By Lee Hwee Cheng
Highlights in Episode 14 of RedSportsTV.
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Clash of the titans, literally. (Photo 1 © Les Tan/Red Sports)
Home Team Academy, Wednesday, May 23, 2007 – In a rather secluded corner off Old Chua Chu Kang Road, on a pitch set against a picturesque bright blue sky and a nice cool breeze, moods around the new Home Team Academy stadium were at an all-time high as the usual Raffles and Anglo-Chinese camps fought it out yet again – both on the pitch and at the gallery.
But it was the Rafflesians who culminated the highly-anticipated affair with a prideful rendition of their school song, when the boys in green-black-white pipped Anglo-Chinese School (Independent) for the crown 13-10 with a penalty kick in sudden-death extra time.
It was all defense, scrummages and penalties in the game and any attempt by the backs at a breakaway from the defense line would quickly be foiled by a tackle. In fact, it was ACS(I) who scored the first points of the game when they were awarded a penalty kick early in the first half.
The score remained for most of the half at 0-3 as both sides struggled to keep ball possession and launch any possible attack. A bad violation from the RJC camp resulted in another penalty awarded to the boys in yellow-blue stripes, but this time, the kick failed to clear the posts.
ACS(I) had a close stab at a try when they won the ball in a line-out near the try line and charged ahead. But the Raffles defense put out all the stops and held their line. The try attempt was foiled, and in a matter of minutes, the attack had quickly swung the other way.
In the final minutes of the first half, RJC’s Shaun Yam (no.11) received a pass in the midfield, faked a pass and then with a quick change of direction, sprung forward instead and broke through the ACS(I) line. He skipped a few defenders before he was taken down – but not before passing the ball to Stuart Ho (no.13) who finished the play with a try. The conversion was not made, however, and at the end of the first half, RJC were leading 5-3.
Barely two minutes into the second half, ACS(I) twisted the situation around when they overpowered RJC’s scrum to score a try. They went on to complete the conversion and the ACS(I) camp at the gallery broke into a frenzy of cheers as ACS(I) now led by five points at 10-5.
From then on, it was all RJC on the offense. They missed another penalty kick and almost got through when a breakaway was foiled just before the try line. With adrenaline all pumped up, it was only a matter of time that RJC finally scored their next try. Missing the conversion kick again, RJC managed to level the game 10-10.
In the last few minutes of the game, both sides were awarded yet another penalty each, both of which failed to clear the posts. And at full-time, the score remained level at 10-10.
With10 minutes of sudden-death extra time, it was RJC who dominated right from the start and it was not long before another penalty was awarded to the Rafflesians. Third-time lucky, the Rafflesians finally scored on a penalty as Ong Zhe Han (no.12) sent the ball flying between the posts.
It was at this moment that the Rafflesians broke out into a frenzy, and the pitch became a sea of greens, blacks and whites as RJC ended the final with a 13-10 win.
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Ian Gan of ACS(I) tries to break free from the defense but RJC’s Kevin Neo pulls him back. (Photo 2 © Les Tan/Red Sports)
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"You’re not getting past me, dude," says ACS(I)’s Khairulanwar (14) to RJC’s Shaun Yam (11). (Photo 3 © Les Tan/Red Sports)
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Shane Gan of ACS(I) makes a pass to a teammate before he gets tackled. (Photo 4 © Les Tan/Red Sports)
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"What nice arms you have, dude." RJC player gets the ball in a line-out. (Photo 5 © Les Tan/Red Sports)
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An ACS(I) player shouts with joy at going over for a try against RJC. (Photo 6 © Liu Yongjia)
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An ACS(I) player grabs the ball and runs while RJC players try to chase him down. (Photo 7 © Wee Ban Bee)
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An ACS(I) player gets taken down by RJC defenders. (Photo 8 © Wee Ban Bee)
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Shane Gan of ACS(I) kicks the ball forward to move the attack into the RJC half. Looking on is teammate Timothy Gay. (Photo 9 © Wee Ban Bee)
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Ian Gan of ACS(I) tries to break free. (Photo 9 © Wee Ban Bee)
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ACS(I) player attempts a forward punt. (Photo 10 © Wee Ban Bee)
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"It’s a try!" ACS(I) supporters cheer as their team makes a successful try. (Photo 11 © Wee Ban Bee)
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Martin Eddie Butler of ACS(I) player makes a run with the ball but an RJC player attempts to bring him down from behind. (Photo 12 © Wee Ban Bee)
These were the boys who sweated it out on the pitch this afternoon. Good job, everyone.
