Pubz Comm Reporter: Jason Lun Leung

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This football semi-final against Eusoff hallwas always going to be a hard match for the KE guys. Eusoff had scored 3 past KR and then thrashed RH 8- 0 during their qualifying matches, and was looking quite unstoppable. Nevertheless, KE had recovered well after a shaky start to this year’s tournament, and we were still fancying our chances.

However, we were on the defensive from the start of the game. The Eusoff players were very athletic, technically abled and played well as a team. In spite of that, KE managed to hold on by sheer determination and grit. Still, it was quite natural for them when they opened the scoring with their player blasting his shot in from a tight angle. The goal itself may have come as a surprise, but with the way Eusoff dominated the play, they were bound to score, one way or another.

The red supporters down the side were fully aware of the grim situation the KE boys were in, but tried to cheer them into action. Our Hall Master and GH block’s RF Jenson Goh even came down, with Jenson particularly vocal. However, all of them were silenced when we conceded a penalty. Terence, who has proved extremely dependable as a goalkeeper during the whole tournament, was unable to keep the shot out. 2- 0 to Eusoff, and this was the score at half-time.

The half-time talk was quite grim. Everybody remarked how we never got going, and absolutely needed to get our act together. The players all agreed to give it another try, and walked onto the pitch determined to give a better account of KEVIIan soccer. It has to be said that some improvement was noted; especially when our midfield composed of Andy, Hansley and Raymond clicked. Although they never managed to fully impose themselves as in the previous match, they made a significant improvement over the first half. But we still let ourselves down, and conceded two other goals. The final score was 4- 0. Even then, we have to give credit to some of the players who never gave up.

Kevin gave his all, and was all over the place, attacking in search of a goal even during the dying moments of the match. Andy tested the keeper with the last shot of the game. Raymond ran tirelessly and chased every ball. H got close to a lob, which could well have changed the whole match had it gone in. Terence was extraordinary and got us out of jail on several occasions.

Nevertheless, we still lost by 4 goals in the end. Whatever is said now is not going to change the fact that we lost our title. Yet, we have to admit that the Eusoff team outplayed us, and be gracious in defeat.

Some of the players have already moved on, and are already thinking of coming back again next year. This defeat hurts, but we are not looking for excuses. We will just get up, and have another go next year. For now we wish the Eusoff team all the best, but we can already send a warning that we are focused on coming back as a stronger team. KE soccer guys may have been eliminated, but we are not wallowing in self- pity and regret. We are already mounting next year’s challenge for the IHG soccer.

Now, that’s the spirit of champions! Keep it up boys!

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“Success is the ability to go from one failure to another without any loss of enthusiasm.”

Pubz Comm Reporter: Grace Chan 

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               The girls were excited as they had a chance to beat Temasek Hall (TH) to advance into the semi-finals as we only lost narrowly to Sheares Hall on Monday evening. However, TH proved to be the better team when they defeated Sheares in the preliminary rounds. With that, KE7 girls knew they had to watch out for TH this evening.

                The starting six for the match against TH were Qian Hong, Kim, Stella, Wan Ling, Mei Hui and Hui Ann. TH did not waste any time in getting their first point. TH is definitely the better team compared to Sheares and our girls had to make an effort in getting the first point. With the score in TH’s favour, our team called for time-out to regroup the girls and to calm down their nerves. This worked as we slowly inched up the scoreboard. Nevertheless, it was not enough as we ourselves were making a lot of mistakes which gave TH an advantage. Qian Hong and Stella each made a gallant save for the ball by running out of the court. Their efforts were rewarded when we managed to clinch a point after volleying the ball over the net. Sadly, we lost the 1^st set by 11-25.

In the 2^nd set, the girls were more nervous as they knew they either will make it or break it. As such, TH slowly began to gain points. Most of our services did not get over the net and we failed to get the first ball up. One could see the tension on Mei Hui’s face when it was her turn to serve. With a deep breath, she threw the ball up and hit it and it was over the net! The look of relief on her face said it all. During the 2^nd set, Qian Hong was substituted by Michelle for a while. TH spikes proved to be too much for the girls as we found it hard to retrieve them. With that, we lost the 2^nd set by 6-25.

It was understandable that the girls were disappointed with the loss but through it all, they managed to form a bond among themselves. Qian Hong, the captain for the female volleyball team would like to express her gratitude to the girls for coming down for training and being a part of this year’s volleyball team. This year’s line and formation was definitely better than last year’s and one can only hope for more improvement next year. KE7 whoosh!

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