Track and Field

Pubz Comm Reporter: Jason Lun Leung 

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Last Friday, the track and field events were held at the SRC, followed by the IHG closing ceremony. KE supporters went down to the field to cheer up our athletics team and for the ensuing ceremony.

At around 5pm, the first people started arriving. The athletes began preparing and the first supporters arrived. Very soon, the place was bustling with activity. Our athletics team had been training for this event under Ying Rui, but during the last weeks, many runners had to pull out because of injuries. Thus, with the team of runners stretched for numbers, our prospects looked quite grim. This was very sad, especially considering that some had been training months before in the hope of mounting a serious challenge for this event, in which, it has to be said, our hall generally performed poorly in the previous years.

Nevertheless, those who were still fit were there on the track, preparing themselves for their race, while those who had trained but would not be able to run simply joined the groups of supporters.

The 4×100m (Men), one of the most anticipated races for KE, was the second event of the day. Initially, there had been 6 guys contending for the starting places, but because of injuries, two of them pulled out. Nevertheless, we knew of their training, and were quite expectant on this one. But our injured runners were no match for those from the traditional athletics power houses, and Yong Shen, Pak Kin, Han Sheng and Joe could not bring us the medal we had hoped for despite their best efforts.

The following events were also quite dispiriting. KE never managed to really put up any challenge for any of the races. The final event of the day, the medley, ended with KE last.

It would not be fair to indiscriminately criticize the athletics team. Those who ran trained diligently for several months. Some of them ran through pain and injuries to complete the day’s events. Bad luck made it so that they were not able to compete with the other halls even after they have dedicated so much of their time to preparing for this day.

However, some things can definitely be improved.  I thought that there was no ‘squad depth:’ we had too few runners. Some of them had to pull out, leaving the remaining few to run 2, sometimes even 3 races on the same day. KE residents are not usually super- athletes. The fact that the few who do go to trainings end up running all the races by themselves will not help. Maybe if we could get more people to train, they could specialize in an event, and, hopefully, this would give us a better chance of competing.

Also, the supporters can do better. Here again, those who did come down cannot be criticized. Over the whole of IHG, KE supporters have been quite few, especially when compared to those of other halls. One good thing is that those who came down were never afraid to shout and cheer as loudly as they could. Here, the message would be to come down in large numbers, and then, just shout and cheer with everybody. Cheering is a simple thing: there will always be somebody to try something funny or start a new cheer. The hard part is getting enough people to follow. So, yeah, do come down to support next year.

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Touch Rugby (Male)

Pubz Comm Reporter: N Puneeth

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This year’s Touch Rugby for guys was held at the SRC fields on the 16th of February, a Saturday of the month. The event kicked off at about 3 PM.

Our starting line consisted of Horace Owino /H, Jialun (Vice Cap.), Wei Liang(Cap), Dominic, Kevin and Paul.

First Match: KE vs EH. 0-5

We kicked off the proceedings for the day with the first match against a very strong Eusoff team. We were completely outplayed in this match which we lost by a margin of 5 tries to nil.

Second Match: KE vs KR, 2-4

In the second match we had a better outing and we managed to score two tries courtesy of our star player H and Paul, but we conceded some easy tries, and in the end went down by a margin of 2-4.

Third Match: KE vs TH, 0-4

We were up against a very strong and competent Temasek Hall. Again, we were outplayed by a much better team and we let them score four tries. As was the case for the majority of the evening we ended up losing this match as well.

Fourth Match: KE vs SH, 1-2

We had a very good match against Sheares Hall, the defending champions. We put in a tough fight and the writer’s opinion is that we should have gotten way more out of this match.

Fifth Match: KE vs RH; 1-2

Once again a tough opponent for us to play against. We were up against the eventual champions of the IHG Touch Rugby, Raffles Hall. We managed to score a try thanks to Paul but we again let in some easy tries in the second half, and we ended up losing the match by a margin of 1-2.

On the whole, we really ended up having no points to show, but the most important thing is that our boys had fun playing.