Anglo-Chinese School (Independent)
1 – Eric Ong
2 – Daryl Thio
3 – Liu Yi
4 – John Yeo
5 – Leo Yi Shyen
6 – Martin Butler
7 – Timothy Gay
8 – David Cheong
9 – Shane Gan
10 – Ian Gan
11 – Tang Hon Wei
12 – Justin Boey
13 – Blandon Tan (Captain)
14 – Md Khairulanwar
15 – Shannon Tan
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John Wisnioski of RJC goes on a searing run against ACS(I). (Photo 13 © Joshua Tan)
Raffles Junior College
1 – Aaron Teo
3 – Jed Chua
5 – Kevin Neo
6 – Foo Ming Qing
7 – Thaddeus Cheng
8 – Law Yi Meng
9 – Wong Kah Wei
10 – Lee Chee Meng (Captain)
11 – Shaun Yam
12 – Ong Zhe Han
13 – Stuart Ho
14 – John Wisnioski
15 – Nazirul
18 – Iwan Kurniawan
24 – Kenny Ng
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"Shhh … don’t tell them I got the ball." Everyone seems engrossed in something else as an RJC player gets ready to run with the ball. (Photo 14 © Joshua Tan)
Editor’s note: Right, we’ve gotten all the names, but we realize we don’t quite recognize the faces and the jersey numbers don’t appear on the pictures. So, if you recognize yourselves or any of your friends in these pictures, drop us a note in the "Comments" section, and we’ll update the captions accordingly. For more action shots, visit the picture gallery. Thanks! I must say though, ACS should consider changing the colours of their numbers so that they can be seen. We were pitch side and still couldn’t see the numbers properly. Small red numbers on a blue and yellow background are impossible to see. Just a suggestion to facilitate better reporting. Thanks.
haha not this year mate…not this year
what i’m saying is how can you say acs have lost “again” when they havn’t even lost in the past.
ac, best rugby school in singapore!
LOL!!! yah lah.. ACS didnt lose…
Raffles.. didnt u know the new rules ? didnt they tell you this before the seaon started?
Rule 1) if your team has a higher score against acs, then acs didnt lose, because based on past years results, they still win !
Rule 2) if acs had a higher score than your school then your school is the one that lost again, because you cant base it on past year results.
Rule 3) If ACS had younger players and still had a lower score than the opponents, then its not a lost because based on next years team, they can still win!
SA and RJ… you guys are using the wrong tournament rulez… Get a copy of the new ACS Ver. 07LOSER.1 .. you can buy its at most ACS outlets ! 🙂
Come on ACS chaps… you lost means you lost..
sighs what a waste lah…the game really could have gone either way.
The rivalry never does end. Kudos to AC for putting up a strong fight in a div for the first time, kudos to rjc for fine results once again. to Raffles and AC camps, it could have gone either way, so just shut up and play the sport.
No acsi hasnt lost “again”. They’ve just lost this year haha. Maybe after seeing the cup inscribed ” 2007 – Raffles Junior College ” and u still say asci havent lost then its you who’s lacking common sense. cheerios
for those of you who say that acsi have lost “again”, maybe you should reconsider.
acsi have been the reigning champions of the cdivision for 10 years straight, and have won 7 out of the last 10 bdivision title.
with regards to the adivision, they only started out this year, with a team of 21 players, 7 short of a full squad. 15 of their 21 players are only 17 this year, while many of their counterparts in RJC are J2 or older.
To top this all off, 5 ex-acsi players were in the RJC starting line-up.
Tell me, has acsi lost “again”??
for all those of you who say acs have lost “again”, then i’m sorry but you’re not using any common sense.
acsi have been the reigning champions of the cdivision for 10 years straight and have won 7 out of the last 10 bdivisions.
their adivision was just started this year and had 19 players, 5 short of a full squad. 13 of those 19 players are 17 years old this year, a year or 2 younger then their counterparts in RJC.
to top it all off, 5 acsi explayers were in the RJC first-team line-up. Tell me, have acsi really lost “again”?
Fyi, almost the whole acsi team that lined up on the field against RJC were J 1s. That’s 1 whole year younger than the majority of the RJC team. Think about it. Given that they almost nearly beat a team 1 year older than them. Its not really something for the winning team to brag about now is it.
Hi Les and everyone,
Sorry, been really bz to post comments but better late than never.
To Raffles – I am a betting man, and lets just say that in the spirit of true rugby, i had more than a few beers as the wager so rewards!
All in all like it was predicted, game went to a shootout, and it went to RJ. Congrats!
On the Kevin Neo issue, I know Kevin personally, and I have to agree with RJC. While he does treasure his Saint heritage, and he will always be one in the eyes of the school and its supporters, he has moved on. He moving to RJ is more than just about rugby, to him it was challenging himself in a environment accademically as well. Not to say SAJC does not do that, but it was a decision he made himself, and while most saints were dissappointed, most of his teamates encouraged him and supported him.
School sports is tribal. Its the essence of sports. For many, its where we started our sporting lives, and where the best memories are always. To have such a medium now where that passion is shared, debated and shouted across – Les I applude you with all my heart. The local press will never have the time nor resources to do what a community of passionate ‘believers’ have done in such a short space of time.
i guess we could also send a letter to the relevant rugby schools regarding redsports.. but i think the ‘massacre’ comments made to each other would be detrimental.. 🙁
I’d say the best way would be to write an opinion to the Straits Times… or write a letter to the National Sport Coucil… whether the latter does anything about it would be the question.
