Netball Nations Cup: Singapore go down 42-51 to Fiji in final

Story by Koh Yizhe/Red Sports. Photos by Vanessa Lim and Lim Weixiang/Red Sports

Toa Payoh Stadium, Sunday, December 11, 2011 – Singapore fell to Fiji for the third time in as many matches this year when they lost 42-51 in the final of the 2011 Nations Cup.

Singapore had lost to Fiji at the World Netball Championship in July and failed to defeat the Pacific nation on Thursday in the group stages, so they came into the final hoping to exact some sort of revenge.

However, just like in the match on Thursday, the host nation put in a dismal second quarter performance and allowed their opponents to build an insurmountable lead. Although they won the third quarter, it was not enough to prevent the highly-ranked country from taking the gold.

“We are disappointed because we didn’t expect to lose this match,” said veteran defender Premila Hirubalan. “When we started the fourth, we really wanted to win it, but still, I think we all played well.”

Singapore started with a team that worked well throughout the tournament, with co-captains Jean Ng and Micky Lin defending the goal while depending on Cassandra Soh and Chen Huifen to get the goals.

And score goals they did.

Soh, in particular, was perfect from within the goal circle in the initial minutes as she put Singapore ahead with the opening centre pass before stinking her next six shots.

However, Fiji themselves were just as accurate at the other end and both teams were neck-and-neck after seven minutes on the clock. It was only towards the end of the quarter that Singapore’s passes started to go astray which allowed the visitors to take a slender 14-11 lead into the second period.

Singapore sprinted to a 4-1 run to tie the game at 15-15, but that only proved to be the spark Fiji needed to edge ahead. Going on a 10-1 run of their own, Fiji extended their lead to double digits thanks to their athletic pass-and-move game that Singapore’s defence had trouble containing.

In contrast, the home side struggled with their shots in the second 15 minutes. A dismal 54% shooting from their attackers and multiple turnovers allowed their opponents to win the second quarter 14-7 and bring a 28-18 lead into the half-time break.

In the third quarter, Singapore brought on Charmaine Soh while veteran Charlene Porima came in at wing defence to slow down Fiji’s rampage. The changes worked brilliantly with Soh doing particularly well. She made all of her attempts at goal and together with Chen, increased Singapore’s goal shooting percentage to 93%.

While both teams matched each other goal for goal, Singapore managed to edge ahead in the last 30 seconds, converting a turnover to take the third quarter 13-10 and reducing the deficit to seven points at 31-38.

Backed by the cheers of the home crowd, Singapore came out with a sense of urgency in the final quarter. However, it was their Fijian opponents that remained calm to extend the lead back to 10 points. A brief moment when Singapore closed in to within seven got supporters excited, but the seventh best team in the world hung on for their maiden Nations Cup title.

“We knew Singapore wouldn’t be easy,” said Fiji head coach Una Rokoura. “It was an awesome game but we took our opportunity in the second quarter when Singapore seem to slacken off a bit. It was our best quarter that allowed us to take the lead. We should like to thank Singapore for giving us a very good game.”

Despite the defeat, Singapore coach Kate Carpenter felt that her side has improved from the previous loss against Fiji.

“It was a good final,” commented the New Zealander. “Fiji are a strong opponent and a good international side. We were just not good enough against them.”

“Today, we played better (than we did on Thursday) and looked more organised. There was also more flow up the court and we tried different combinations, but Fiji were just too good. I think we could have capitalised more on the turnovers we created. Overall, it was a good team effort.”

Please go to the next page for more photos