Singapore are Asian champs once again after they beat Sri Lanka in the final by one goal. (Photo courtesy of Netball Singapore)
Colombo, Sri Lanka, Friday, August 31, 2012 — In a game between two undefeated teams, it was Singapore that eventually edged out defending champions Sri Lanka 48-47 to claim the Asian Netball Championship crown.
Singapore had beaten Hong Kong 53-27 to qualify for the final while Sri Lanka saw off Malaysia 67-58 in the other semi-final. Singapore last won the Asian Netball Championship in 2005 when the event was held in Singapore. Then, Singapore beat Malaysia 53-39 in the final.
Sri Lanka settled faster and led 5-2 in the early going. However, Singapore managed to catch up and led 13-12 after the first quarter.
The second quarter was evenly matched with Singapore taking a slim one-goal 26-25 lead into half time.
It was still a close affair by the end of the third quarter, with the game tied at 36-36.
Wth 24 seconds to go in the fourth quarter, Singapore led 48-47. Singapore had the centre pass and held on to win.
National coach, Kate Carpenter who was also the coach for the 2005 Asian Champs team, said: “It was such a hard fought match where every opportunity counted and I’m really proud of the players’ achievement and I think it was one of the best matches that I’ve been involved in for Singapore.”
Jessica Tan, newly elected President of Netball Singapore and Member of Parliament for East Coast GRC, was delighted with the win.
“First of all, I would like to congratulate our team for their success in the Asian Netball Championship. Well done girls for bringing the title back to Singapore! I am very proud of our team and I’m pleased that all their hard work and training have paid off.”
This capped off a week of good news for Singapore as Singapore has also recently won the bid to host the 9th Asian Netball Championship in 2014. The event will also be the qualifier for the 2015 World Netball Championships which will be held in Sydney, Australia. The top 2 teams from the Asian Championship will qualify for the World Championship. Netball Singapore plans to hold this regional marquee event at the Singapore Sports Hub multi-purpose indoor arena (MPIA) which is due for completion in March 2014.
Tan said, looking ahead to the 2014 event: “Now that we are the Asian champions, the pressure will be on us in retaining the title on our home ground come 2014. Besides our aim in organising a world-class event, we will also want to prepare our team for the competition and put on a strong performance for our fans.”
The next competition on the Singapore national team’s plate is the Netball Nations Cup in December. The annual event will be held at the Toa Payoh Sports Hall from 2nd to 8th December. The event will be a good chance for the younger players to shine as the Singapore team looks to rebuild for the 2014 Asian Championship.
In the 3rd and 4th Placing match, Malaysia beat Hong Kong by 56-27 to claim third.
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