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Volleyball Prelims (M): KE vs SH

Pubz Comm Reporter: Yu Kit Chan 

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It was a relatively quiet evening at the volleyball courts as both teams took their time warming up for the Volleyball IHG game. The sparse number of supporters and relatively relaxed atmosphere gave no indication of the exciting game that was to come.

For Volleyball, it was different from Badminton and Squash in that both sides had the opportunity to score points, regardless of the team which had the serve. It was also interesting to note that players were allowed to run out of the court to save a ball – something that probably is not very good news for teams with overly-enthusiastic supporters who tend to crowd around the courts.

The match started. The pace of the game felt somewhat cautious, with carefully timed passes and sets which were then followed by spikes. A few valiant attempts by KE players to spike the ball were thwarted by the quick reflexes of the opposing team. However, Sheares seemed to have a tendency of hitting the ball out whenever they spiked it. Following another ball which Sheares hit out, a brilliant spike by our team shot into the corner of the opposite court, out of reach of the Sheares defenders.

As the game heated up, our players had to dive twice to try to save the ball and the opposing team used double blocks to pre-empt spikes from KE. A serve by Sheares that barely grazed the sidelines of the court marked the end of the first set, 14-25 in Sheares’s favour.

The second set had a quicker pace and one could tell that the players were really going all out for each and every point. KE adopted the tactic of using double blocks and successfully managed to block a few attempted spikes by Sheares. This time, Sheares seemed to have reigned in the distance of their spikes better as they made less unforced errors while executing offensive spikes. There were several long and exciting rallies through the second set. Our boys fought hard but had to concede defeat eventually, with the score of 17-25. Nevertheless, we are still proud of our volleyball team for their tremendous efforts and applaud them for a game well played.

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Road Relay (M): 3rd Place Finish Delights Hall

Pubz Comm Reporter: Jason Lun Leung

An inspiring report, for an inspiring sport… 

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KE road relay guys had been training hard for this day. Our team was heavily reliant on seniors who had already experienced it all in the previous years. Ma Rong, Kumaran and Terence had already been part of the much celebrated KE team which had ranked third last year, and, luckily for us, were willing to give it their all for the hall again for this IHG. Kelvin, Yong Jun and Yannick had stepped up to make up the rest of the team. The KE guys assembled at the car park at around five, and went through the preparations for the actual race together. After careful consideration, the team lined up as follows: Kelvin, Ma Rong, Kumaran, Yong Jun, Terence and Yannick. 

I was watching the event from at the Central Library slope. After receiving news that the first runners had been flagged off, the anxious wait for their appearance at the bottom of the slope began. Some time passed and the first runner, from Temasek hall, appeared closely followed by the yellow of Eusoff. Then, a nervous few seconds elapsed before the next runner came into view round the bend. The red jersey of Kelvin was an extremely uplifting sight. We were all relieved and happy to see that we were still in the race and only trailing the top two by a small distance. On seeing Kelvin, the red supporters started shouting words of encouragement.

Cheering the runners is one of the ways of acknowledging how hard this particular event is on the body and mind, and, in this respect, cross campus race is slightly different from other IHG sports: you cheer every runner passing by to support him/ her through this exhausting process even if he/ she is from another hall. The sight of somebody toiling his way upslope brings about respect even if that person is from another hall. It was nice to see people lined up along the sides of the road egging every runner on, irrespective of his hall. 

It takes around 4 minutes to actually run to the start of the slope. By the time one reaches this point, one is already starting to tire, but still needs to will oneself up this punishing slope. People who have never tried this route can find it hard to visualize how hard running it in such insane timings is, but one should try to picture the lactic acid in the legs, the gasping breaths and the mental struggle required to complete this in 8 minutes or less. Road relay really is one hell of a race to run, and it truly requires all of your focus to push yourself all the way to the finish.

