Singapore narrowly defeat Malaysia 39-33 in Netball Nations Cup

Story by REDintern Ng Enna/Red Sports. Pictures by REDintern Thomas Tan and Xaveria Mo/Red Sports.

Toa Payoh Sports Hall, Sunday, December 7, 2009 - Singapore narrowly defeated arch-rivals Malaysia with a score of 39-33 in their second game at the Netball Nations Cup. The hosts had earlier lost to Canada in their opening match.

Malaysia took two opening goals but Singapore fought back tenaciously with a strong defence and agile play. The host snatched took the lead at the eighth minute but Malaysia scored an equaliser to tie the game at 7-7 with less than five minutes remaining. Malaysia scored another goal to break the tie but their lead was short-lived as Singapore scored two more goals to end the first quarter leading 9-8.

The second quarter also proved to be as intense, with the Malaysian team starting strongly. However, it only motivated the Singapore players to fight hard to turn over the scores. After the lead changed hands several times, both teams went into the third quarter tied neck and neck at 10 goals each.

The Singapore team had a change of players for the third quarter, and Malaysia definitely tried to up their defence against Singapore. Singapore made more calculated passes and set the flow of the game, with Rachel Yim (GS) and Tan Hui Yan (GS) working closely to score for their team with an 80% accuracy rate. Singapore eventually took the third quarter with a score of 10-7, extending their lead over their opponents.

In the final quarter, Singapore defended strongly in Malaysia’s goal circle to prevent them from passing or scoring. Nonetheless, Malaysia's Noor Atikah Mat Salleh (GS) performed adequately under the pressure and managed to score amid strong defending.

Singapore interrupted the Malaysia's flow of play by intercepting their passes and using the turnovers to their advantage to score. Malaysia scored a goal just before the final buzzer, but it was Singapore that emerged victorious with this six-goal win against their opponent.

"It was a good effort and everyone wanted to win," commented Jean Ng, the captain of the Singapore team, on her team's performance. “We were familiar with the Malaysian team because we played against them before. We know their playing style better so we could adapt and perform," explained Jean.

"It was a very good match and both teams fought till the end. We made mistakes and the Singapore team made use of their chances to score and eventually win," said Malaysia’s coach Aminah Asaari.

Singapore last played Malaysia during the Asian Netball Championships in June this year and won with a score of 51-39.

Quarter by Quarter Scores:
Singapore VS Malaysia
1st: 9-8
2nd: 10-10
3rd: 10-7
4th: 10-8