Raffles Institution defeat Yishun Junior College 3-2 on penalties to seal 3rd in girls’ A Division floorball

Contributed by Gan Guo Wei

Choa Chu Kang Stadium, Tuesday, May 19, 2009 – Raffles Institution and Yishun Junior College battled hard in a six-goal thriller, complete with a penalty shootout, to decide the third-placed team in this year's A Division Girls’ Floorball Championship, with RI emerging victors with a 3-3 (3-2 on penalties) scoreline.

Both teams had a point to prove in their final match of the season, with YJC having suffered an 8-2 drubbing against Victoria Junior College in their semi-finals, while Raffles Institution had narrowly lost to Meridian Junior College on penalties. They had previously met in the group stage, where RI had achieved a 4-3 win over YJC.

The stadium was packed with supporters, who generated a magnificent atmosphere befitting such an important match. Even though YJC had more supporters, the RI supporters were able to match them in terms of intensity and volume, and much plaudits must be given to both schools for cheering their schools on till the end.

The first five minutes were dominated by YJC, as they sought to establish a lead, and they won the first face-off, to raucous cheers from their supporters. Barely 10 seconds into the game, RI captain Wong Ying Qi (#9) was forced to make a crucial block to deny YJC an early goal.

In the second minute, they were nearly rewarded with a goal when a YJC player's shot came agonizingly close to entering the goal. Instead, there was a loud "ping" as the ball rebounded off the post. They also had two good opportunities to score from two free hits, but Stephanie (YJC, #7) and Sindy (YJC, #8) failed to take their chances as both shots flew wide. It did not help RI's cause that the referee's calls appeared to be going against them. However, RI’s goalkeeper #11 Rebecca was in inspired form and made two vital stops in quick succession.

RI seemed to finally gain a foothold on the game after this as they began attacking more and leaving the defensive duties to the YJC defenders. Vanessa (#12, RI) played a dangerous ball across the slot area, and her forward partner Crystal (#21, RI) could not finish off the move.

The game started to get more intense, and there was a notable indication that both teams were going to fight all the way when Eunice (#7, RI) and Shihua (#99, RI) engaged in a double team on a hapless YJC forward. Vanessa (#12, RI) then took a shot from the left flank that was easily saved by the YJC keeper.

The momentum of the game seemed to swing back in YJC's favour, as they began an onslaught on the Raffles goal. YJC's #13 Joscelin, in particular, posed a threat as she sought to unlock the Raffles defence with a series of shots and incisive passes through the centre. However, when one such pass came to Toh Jia Wen (#16, YJC), she narrowly missed connecting with the ball. Vanessa (#12, RI) responded soon after, beating her marker completely with a smart turn, but only managing to strike the ball directly at the keeper.

Beihan (#24, RI) showed her attacking qualities with two shots from her own half which were deflected safely away from danger. YJC's #25 responded with a shot of her own from mid-court, which only reached the keeper's body. It also seemed that the YJC floorballers seemed to lose concentration whenever RI went forward in numbers, but Joscelin (#13, YJC) was calm in possession and did well to slow the play down.

In the last minute of the first period, Charleen (#25, RI) had a one-on-one opportunity with the goalkeeper but she hesitated for just a fraction of a second too long and a YJC player managed to swipe the ball clear. 0-0 after the first period.

The second period began in a blaze of excitement, as Charleen (#25, RI) atoned for her earlier miss. She was the most alert person in a goalmouth scramble and a simple wrist shot into the back of the net was enough to beat a rooted YJC keeper and give Raffles a 1-0 lead.

RI celebrated wildly but before long, YJC found an equaliser. Moments after Jia Wen (#16, YJC) dragged her shot wide of the far post, Joscelin (#13, YJC) snapped onto the rebound and dragged the ball towards goal again. The RI keeper was unfortunate to see it bounce off her body and into the net. It was now 1-1.

Ying Qi (#9, RI) and Rebecca (#11, RI) then had to work hard to block shots from YJC's #34 and #26. Then, Vimilyn (#26, RI) surged forward from defence to fire off two shots in quick succession at the YJC goal. One of these was blocked by an alert YJC defender and the other sailed harmlessly over the goal.

It was really becoming end-to-end stuff at the stadium as the ball bobbled around the RI slot area, but Euphoria Ng (#2, YJC) was unable to hit the ball into the goal on the first attempt. On the second attempt, her drag shot was deflected to the boards where the Raffles defenders collected the ball easily.

Next, Vanessa (#12, RI) attempted to wrap the ball into the net from behind the goal, but her intelligent move was foiled by the YJC keeper. Crystal (#21, RI) then had a half-chance, but her wrist shot from an acute angle was off-target. Sylvia (#5, RI) then put her body on the line to block yet another YJC shot, and the keeper proceeded to smother it.

There was a flurry of shots as Crystal (#21, RI), Cassandra (#23, RI), and Beihan (#24, RI) all had very good strikes on goal. However, YJC’s good defence managed to keep the ball out.

Raffles suffered a brief scare when Euphoria (#2, YJC) executed a wonderful turn drag from the left flank, but the ball smacked the post and rolled away. Spurred on by this close call, Raffles pushed forward even more. Eunice (#7, RI) did well to burst past two defenders and went behind the goal. Juan Min (#17, RI) popped out unmarked in the slot and was connected with her teammate's defence-splitting pass to tap the ball into the roof of the net.

It was now 2-1 to RI. They then switched their focus to defence to protect their one-goal lead, and must be given praise for using their bodies and sticks to block everything that YJC threw at them.

