Story contributed by reader Low Jing Yong. Pictures by Lai Jun Wei.

A Hwa Chong Institution player moves into position to return a shot. (Photo © Lai Jun Wei)

Kallang Squash Centre, Monday, March 17, 2008 – Another season of the National B Division Squash Championship has begun. Many fans of squash may be wondering if this will be the year where the B Division boys of Anglo-Chinese School (Independent) will finally be beaten after 9 years on the throne since 1999.

This year, ACS(I) are again the hot favourites to win the championship after they beat St. Andrew’s 5-0 without breaking much of a sweat today at centre court. As each of the ACS(I) player took up their position against their St. Andrew’s opponent, they portrayed calmness without any hint of fear. Much of the game saw the ACS(I) players make their opponents run circles around them. Clearly, ACS(I) were in control of the game as the score for each set climbed from 0-0, all the way to 9-0. This scenario was repeated several times during this match between the two schools. The match was over in the blink of an eye as ACS(I) completely swept their opponents off the court.

In the match-up between St Joseph’s Institution (SJI) and Fairfield Methodist on Court 2, SJI trashed Fairfield Methodist 5-0. Fairfield, a relatively newcomer to the squash scene, stood no chance against their better skilled opponent.

This year's dark horse is most likely Raffles Institution, as they beat their rival school Hwa Chong Institution 4-1 in a very tight match which saw many individual games reach 8-8. Hwa Chong is definitely not going to be a pushover despite losing this match. This year’s B Division boys’ championship is definitely going to be quite exciting.

In the B Division Girls match on Court 4 and 5, this year is rather different from the previous. Back in the past, Methodist Girls’ and the Singapore Chinese Girls’ School were the dominating forces in the B Division. However, RGS managed to break the domination of the two schools when they beat MGS 3-2 in a tough fight. Despite having many supporters cheering the girls on from outside the court, MGS could not overcome their opponents from RGS, leaving both the team and their supporters deeply disappointed. Perhaps the team may have weakened significantly after the departure of their seniors like Jillian Lye. Nevertheless, MGS did put up a good fight against RGS.

The reigning champions SCGS continued to rule by beating Nanyang Girls’ High 4-1. In comparison to the boys, the girls‘ matches were relatively much more exciting, especially the matchup between MGS and RGS. It was the only match that had to be decided by 5 sets.

The excitement is definitely going to reach a new height in the next few rounds. So remember to check them out at the Kallang Squash Centre over the next few days!

Scores:

B Division Boys
ACS(IND) vs St. Andrew’s Secondary 5-0
St. Joseph’s Institution vs Fairfield Methodist 5-0
Raffles Institution vs Hwa Chong Institution 4-1

B Division Girls
Singapore Chinese Girls’ School vs Nanyang Girls’ High 4-1
Raffles Girls’ School vs Methodist Girls’ School 3-2

Shaun Yip of ACS(IND) in action. ACS(IND) did not have much problems overcoming their opponents from St. Andrew’s. (Photo © Lai Jun Wei)

A player from St. Andrew’s picks the ball up after missing. (Photo © Lai Jun Wei)

Terry Chan from SJI. (Photo © Lai Jun Wei)

Relative newcomers Fairfield serving. (Photo © Lai Jun Wei)

Kim Wee from RI, attempts a serve. (Photo © Lai Jun Wei)

Raffles Institution against Hwa Chong Institution. (Photo © Lai Jun Wei)

An HCI player does a backhand serve. (Photo © Lai Jun Wei)

Valentina from the school which won the 2007 B Division championships, SCGS. (Photo © Lai Jun Wei)

Huiying from Nanyang Girls’ just couldn’t overcome her stronger SCGS opponent, national player Mao Shi Hui. (Photo © Lai Jun Wei)

Lifang from Raffles Girls’ looks up to the umpire to seek clarification for a shot. (Photo © Lai Jun Wei)

Great disappointment for Hannah from powerhouse Methodist Girls’ as her school gets toppled by Raffles Girls’ (Photo © Lai Jun Wei)

Ed’s note: If you recognise yourself or your teammates, do leave your names behind in the comments section and we will update the captions accordingly. Thanks!

More pictures in the gallery.