Writer: Yi Sheng
Our Raffles Hall netball team lost against Sheares Hall on 1st February, despite their best efforts against the traditionally strong opponent.
The game took place at the SRC netball court, with few supporters cheering for either side. This is could be partly explained by the guys’ floorball match also going on at the same time. Two referees from outside NUS judged over the events of the game.
As the first of four quarters started, we saw SH open up the scoring, converting their possession confidently. Our girls managed to score a good number of points once Mei Shan, our goal shooter, was in possession of the ball. She is certainly one of the anchors of the team, with her incredible scoring percentage once she has the ball. However, the opponents were more coordinated in their movements around the field, and they managed a good number of interceptions, which their own goal shooter also managed to score with confidence. By the end of the first quarter, we were down 5 -10.
In the second quarter, the girls renewed their spirits and continued to fight hard, as they were seen flying across the air and darting across the court. “Lightning” Andrea, playing centre and wing attack roles with Wei Wey, provided the speed and cunning that allowed RH to score many points. Elizabeth managed a good rebound after a missed shot from SH, allowing us to regain possession that time. The opponents were still relentless in their play, causing us to be down 9 – 21 when the half-time whistle sounded.
Yu Xian played wing defense and Hui Ru and Sabrina took turns to play goal attack. While they played their respective positions admirably, the opponents were significantly quicker in their play, as they seemed to know exactly where to run and stop at the right times, causing our girls to fall prey to their lightning-fast counterattacks. Elizabeth stood tall at our goal, constantly doing her best to mark the opposing goal shooter.
The third quarter continued the trend of scoring, though several good plays by Tiffany and Andrea helped our team to gain some points. The third quarter ended at 14 – 35.
In the last quarter, Siu Chen was looking to get some court time, but remained on the bench this time, as she was not substituted in. Min Yu took over Elizabeth as goal keeper. She managed to intercept a pass to the goal shooter, thwarting the opponents’ plans as well as she could. At full time, the score was 17 – 47 in SH’s favour.
Overall, it was a good, clean and friendly game for the girls, and it will surely be a great learning experience for them. They have one more shot to make it to the semifinals in the next preliminary round against Temasek Hall, so please be sure go down and cheer for them!