Thus, this year’s race was full of emotions for the KE supporters. The determined look on Kelvin’s face as he chased the two from TH and EH and the calm, assured striding of the veterans Ma Rong and Kumaran inspired respect and excitement in the KE people. As Kumaran finished his lap, we were still well placed in third position. However, Yong Jun faced strong race opponents and, despite his best efforts, KE was fifth by the end of the fourth round.

With Terence and Yannick left to catch up, the rest of the race was going to be a nerve- wracking experience. They were our best two, but some doubts still lingered over whether they could catch up with the rest. As Terence controlled his race and calmly gained ground on the fourth team, he overtook the Raffles guy and pulled KE one rank higher just before releasing Yannick as our last runner.

The last lap was quite demoralizing as far as the supporters on the Central Library slope were concerned. We saw three of the other halls pass by before Yannick appeared round the bend. He pushed himself to the limit and managed to win us the third position by clocking in at 7’ 39 (he beat his personal best by 20+ seconds), to the extreme joy of the KE supporters who had assembled at the car park.

The KE guys had, against all odds, repeated last year’s heroics and ranked third overall. Yes, we had been quite lucky. But the point remains that they trained hard enough and were there to seize whatever luck threw their way. This result would not have been possible without the excellent training sessions conducted in the months before the actual race day.

After giving their all to win this rank, the guys were understandably overjoyed, and celebrations were ecstatic. We had bettered the timings set before the race by several seconds. With sheer perseverance, we had managed to hold our ground against the other hall teams packed with IVP players. This was a truly memorable event, and, as such, I would like to congratulate the KE guys’ road relay team.   

Thanks to Kelvin, who proved a fantastic captain, motivating everybody through all the tough trainings and successfully building a nice team of runners.

Thanks also to the seniors who did not need to run, but offered their help, trained intensively and gave wise advice. I hope their passion and love for this event has inspired several others to take their lead and try their best to contribute to KE.

            Long live KE VII road relay team!!!

To finish off this report, just two quotes which I heard from people who competed in this sport where motivation plays such a strong part:

“All the way!”

“Every second counts.”

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Soccer (M) Semis: We will be back!

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.”

 

VolleyBall (F) Prelims: KE vs TH

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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Soccer Semis Result

Males: KE vs EH 0 – 4

Volleyball Prelims, 15th Feb

Males KE vs RH: 0 – 2

Females KE vs TH: 0 – 2

Soccer (M) Prelims: We turn up the style and go back to our winning ways!

Pubz Comm Reporter: Jason Lun Leung

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Photo courtesy of KE Photographers

This Tuesday, KE had its second football match against Sheares Hall. We went into the game with fierce determination, as we had lost the first match and absolutely needed to win to keep our hopes of making it through alive.

The game started quite well, given that everybody was so nervous. The two sides were quite evenly matched, with KE dominating slightly. KE managed to restrict the number of attempts from Sheares, while managing to carve most openings. The best of the bunch must have been when Hu Song hit the post after some intricate build up play. Also, Andy forced the Sheares’ keeper into a nice reflex save when he headed from close range after Hansley swung in a perfectly adjusted corner. Our only scare came when our defence stopped chasing a ball that they believed should have been called offside and thus left our keeper in a one on one. Terence rushed out and confidently dealt with the situation, thereby keeping us in the game. Overall, saying that Sheares managed to hold on to the draw and reach half time with the score still at 0-0 would be a fair assessment.

During the half-time talk, the team members were quite disappointed with not having scored, but everybody was fully aware that the game was there for the taking. If we kept on creating occasions, we were bound to score at one point. Contrary to the first game, when everybody was exhausted, the players still felt good, as, today, the pitch was much better suited to our style of play. We all cheered ourselves up, and thus, everybody came back on the pitch with renewed determination.

Luckily, the first goal came soon enough, when H broke through the opposition and beat the onrushing keeper to open the score with an audacious lob. Many supporters invaded the pitch and ran towards him in wild celebrations. First goal to KE, and we were back into the IHG competition with a shout!