I guess we can rock the boat a bit by saying how singapore school sports doesnt get enough recognition…
what say you?
Hi Neutral,
Glad that you dig the info out from Les. I know that is it not easy for him. He displays the passion and tenacity of a sportsman. I think we need to get Les’ effort recognize by the mainstream media, National Sports Council or at least by CCAB. He is doing a great job for CCAB promoting school sports. Do you know the best way to do it?
cool! its a rarity to find people like you in singapore who would work one job and pursue a passion on another…
i guess all we can do is spread the word.
i am sure this project will take off very shortly.
Thanks, Old Rugger and Neutral.
I make my living as a photographer. Have been doing this full time for three years after leaving my job with Nike. Right now, only me and Cheng are full-time on this site. I hired Cheng because she knows sports well and she’s a sports addict and she used to work with Nike. Mr Wee is like you, a Red Sports reader, who loves rugby and photography and this site allows him both pleasures. 🙂 And whether Cheng has a boyfriend, I think I let her answer for herself. haha. All I can say is, a LOT of people are asking about her and watching RedSportsTV because of her.
So when I don’t shoot for this web site, I get hired to shoot for events, both sports and non-sports. For example, I was recently hired to be the official photographer of the aviva open singapore 2007 at the singapore indoor stadium.
I’m trying to make a living out of doing this site. That’s my aim. It all depends on whether I get the traffic because once the traffic comes into the web site, that gives me a better chance of getting advertisers.
If I can’t get enough advertisers, then, like the games we play, the whistle goes, and I lose. But that’s ok. That’s life. But if I can get enough advertisers, then I can keep playing the game each year. So try lah! Don’t try, don’t know. There is no free lunch and I don’t expect any. But I’ll keep trying to keep the ball in play with good quality content. So if you guys keep reading and telling your friends about this web site, that helps me keep the score up.
Old Rugger:
I agree with you, but how we do something like that?
Having said that Les. Mind if I ask, how do you make a living? I know this website is done by yourself, cheng and U Wee.. but how do you live by each day? Do you have have another job? What does U Wee work as? How many kids he has? .. Is Cheng a student? does she have a bf ?? 🙂 *grin*
Come on, spill the juice..! 🙂
We should nominte Les for Singapore of da Year !
Hi Les,
We need to create a special award for you for doing so much for School Sports on your own accord; contributing your time, talents and treasure. You have done a wonderful job to promote school sports and the number of visitors is a testimony of your contribution.
I think to add to the past champions Les…From what i recall (i may be wrong.), RJC had a long streak winning the a div in 1981 all the way to 1988…(After losing to ACJC in 1980) . Speaking of which, when the SAJC team beat RJC in the 1989 semis; the person that kicked the winning penalty was an ex RI boy.
End of the day, all these people choose where they want to go because its up to what they want to do beyond just Rugby. I don’t even see why the press even made a big deal out of it in the past few days. It’s not as if Kevin moved from Man City to Man Utd and will be potentially be crucified (or receive death threats) by the thousands during a derby match.
The migration of players across “rival” institutions has been going on for yonks. The 1980 ACJC team won the A Div and its winning kicker was a Saints Boy. 1993, RJC won everything there was to win and their key player was the ’91 ACS ex vice captain (or captain). RJC’s winning penalty shootout in 94’s A Div final was scored by a Saints boy. ACJC’s 97 winning team’s top try scorer was an RI boy. RJC won in 98 and their captain was from ACS. In 2000, RJC won with two tries coming from an ACS boy…the list goes on.
I had some ex-schoolmates who were really fantastic players but they ended up going to non rugby playing jcs after their O’s which inadvertedly meant that Rugby loses them totally. Does that make them deserters or traitors? No. They made a choice and we have to respect that.
Let’s be grateful that these boys are still playing the sport after leaving sec school.
Cheers.
hello boys.
thanks thanks for the encouragement.
actually i was “afraid” to write a rugby report, not so much cos i don’t know the game, but cos i, er, didn’t wanna end up getting flamed by any of you boys. ha.
you boys very difficult to entertain sometimes. :/
hmm, and i’m just wondering if the “talk of redsports town” knows he’s the talk of redsports town.
i don’t know, it’s like i have veggie sticking between my teeth, and you guys are all debating whether i wanted it there in the first place, without telling me i have veggie in my teeth or asking me if i really want it there. and in the meantime, i’m smiling at everyone with veggie between my teeth.
🙂
You’re welcome, Game Time. Doing data entry with that “Record of Champions” is mind numbingly boring if I may say so. After I do one sport, I want to go outside and run 10km.
Next one I have to do is volleyball.
Glad you all enjoy the story by Cheng and my pics.
Cheers
les