I am training better in the gym and it is enough for me to play in Third or Second, First is already over.
-Well, by regulation you will be able to play in the Primera de Bahiense if Colo Navallo calls you…
-No no! It’s not going to happen. Bahiense is doing very well in the First Division, they have their position well covered and this year I will be able to enjoy watching the games a little more from the outside, in addition to continuing to play for the club of which I am a fan.
-Did the little that you were able to give to El Nacional, as a result of the injuries, make you feel bad for not returning the expectation placed on you with play?
-When I suffered the first injury, a tear and then almost cut my Achilles tendon, it was something new for me. And it made me think a lot, because the recovery was long. Nacional always behaved very well with me and at one point I even told them that I didn’t want to play anymore, or continue getting paid. Then I had another injury, I came back in the quarterfinals and helped by scoring the final ball, but it wasn’t enough either. And when the year ended and the boys started talking about playing in the Third Division, it motivated me, because I know it will be something different.
-And it is a particular group, because they maintain the friendship of many years and they are friends that the club gave you.
-The truth is that it is like this: we are a group of lifelong friends from Bahiense, a couple of boys joined us and we formed a family. We know a lot of each other and more than one of us are going to give you a headache, heh.
-Starting with the technician, heh.
-Well, Santi Cappa was already a technician and left for another job. But he could have continued because he does it very well and has knowledge. Besides, he is my friend, my brother, so I can’t say anything else…
-Can this line be very thin between confidence and playing seriously?
-We have something in particular: we tell each other everything at the barbecues and there were never any problems. The boys have been playing for a long time and it is going to be a long team, because boys from the club who cannot play in the First Division are going to join. And they are going to be very good for us. Regarding confidence and relaxing a little, I will talk about it at a barbecue, but I am going to play as always, with the Bahiense shirt, with great enthusiasm and trying to win. With the difference that if it is lost, I will not go four hours without sleeping, as happened to me. Yes it will fuck me and I will be horny for a while. But the next day it will be over.
-This team’s locker room will have the grill as a common denominator, right?
-I think there will be some barbecue involved, enjoying a Fernet and when you win, eating some barbecue in Bahiense. That’s good, because the kids come to the club and can contribute ideas or something else. The important thing is that Bahiense continues to grow and we can enjoy all the former players who want to come and play.
-Do you notice that in the team there is now more expectation for your presence?
-I already told you not to ask me to score 30 points and 15 assists. They know what I can give. I’m training a lot at El Galpón, a friend’s gym (Agustín Juanpataoro), where almost all of us go. It’s like we are together a lot of the day and that generates more trust in us.
-Have you already established how many wins there will be?
-Every two games there will be a barbecue, ha, ha, ha… It’s good that a lifelong friend, José Straguzzi, who went to Buenos Aires as a child, is playing with us again. They are the things that one enjoys at almost 40 years old. The other day Topa Carbonell wrote to me, that he is going to go to the barbecues… They are going to appear.
-Of course, he didn’t tell you “I’m going to the field”, but “to the barbecues”, heh.
-He told me that if we invite him to a barbecue he will come, because he loves us very much. That’s what playing in the Third Division does to you.
-Until they get serious and need results.
-It’s like everything, we are going to want to win. Last year the boys in the Maxi reached the semis. A starter laughs and then wants to compete to the fullest. We are going to do preseason. Afterwards, we will train once or twice a week.
-Are you still a coach at the club?
-Yes, I have five categories and I am increasingly happy. I would like to direct a Third or Second team next year, to get into the environment of the technicians. I like it a lot and I try to continue improving.
It will definitely be a year of transition for Leo La Bella. And what better than sharing this stage surrounded by friends, those that the club where he grew up gave him and the one he chose to begin to say goodbye as a player.
