| Kenry Balobo | |
| Fullname: | Kenry Abella Balobo[1] |
| Birth Date: | September 22, 1998 |
| Birth Place: | Cebu City, Philippines |
| Position: | Goalkeeper |
| Youthclubs1: | Don Bosco Technology Center |
| Collegeyears1: | 2017–2019 |
| College1: | San Beda University |
| Years1: | 2020–2021 |
| Clubs1: | Mendiola 1991 |
| Caps1: | 4 |
| Goals1: | 0 |
| Years2: | 2021–2022 |
| Clubs2: | United City |
| Caps2: | 0 |
| Goals2: | 0 |
| Years3: | 2022–2024 |
| Clubs3: | Kaya–Iloilo |
| Caps3: | 9 |
| Goals3: | 0 |
| Nationalyears1: | 2019 |
| Nationalteam1: | Philippines U23 |
| Nationalcaps1: | 1 |
| Nationalgoals1: | 0 |
| Pcupdate: | 13:20, July 31, 2024 (UTC) |
| Ntupdate: | 02:29, July 26, 2024 (UTC) |
Kenry Abella Balobo (born 22 September 1998) is a Filipino professional footballer who last played as a goalkeeper for Philippines Football League club Kaya–Iloilo.[2]
Balobo was born in Cebu City in the Philippines. In his youth, he played football for Don Bosco Technical College-Cebu (then known as Don Bosco Technology Center)[3] [4] and was known for his shot-stopping abilities, especially with penalties.[5] [6]
His impressive performances gave him the opportunity to take his career further, and Balobo earned a scholarship to study and play for San Beda University.[7] In his time at San Beda, he won two NCAA football titles in three years, winning a slew of individual awards such as 3 Best Goalkeeper Awards.[8] [9]
After graduating from San Beda, Balobo was signed by an club affiliated with San Beda, Mendiola FC 1991 of the Philippines Football League.[10] [11] He made his debut on the opening matchday of the 2020 season, a 6–0 loss to United City. In the penultimate match against Kaya, he was at the forefront of the action as he made a number of saves to deny Kaya from scoring, giving United City the 2020 PFL title.[12] [13] During Mendiola's match against Maharlika Manila, he was substituted late on in the match as an outfielder.
United City would be his next destination after the season's end, with the defending champions announcing his signing from Mendiola in early 2021 as part of their preparation for the club's debut in the 2021 AFC Champions League group stage.[14] [15] [16] United City would end up finishing that season in third, with a win over Beijing Guoan. However, he didn't play in an official match for the club, as they suddenly withdrew from the 2021 Copa Paulino Alcantara in the latter half of the year.[17]
After his spell at United City, Balobo would sign for Kaya–Iloilo, the club he had shut out two years prior. During his time at the club he played backup to Zach Banzon, Quincy Kammeraad, and Walid Birrou, and slowly racked up 10 PFL appearances over his first two seasons. His stint also saw trophies come to Kaya, with the club winning the PFL back to back in 2022–23[18] and 2024,[19] as well as the 2023 Copa Paulino Alcantara.[20]
While still playing football in Cebu, Balobo was included by coach Oliver Colina to the Phlippines U14 training camp that was being held there, which included members of the team dubbed "The Little Azkals".[21]
Four years later, he was called up to the Philippine U19 National Team for the 2016 AFF U19 Championship,[22] though he remained on the bench behind fellow San Beda keeper Michael Asong.
In 2019, he represented the country once more as a member of the U23 National Team. He was called up first to the 2019 AFF U22 Championship where he remained on the bench,[23] [24] but was called up again for the 2020 AFC U23 Championship Qualifiers,[25] making his debut in between the sticks as the Philippines lost 3–0 to Malaysia.[26]