By Kelvin Ang
Mark Anthony of St. Andrew’s scores a try in an Under-16 round-robin match against ACS (Barker Road). However, St. Andrew’s went down 10–12. (Photo © Eric Lim. Received via Kelvin Ang/Black Dot)
Singapore Cricket Club, Saturday, October 25, 2013 – Three age-group teams from Anglo-Chinese School (Independent) made it through to the semi-finals of the Schools and Colleges competition at the Singapore Cricket Club (SCC) International Rugby Sevens.
The Anglo-Chinese School (Barker Road) Under-16s made it into the semi-final while the Under-14 teams of St. Andrew’s Secondary and St. Joseph’s Institution (SJI) also qualified for the semi-finals. Raffles Institution also grabbed a semi-final spot in the U-19 category. In all, local school teams took seven out of the 12 semi-final spots available.
The schools will contend for the Under-14, Under-16 and Under-19 titles alongside the 20 world-class teams vying for the Ablitt Cup at the 66th edition of the SCC 7s, which runs from November 1–3.
“We bill this as one of the biggest tournaments of the year for us,” said Adrian Chong, head coach of ACS(I). “Other than nationals, this is our biggie. We always look forward to this.”
Chong’s teams have good reason to feel excited about next weekend after matching up well against a strong field on Saturday that included both local rivals and international schools such as United World College.
Both the ACS(I) Under-14 and Under-16 squads swept all three of their matches in pool play, while the Under-19s won two of three. All three teams qualified for the semi-finals, which will be played on Saturday, November 2.
The ACS(I) Under-19 team, featuring mostly 17-year-olds, will face a stiff challenge defending the Sithawalla Cup it won for the first time last year.
“Hopefully, the boys can rise up to the occasion,” Chong said. “The local schools have done well in recent years and are always in contention.”
Like ACS(I), St. Andrew’s went on an undefeated run through its Under-14 pool play and advanced to the semi-finals, where a clash with SJI looms. The Saints also emerged as the Plate champions of the Under-16 category when they beat Raffles Institution 40–7.
Raffles Institution will be represented in the semi-finals of the Under-19 competition, while its Under-14 squad captured the Plate Championship with a 35–7 victory over Overseas Family School.
ACS (Barker) renews its rivalry with ACS (I) in the first semi-final of the Under-16 bracket.
“For seven-a-side, this is the ultimate event,” said Alan Wee, head coach of St. Andrew’s. “They boys have been training hard for this, and they’re looking forward to putting on a good performance in front of a big crowd.”
As an added perk for the players, they will get to watch a scintillating showcase of attacking rugby from the world-class teams present, when the SCC 7s officially kicks off on Friday, November 1. The tournament will feature Daveta, the two-time defending champion from Fiji; the famous Auckland Rugby Union, which has produced numerous New Zealand All Blacks over the years, and highly touted newcomers, the Asia Pacific Dragons, among other star-studded teams.
Under-19s
Pool A
Tanglin Trust School 21 Anglo-Chinese School (Independent) 7
Tanglin Trust School 19 Overseas Family School 0
Tanglin Trust School 17 Catholic Junior College 0
Anglo-Chinese School (Independent) 40 Overseas Family School 0
Anglo-Chinese School (Independent) 32 Catholic Junior College 0
Overseas Family School 10 Catholic Junior College 0
Pool B
United World College Dover 19 Raffles Institution 0
United World College Dover 24 Australian International School 0
Raffles Institution 17 Australian International School 0
Under-16s
Pool A
Anglo-Chinese School (Independent) 10 United World College Dover 7
Anglo-Chinese School (Independent) 15 Raffles Institution 0
Anglo-Chinese School (Independent) Australian International School 7
United World College Dover 14 Raffles Institution 0
United World College Dover 14 Australian International School 0
Raffles Institution 21 Australian International School 0
Pool B
Tanglin Trust School 15 Anglo-Chinese School (Barker) 7
Tanglin Trust School 14 St. Andrew’s Secondary 5
Tanglin Trust School 47 Overseas Family School 0
Anglo-Chinese School (Barker) 12 St. Andrew’s Secondary 10
Anglo-Chinese School (Barker) 22 Overseas Family School 0
St. Andrew’s Secondary 17 Overseas Family School 0
Under-14s
Pool A
Anglo-Chinese School (Independent) 24 St. Joseph’s Institution 0
Anglo-Chinese School (Independent) 33 Overseas Family School 0
Anglo-Chinese School (Independent) Tanglin Trust School 0
St. Joseph’s Institution 17 Overseas Family School 7
St. Joseph’s Institution 17 Tanglin Trust School 0
Overseas Family School 10 Tanglin Trust School 5
Pool B
St. Andrew’s Secondary 24 United World College Dover 0
St. Andrew’s Secondary 17 Raffles Institution 0
St. Andrew’s Secondary 21 Australian International School 0
United World College Dover 12 Raffles Institution 0
United World College Dover 19 Australian International School 5
Raffles Institution 12 Australian International School 7
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