Raffles win back crown after edging out ACS(I) with extra-time penalty

hmmm this article is rather passe but i realise no credit has been given to the scorer of rjc’s second try so for anyone who actually looks at this, the scorer was #1-Aaron Teo, just fyi. shame on the people at red sports for not establishing this. =(

Dave, Dave, Dave,

I hope Leslie does not take up on your suggestion to put a egoistic moron as his sports commentator.

That will be the biggest mistake he would make.

hehe.. I got respect for Raffles chaps (but I am an SA boy)… but I think this discussion about your son has gone for too long.

I mean, who really bothers ? I find it hard to believe that you would spend all that time typing out long paragraphs about your son and Singapore rugby…

Leslie should sign you up as a sports commentator…

Ciao dudes !

Warrior:

You are the fool. Tom Browne messaged me last week saying that he was sending the practice schedule for the SEA Games 7s team. I just received it this afternoon from him, Tues at 7pm in Yio Chu Kang, Thurs pm a gym session.

Why is he messaging me about the SEA Games 7s ??

You are the pathetic person because the only other Raffles person I know associated with the SRU shouldn’t be so dumb. It makes their job even more remote to become successful.

Living in my own world ? From what I’ve seen of you, you are in your own world. You don’t know the whole rugby circle here or speak for it and nobody cares about you or your the local rugby circle. The local rugby circle needs to change because it doesn’t amount to anything esp. after the JC level.

You are the sad one writing to me with such a scrambled message. Who do you represent ? Tell us.

Every time I receive non-sense from someone like you, I just break them down, reduce them in size and drop kick them out the door, down the steps, out into the street where they land on their faces, just like you.

Don’t tell me about my son because he’d just laugh and ignore you.

Warrior:

This comment of yours is pathetic, unintelligent, mixed up and ridiculous. I won’t pay any attention to you or your nutty suggestions here.

If you comment to me then you comment logically and clearly.

And someone who admits that he’s from Raffles and writes so badly, can’t follow the bouncing ball very well, etc. won’t be recognized by me.

Don’t be afraid, I’m never afraid.

Warrior:

Of all the blogs or commments I’ve received here over the past several weeks yours above is the most pathetic.

* Don’t tell me how to relate to my son

* Further in your paragraph one, don’t tell me what to put here.

* In the next paragraph about the SRU, USA Rugby, etc. don’t be silly. Furthermore, I can comment all that I want.

The rest of paragraph, I don’t know what you are talking about ? Messaging yourself, just nonsense.

* Paragraph three here, you are mixing up Herokiller’s original message to me

* Tom Browne is coaching the SEA games 7s, he messages more about it, he coached the Sing Lions team in November at the S.C.C. 7s

* The issue of past S’pore or current ruggers is not an issue for me.

* My ‘guess’ is that you are Ridzal Saat in the SRU. If I’m correct, that the mixed up blog above is you, etc. then there is nothing to say because I know first hand how laughable you are.

* Please don’t tell me not to reply.

Ourhero: Please stop using ‘we’ or ‘us’ when you refer to John’s future. He’s already 18 this year and he’ll be matured enough to know what he wants to, be it stay in Singapore or move to US. Not to mention a decision to play rugby for whoever or even leave the sport altogether. He’s a bright kid with a good schoolboy career, but however I think you should never ever use this website to ramble on about John’s achievements and even use it as basis of an argument with our fellow users. I admire your enthusiasm but it’s gone to a point where it’s become rather irrelevant. This report itself is about Raffles winning the A Division final and not your son missing out on a chance on the US Under 19 team or his future in Berkeley, NS, citizenship, whatever. There are user friendly websites like Blogger or myspace where you can continue this on so that everyone can see and interact with you.

But what really disturbs be that you seem to put yourself above the powers to be of Singapore Rugby, US Rugby, ACS, etc. Have you really been entrenched in the system itself? Don’t talk about yourself following your son to this training, matches and trips, meeting this person and that etc. That’s admirable for a parent to do so but all you’ve done is pure observation and mingled with the coaching staff. But put yourself in the coaches’ shoes, do you think your ‘input’ or ‘opinions’ would be beneficial at all? Everything is subjective outside the field (You’re a supporter and not a match analyst) and too bad if the coaches insist of doing things their way even though you think you think your suggestions are right or helpful. It’s their right to do that or else they won’t have the job in the first place. End of the day if the results don’t go his way, it’s up to the powers to be to decide his fate…not you. Are you on the field training like a dog? Playing your guts out? Planning coaching sessions or even be involved in the administration/operations of how things are run? The answer is NO. Everything is just your own observation and purely face to face conversation. John ultimately is the master of his own destiny and you can’t change that.

