Catholic High (red) beat Northbrooks 3-2 to win their first ever National C Division Floorball Championship. (Photo 1 © Les Tan/Red Sports)
Yishun Sports Hall, Wednesday, August 31, 2016 — Catholic High defeated Northbrooks Secondary 3-2 to win their first ever National C Division Boys Floorball Championship.
When the two teams last met in Round 1, Northbrooks had won 5-2. Northbrooks went the entire season undefeated before enduring their first defeat in the final.
To qualify for the final, Catholic High had beaten St. Gabriel’s Secondary 9-6 in one semi-final while Northbrooks saw off defending champions Victoria School 6-3 in the other.
Suraf Selvan (#6) opened the scoring in the 8th minute to give Northbrooks a 1-0 lead but the reply was immediate when Keanen Poon (#24) equalised in the next minute. However, it was Northbrooks who would walk off with a 2-1 lead at the end of the 1st period when Ryan Qusyairy (#24) scored in the 13th minute.
The two teams were scoreless in the second period as they cancelled each other out. Catholic High eventually got the equaliser they were looking for early in the 3rd period through Alvan Chan (#10) with just over a minute played.
Then came a power play opportunity for Northbrooks at the 8:25 mark when Catholic High had one player sent to the sin bin for two minutes. However, Northbrooks could not use their one-man advantage to score.
Then came the go-ahead and eventual winning goal with 4:37 left on the clock when Austin Teo (#17) saw his mid-court slap shot squirm under goalkeeper Na’im (#1) and hit the back of the net.
Catholic High finished the season with an 11-1 win-loss record, scoring 112 goals while conceding 42.
Alvan Chan (#10), captain of Catholic High, said, “What stood out for me about the final is definitely the winning goal. We were behind in the first period before we finally came back in the third period. So that was an important goal.”
On trailing 1-2 after the first period, Alvan said, “Some of us were a bit sad but most of us were determined to fight back.”
Keanan Poon (#24), vice-captain of Catholic High, said, “The Victoria match in Round 2 was memorable. Last year we didn’t manage to get out of Round 1, and we lost to VS. This year, we managed to beat Victoria (7-6). It was a tough match, but we managed to get through.”
Catholic High’s sole loss to Northbrooks in Round 1 was a low point in the season.
“Disappointed. Very angry with ourselves that we could not focus and win the game. And we played very badly overall,” said Keanan, recalling that loss. “After that we reflected, tried to work hard in our training to get to this place.”
Added Alvan, “[The game against Northbrooks] was our last game for Round 1. Although we were already through to Round 2, we wanted to win the game to top the table to have a better chance. I think it was the nerves because we knew Northbrooks were not going to be easy opponents.”
Northbrooks amassed an 11-1 win-loss record, scoring 89 goals and conceding just 27.
When asked how he felt about Northbrooks making their first ever final appearance, captain Na’im (#1), said, “I feel happy, but sad that we lost to Catholic High. Next year, we are going to train hard.”
On the best moment of the season for his team, Na’im said, “It was the semi-finals, when we beat Victoria 6-3 to qualify for the final.”
Victoria School beat St. Gabriel’s 9-1 to finish third.
Road to Final
Semi-Finals
Catholic High 9 St. Gabriel’s 6
Northbrooks 6 Victoria School 3
Round 2
Catholic High 11 Shuqun 1
Catholic High 19 Springfield 5
Catholic High 9 Coral 3
Catholic High 7 Victoria School 6
Catholic High 5 Orchid Park 4
Northbrooks 6 Bedok South 3
Northbrooks 2 St. Gabriel’s 1
Northbrooks 5 Loyang 0
Northbrooks 16 Canberra 2
Northbrooks9 Hua Yi 5
Round 1
Catholic High 10 Swiss Cottage 1
Catholic High 17 East Spring 2
Catholic High 13 East View 1
Catholic High 7 Hillgrove 6
Northbrooks 6 East View 1
Northbrooks 11 East Spring 2
Northbrooks 11 Hillgrove 3
Northbrooks 10 Swiss Cottage 2
Northbrooks 5 Catholic High 2
Scorers
Catholic High
Keanen Poon (#24) – 1 goal
Alvan Chan (#10) – 1 goal
Austin Teo (#17) – 1 goal
Northbrooks
Suraf Selvan (#6) – 1 goal
Ryan Qusyairy (#24) – 1 goal
Score by Period
Catholic High vs Northbrooks
1st Period: 1-2
2nd Period: 1-2 (0-0)
3rd Period: 3-2 (2-0)
Catholic High Roster
Rannon Peh (#7), Alvan Chan (#10), Clement Hooi (#11), Pek Raymin (#13), Edgar Kwa (#14), Yun Wei Zhang (#16), Austin Teo (#17), Choo Keat Keong (#21), Sue Zheng Long (#23), Keanen Poon (#24), Teo Ming Fu (#35), Clarence Chua (#57), Gabriel Cheong (#69), Jason Zhao (#77), Alexander Lim (#81), Clint Tan (#88)
Northbrooks Roster
Na’im (#1), Aniq Anaqi Rizq (#2), Aloysius Chua (#3), Ariff (#4), Suraf Selvan (#6), Syaabani (#23), Ryan Qusyairy (#24), Abdul Hafiz (#25), Aaron Amante (#35), Nur Azri (#37), Jackson Yeo (#38), Irsahdul Anam (#41), Nor Aidil (#80), Sin Ka Jun (#86), Tay Geok Fei (#96)
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