Story by Bryan Foo/Red Sports. Photos by Bryan Foo/Red Sports and Shenn Tan/Red Sports

Independent's Eric Chi dives to score the final try of the match. (Photo 1 © Bryan Foo/Red Sports)

Independent’s Eric Chi dives to score the final try of the match. (Photo 1 © Bryan Foo/Red Sports)

MOE (Evans), Wednesday, 5 May 2022 — Tries from Tycen Yeoh (#26) and Eric Chi (#15) helped Anglo-Chinese School (Independent) to a comfortable 76-5 aggregate win over St Andrew’s Junior College in the A Division Rugby National School Games semi-final.

ACS(I) beat the Saints 31-0 and 45-5 in two 7-a-side matches, instead of the usual 15-a-side rugby union matches. The ACSians will play Raffles Institution in the final scheduled for May 6 in a repeat of the last A Division final played in 2019, prior to the Covid-19 pandemic.

The return of NSG rugby this year brought with it some changes. Every school fields two teams of 15 registered players each. The first team plays a match of 7-minute halves against the that of the opposing team, while another set of players play against each other in the second match. The winning school team is the one with the higher aggregate points total.

Match 1

ACS(I) struck first in the first match, with Jeremiah Williams (#16) drawing in the last two players on the Saints defence, creating space for Julian Wong (#14) to make a convincing run down the left wing. Wong slid into goal and grounded the ball, opening Match 1 with its first try. The try was converted by kicker Tycen Yeoh (#26).

From there came a succession of tries by Yeoh, who exploited the gaps in Saints’ defence in open play. Yeoh took both conversions but missed one. Braydon Yu (#13) added another try to the score board for Independent with a line break from centre field.

The first match closed with a long pass by Independent’s Jeffrey Lee (#10) that found winger Ryan Lim (#11). Lim then blazed 50 metres down the left wing to ground the ball between the posts. A successful conversion by Yeoh saw the first match end 31-0 in favour of the boys in blue and gold.

Match 2

Continuing their assault into the second game, ACS(I) began the match with a team try that saw the ball passed, in contact, through the entire back line before ending up with Garcia Hans (#48). Hans carried the ball the last 10 metres, scoring the first try of Match 2. A successful conversion by kicker Bryant Sim (#6) gave Independent a 7-0 lead.

Independent’s Jacob Tan (#20) and Marcus Tay (#7) both added a try apiece, while Eric Chi (#15) eventually ended the match with three tries. Sim managed to only convert two of those four tries.

Exploiting a gap in the sliding Saint’s defence off a ruck, Sim took a cheeky pick-and-go on the open side, grounding the ball in goal. Sim further successfully converted his try.

Saints’ Ryan Sing (#24) scored a consolatory try that would be the only points which SAJC put on the board in the semi-final.

Anglo-Chinese School (Independent) vs St Andrew’s Junior College
Match 1: 31-0
Match 2: 45-5
Aggregate: 76-5

Scorers

Match 1
Anglo-Chinese School (Independent) (Sub Team 1)
Julian Wong (#14) – 1 try
Tycen Yeoh (#26) – 2 tries, 3 conversions
Braydon Yu (#13) – 1 try
Ryan Lim (#11) – 1 try

Match 2
Anglo-Chinese School (Independent) (Sub Team 2)
Garcia Hans (#48) – 1 try
Jacob Tan (#20) – 1 try
Marcus Tay (#7) – 1 try
Eric Chi (#15) – 3 tries
Bryant Sim (#6) – 1 try, 4 conversions

St Andrew’s Junior College (Sub Team 2)
Ryan Sing (#24) – 1 try

Anglo-Chinese School (Independent) (Sub Team 1) Roster
Jin Sunghoon (#30), Julian Wong Wei Yang (#14), Jeremiah Zhi Xiang Williams (#16), Jeffrey Lee Yuchen (#10), Tycen Yeoh Yong Jun (#26), Braydon Yu Wei Kiat (#13), Ryan Lim (#11), Shane Declan Choong Ken Rui (#28), Ethan Ang Ee Chong (#4), Parkhi Alakh Ajey (#21), Goh Min Xuan, Xavier (#23), Nicholas Leong Zhong An (#38)

St Andrew’s Junior College (Sub Team 1) Roster
Russell Robert Bock (#3), Yim Wei Jei Dylan (#12), Ethan Chen Wei Ting (#16), Lim Tze Yiong Elijah (#28), Darius Ang Jing Kai (#11), Trever Sim Pin Yi (#27), Ian Lee Khang (#7), Jeremy Tan Jia Le (#6), Marcus Ng Huan Xuan (#23), Zachary Ashok Thiruman (#18)

Anglo-Chinese School (Independent) (Sub Team 2) Roster
James Elliot Toh Zhiheng (#17), Garcia Hans (#48), Iglesias Tan (#1), Sim Xu Hui Bryant (#6), Marcus Tay Tse En (#7), Eric Chi Yongjia (#15), Jacob Tan Kejie (#20), Chong Kah Han Gareth (#33), Bryan Zhang Junxiang (#34), Jeremy Kek Jianbin (#24), Lim Jinyi (#2), Mok Joon Loong Gareth (#12)

St Andrew’s Junior College (Sub Team 2) Roster
Law Jun Wei (#19), Dylan Loh Kai Yao (#22), Jovan Lim Jun Feng (#29), Jadden Ng Jie Reen (#9), Low Zong Xuan (#21), Khuan Yee Ray Jared (#8), Ang Zheng Zhe Roan (#5), Md Aiman Bin Bakri (#13), Dela Serna Kamil Yuri Delizo (#20), Chia Yong Sing Joshua Caleb (#4), Kendrick Juay (#17), Ryan Sing Aik Yong (#24)

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