Story by REDinterns Renuka Singh and Wong Hong Yong. Pictures by Renuka Singh.

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The River Valley GS goes for goal. (Photo 1 © Renuka Singh/Red Sports)

Kallang Netball Centre, Monday, June 23, 2008 – River Valley High beat Kuo Chuan Presbyterian 35-17 last week in an Under-14 Netball League game to notch their first win in the division.

River Valley opened the match by scoring the first few goals and it took quite some time for Kuo Chuan to reply with a goal. River Valley, showing good understanding between the players, were playing well both in attack and defence. On the other hand, Kuo Chuan struggled to keep possession of the ball, causing much frustration to their seniors. The only bright spot for Kuo Chuan was their WD who stood out with a few interceptions. By the end of the first quarter, Kuo Chuan were down 3-16.

The intensity of the game rose in the second quarter when Kuo Chuan started to improve defensively. Kuo Chuan managed five goals but River Valley were still proving too strong and impressive finishing by their GS gave them a 28-8 lead at the end of the second.

The Kuo Chuan defence played well in the fourth with impressive interceptions by their GK. They shut down the River Valley offence, limiting them to only three goals while managing five of their own to trail 13-31.

In the fourth quarter, Kuo Chuan outshone River Valley with better passing and attacking but they did not translate that into many goals managing only to score four goals. to go down 17-35 for their second loss in the division. They have no wins so far.

Despite River Valley’s win, their coach felt that there was room for more improvement. “They need to improve on their defence,” He said.

“It is our first time playing a match so we felt nervous. Moreover, I was not following the attacker,” said the Kuo Chuan GK after the game. She put down their quarter-by-quarter improvement to her seniors. “Our seniors helped us a lot. During the breaks they would correct us by telling us our mistakes and we tried not to repeat the same mistakes in the next quarter.”

N.B. The competition is also known as the “Energizer Netball League”.

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The Kuo Chuan GK and the River Valley GS go for the ball. (Photo 2 © Renuka Singh/Red Sports)
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The River Valley C looks for an open teammate. (Photo 3 © Renuka Singh/Red Sports)
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The Kuo Chuan WA tries to pass despite the attention of the River Valley WD. (Photo 3 © Renuka Singh/Red Sports)
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The River Valley GS takes aim. (Photo 4 © Renuka Singh/Red Sports)