By Elvin Liang
Chen Huifen of Singapore grabs the pass against Papua New Guinea. Singapore won 44–43 for their second straight win. (Photo 1 courtesy of Netball Singapore)
Toa Payoh Sports Hall, Monday, December 2, 2013 – The Singapore netball team skipped for joy as the crowds cheered ecstatically when the whistle went on their narrow 44–43 win over Papua New Guinea at the 8th Nations Cup. Papua New Guinea were winners of the cup in 2008. This was the second victory in a row for Singapore after their opening win over the Republic of Ireland.
The opening quarter saw Singapore’s Goal Shooter (GS) Yu Meiling and Goal Attack (GA) Chen Huifen facing strong pressure from Papua New Guinea’s Goal Defence (GD) Kilala Owen and Goal Keeper (GK) Lua Rikis. Papua New Guinea led 13–12 at the end of the first quarter.
In the second quarter, Singapore picked up steam with GD Olivia Flanagan and Centre (C) Nurul Baizura effectively feeding opportunities to Yu Meiling to put Singapore ahead by two points (19–17) at 7:23 on the clock.
Flanagan also made a stunning save at 5:20 to deprive Papua New Guinea’s GS Tiata Baldwin a solid chance to equalise. However, Papua New Guinea matched Singapore closely in speed and eventually chased up in the last five minutes of the second quarter, with Wing Defence (WD) Kimberly Alex actively ensuring no pass was wasted. The first half ended with Meiling tying it up 23–23.
The speed of the game peaked in the third quarter with GD Nur Aqilah effectively starving Papua New Guinea of opportunities to score. More optimism was felt at 7:55, when Huifen calmly gave Singapore a two-point lead at 30–28.
A high point came at 6:10, where the supporters went ballistic with thunderous cheers when Meiling widened the Singapore lead to three points. However, the joy was short-lived as a break was called in the last two minutes of the third quarter, which broke the Singapore momentum and Papua New Guinea were able to end the third quarter tied 35–35.
The final quarter was the most intense as pressure was felt by both sides. With 2:13 left on the clock, Meiling managed to extend Singapore’s lead to two points at 44–42. Papua New Guinea drew to within a point but Singapore held on to win 44–43.
Flanagan was overwhelmed with the support. She said, “I am loving every minute of it. The crowd were amazing when we scored and they really spurred us on to get another one. The defence worked really well with the attack today. We were less nervous and it really flowed much easier and we could pick up the balls and make those turnovers.”
Coach Ruth Aitken feels the team are on track. She said, “It was so intense, right from the first whistle. I am so proud of my girls. That is what we hoped for and I am really pleased that we took a big step up from what we did yesterday. They played the way that they can and defensively we got some great turnovers.”
Shooting Statistics for Singapore
Chen Huifen: 10/17 (59%)
Yu Meiling: 34/40 (85%)
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