Fully aware of the need to keep pushing forward and to get another goal, the KE players were determined not to get complacent. However, we were stopped in our tracks when the referee whistled for a penalty after a scuffle in our penalty box. With everybody in red protesting against the validity of this call, the Sheares penalty taker started his run and blasted his shot in. The equalizer had come against the flow of the game, and we were back to square one.

Memories of our first match, where everything had started to unravel from that point on, came back to haunt us. This time, however, we were determined to win, and took this as a wake up call. We set to the task with new vigor, chasing every ball and closing down the opposition well. With our constant pressing, it was no surprise when H gave us the advantage again. This goal relieved everybody, as we had obviously been very taken aback by the conceded penalty. From then on, we were content to play to our strengths and take control of the game. Hansley and Raymond were as energetic as ever, Kevin made several darts down the left flank, Remus held on to the ball expertly and H was giving headaches to the Sheares defence every time he ventured forward with the ball. In the end, we managed to hold on to the win quite comfortably, and when the referee whistled for the end of the match, some of us were even disappointed at not having scored more.

The most important thing is that we have reacted well to our defeat in the first match, and we have been able to show our true worth in this game. Moreover, the players really enjoyed today’s game, and the post- match atmosphere was very good, as everybody was very proud of a well- done job, which gives us a good chance of making it through.

All in all, we are very happy with this deserved victory, but we also know that we can do even better. Hopefully, we can show it in future matches but, for the time being, we will simply celebrate this victory, knowing that we gave our best and came out with the expected results.

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VolleyBall (F) Prelims: KE vs SH

Pubz Comm Reporter: Grace Chan 

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After a short break due to Chinese New Year, Inter-Hall Games are back! Our girls’ volleyball match against Sheares Hall was held in SRC on 11 February 2008. Our starting six girls were Qian Hong, Kimberly, Stella, Wei-Tse, Wan Ling and Mei Hui. Sheares is known for their prowess in volleyball and it is no wonder that our girls were a bit nervous in the 1^st set. At the score of 1-8 in Sheares’s favour, Yi Fei from our male volleyball team decided to call time out. This was to gather the girls and give them some pep talk to calm their nervousness. This strategy worked as our girls slowly gain their confidence back!

Among the few highlights from the 1^st set was a good drop ball from Wan Ling, our setter. Both Mei Hui and Qian Hong ran for the ball whenever they had the chance to do so. There was lots of good blocking from the team. In fact, Kim managed to block twice and we slowly inched our way up the scoreboard with a score of 9-14. However, Wan Ling strained her muscle. Still, with grit and determination, she continued playing on for the team. Our team attacked Sheares with spikes from Stella, Kim and Mei Hui. Their efforts did not go in vain as we ended the 1^st set with a score of 17-25.

In the 2^nd set, nervousness got the better of our girls again as we trailed Sheares with a score of 3-7. We seemed unable to get the first ball up. Nevertheless, our girls persisted. A drop ball by Kim got the crowd cheering for them and at this point, the score was 7-11 in Sheares’s favour. A time out by our team was called again when we were trailing by 9-17 to regroup the girls. With encouragement from the captain, Qian Hong, our team blazed the scoreboard with 6 consecutive points with Stella serving. This time, Sheares called for a time out as they were only leading with a score of 21-17. When the game resumed, the highlight was the brilliant save by Stella. She dived and hit the ball up and ended with bruises on her legs.  However, with Sheares getting back their confidence, we lost the 2^nd set with a score of 18-25.

Although the girls lost, the entire volleyball team made significant improvements in their game as we had spiking, blocking, rotation moves which were not much seen in last year’s match. Not to forget, Sheares is reputedly the best among the 6 halls, and last year, we actually lost to them with a score of 2-25 and 3-25. All in all, the girls deserve a pat on the back and we are excited to see what is store for the preliminary match against Temasek Hall this coming Friday!

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We want gold!

Soccer male prelims

KE vs SH: 2 -1. Good job boys.

If all goes well, we might secure a place in the semis!