There was another near miss for #13 Joscelin (#13, YJC) and Jia Wen (#16, YJC), with the latter hitting the post. RI's #26 then did superbly well to win the ball in a three-on-one situation, when she was back-pedalling against 3 YJC players. This served as impetus for RI to finish the period still a goal up.

The third period began at an intense speed. Raffles were seeking to extend their slender one-goal lead, while YJC were looking to claw their way back. Sylvia (#5, RI) took a shot from the left flank, which the YJC goalkeeper dealt with, before Joscelin (#13, YJC) took a mirror image shot from the opposite flank, with similar results.

However, there was despair for YJC as they conceded yet again to make it 3-1 in Raffles’ favour. Vanessa (#12, RI) burst past her defender, leaving her sprawled on the ground and put in a telling cross to the far post, where Cassandra (#23, RI) was lurking. She made no mistake with a powerful wrist shot that bulged the net from point blank range.

The next seven minutes were marked by steady Raffles dominance, as Beihan (#24, RI) and Eunice (#7, RI) were prevented by adding to the tally by strong defending. YJC then pulled one back through Tan Ting Hui (#12, YJC), who swept the ball home into the bottom corner.

They were encouraged when Raffles captain #9 Wong Ying Qi was sent off for two minutes for continuing to play even when her stick had dropped to the floor. Raffles now faced a 4 v 3 power-play situation. YJC tried to spread the play to open up space for their players to shoot, but the Raffles girls defended solidly. Charleen (#25, RI) and Sylvia (#5, RI) did very well to hold the ball up, and even managed to take shots at goal.

After the two minute penalty had expired, Joscelin (#13, YJC) appeared to push Oceana (#4, RI) to the floor, but the referee adjudged it to be fair play. This almost proved costly as Joscelin (#13, YJC) whipped in a fast ball into the slot area, but her teammates were unable to reach it.

YJC were taking control of the game now. They knew they only needed one goal and continued to attack the Raffles goal. Jia Wen (#16, YJC) shot perilously over, and as the clock ticked down to the final minute, many people must have thought it was the end for YJC's hopes of finishing third. But Joscelin (#13, YJC) was determined not to let her team go down without a fight.

In the dying seconds, she rifled a turn drag shot towards the near post. The keeper failed to keep it out, and the ball trickled excruciatingly slowly into the goal to tie the game at 3-3. Joscelin celebrated wildly, and the RI players looked a bit deflated, having watched their two-goal lead evaporate into nothing. There was barely enough time for the game to restart before the referee blew the full-time whistle, signaling the introduction of a penalty shootout.

Joscelin (#13, YJC) was the first player to step up for her penalty. She dispatched it coolly past Sim Sihui (#1, RI). Oceana (#4, RI) was the next name on the list. She appeared to strike the ball awkwardly and it rolled easily into Joan Chen's (#99, YJC) grasp. It was now 1-0 in favour of YJC. Jia Wen (#16, YJC) and #25 Charleen (#25, RI) tucked away their penalties to make the score 2-1.

Raffles coach Jill Quek changed her goalkeeper in a bid to gain a foothold in the shootout, with Rebecca (#11, RI) replacing Sihui (#1, RI). In the next set of penalties, both takers, Sim Ying (#5, YJC) and Beihan (#24, RI) failed to score. Rebecca made a debut save in the shootout to restore some parity, while Beihan's nerves were clearly shaken when the YJC keeper came rushing out in a bid to divert her attention. Suhaili (#10, YJC) then walked up to take her penalty, but Rebecca pulled off yet another startling stop.

There was enormous pressure on the shoulders of the fourth penalty taker, Crystal Lee (#21, RI), as scoring would draw both teams level. The crowd was completely silent as she approached the goal confidently. The YJC keeper, perhaps buoyed by her earlier success, rushed out prematurely. Crystal used a series of left-right dribbling to fool the keeper completely, leaving herself with an open goal to tap home the equalising penalty. The 2-2 scoreline was a psychological boost for Raffles, as they had finally leveled the playing field again.

Stephanie (#7, YJC) was the fifth taker for her school, and she knew she needed to score. Rebecca (#11, RI) was on a roll though, and carried on her sparkling form by completing a 100% record of 3 saves out of 3 attempts.

The final penalty taker for RI was Vanessa (#12, RI). And she made no mistake, slaloming left and right before placing the ball neatly into the goal for the winning penalty. The final score was 3-3, (3-2 on penalties).

Raffles Institution Team:
#1 Sim Sihui
#4 Oceana Hui
# 5 Sylvia Ooi
#7 Eunice
#9 Wong Ying Qi
#11 Rebecca
#12 Vanessa
#13 Jasmine
#17 Juan Min
#21 Crystal Lee
#23 Cassandra Goh
#24 Soo Beihan
#25 Charleen Yeo
#26 Vimilyn
#27 Delise
#74 Su Lynn
#96 Wan Qi
#99 Goh Shihua

Yishun Junior College Team:
#1 Sheryl Tham
#2 Euphoria Ng
#3 Teh Ee Shan
#5 Sim Ying
#7 Stephanie Chiaw
#8 Sindy Ng
#9
#10 Suhaili
#12 Tan Ting Hui
#13 Joscelin Kee
#14 Divya
#16 Toh Jia Wen
#21 Vanessa Lim
#25
#26 Nur Syamimi Liyana
#34 Sandy Sum
#99 Joan Chen