The way you’ve put it seems like you’re a person who’s very knowledgeable of this sport here. But I already have doubts considering you haven’t even heard of Terrence Khoo (He last played for Singapore in 2000 by the way not the 80s) and the past few players that have proudly represented our country and gone onto greater things in life. Yes results haven’t gone our way but considering the resources….Singapore Rugby is doing the best it can to move forward. Tom Browne by the way isn’t even the national 7s coach and neither is Phil Greening.

But honestly, do you think you’ve done any justice to what he is a player and most importantly, a person? Remember this, he’s just John, 18, a great kid, studies hard in RJC, plays exceptional schoolboy rugby, hangs around with his mates and lives his own life. Yes I am from the same alma mater (if you really want to know) as John, but honestly you’re making life difficult for him on and off the field. Imagine him getting a cheap shot at the bottom of the ruck because everyone wants a piece of him? It’s just a worst case scenario but it may not be pretty at all. I’m honestly very concerned about that.

Let’s close this issue, it’s already up to 167 comments (plus this one). Round 1 of the C Division is about done and let’s focus our energies on that. A reply is not needed to this as it’s really time to move on….

Herokiller,

Thanks for your message.

This one is more intelligently composed than your previous one.

* Yes, my son has a mind of his own but he just turned 18yrs old and we have a lot of conflicting ideas that we need to work out, a confused situation with him born and raised in S’pore yet a US citizen, etc.

I think his choice will be whether to play S’pore Rugby or nothing.

After he finishes NS, he’s almost 21 yrs of age. I don’t know how the IRB calculates age but if the U20 Championship is in June, John’s birthday is in June so he may be overage.

* Our experience is with S’pore and USA Rugby.

USA Rugby works something as follows:

There are regional selection try-out camps where regional players are invited after being spotted, etc.

At a national ‘High Performance’ Selection Camp like the one John attended after invitation, right after the ARFU U19s in December (above here), those 167 invited players are eliminated daily during the 6 day Camp. The selection is brutal. When I saw it, I thought of tryouts for the USA NFL, American football league.

That’s at the U19 level.

The higher, now must be post U20 level, the same happens with probably more players. So if you want to play National Rugby in the USA, you have to be good enough to be invited to the regional selection Camps, then the National selection camps, then train with the team over 3-6 months as the team builds up for the Championship ahead, ex. U20 or World Rugby Championships like the one coming later in 2007.

So to make it to a national level you have to be training constantly, playing high level rugby to maintain fitness, etc., etc.

Rugby has to be a very high priority for you.

When John and I were in England in April at one game two USA senior team national players came to watch. They were in the UK playing with very senior English teams to maintain their rugby skills, both were Berkeley graduates, by the way. These players are paid in the UK so they are professional players.

I don’t think my son would ever go this far.

As I mentioned above here, good for you to read my earlier comments although I had some erased in late May, John played for S’pore’s National Development A team, Singa Lions 7s team, a national development 7s team and the U19s.

S’pore’s interpretation and what we wanted now since we have decisions to make, is that the A team involvement is better since it is not full international status and allows John the ability to still represent the USA.

I referred to an England U19 coach in my earlier commnt who thought John was a very good player, etc. He told us that in England playing on an ‘A Team or Development Team’ is national representation so we have an issue here to clarify.

Tom Browne is trying to clarify John’s nationality status now so that John can play with S’pore’s SEA Games 7s team in December in Thailand. If that works out then I think that John’s lot has been finally cast with Singapore. I have no problems with this one.

Herokiller, your final two lines above are absurd. I’m always very direct and factual. That’s why when I receive emotional blogs like yours, it is no problem to answer them.

As I said earlier, he is what he is, done what he has done.

* Two days ago, I exchanged messages with the father of the current USA U19/U20 #11. The family lives in the San Francisco area of the USA.

I think his son was the only Wing in that USA Camp in December who was better than my son. John was the starting #14 and the other boy was the #11.

His son is amending, curtailing his USA Rugby career to enter the U of Oregon to play high level US College football, American football.

Can’t go to USA Rugby Camps as above and play US collegiate football.

Lots of issues here but for most USA U19 players, at this age level, the decision is wheter to go on with rugby or concentrate on the studies.

I spoke to almost all the USA U18 players in April and their responses were very interesting and ‘all over the map, etc.’ on this issue.

* I have to run now but you should know that with the USA Rugby crowd that I know, I’m always defending S’pore Rugby, the coaches, players, etc., etc. so much so that I’m generating lots of emotional non-sense something like your earlier comment that I later slam and put down so I have friends like you on the USA Rugby side as well.

* I offered earlier to send by email my long message after John’s recent USA U18 tour, above here.

If you send me an email address, I’ll forward it. If you are a rugby fan, you may find this one very interesting.

We can continue later, must go, lots to do.