Story by REDintern Iman Hashim. Photos by Clara Yuan/Red Sports
Players contest for possession of the ball. (Photo 1 © Clara Yuan/Red Sports)
Hougang Sports Hall, Monday, February 1, 2016 — A brave showing by St. Margaret’s Secondary proved futile as 2015’s 2nd runners-up Bukit Merah Secondary managed to grind out an 8-4 win in the end. Both teams are in Group I of the National B Division Girls’ Floorball Championship.
This was Bukit Merah’s first match of the season while it was St. Margaret’s first loss after thumping Bishan Park 10–1 in their opening match.
In the first period, St. Margaret’s showed their attacking potential as they threatened with attack after attack. Alas, Bukit Merah’s goalkeeper was equal to the task as her assured performance ensured St. Margaret’s would not break the deadlock.
Seven minutes to the end of Period 1, St. Margaret’s Renita Chong (#10) hit a long-range shot which finally beat the Bukit Merah goalkeeper but unfortunately struck the crossbar instead.
Luck was not on St. Margaret’s side as Bukit Merah opened the scoring one minute later. Edelyn Grace Embile (#20) crossed the ball low from the right, which was tapped into the net by eventual four-goal hero Berdan Jerylou Concepcion (#21).
St. Margaret’s, though, did not break their stride. Right from the beginning of the second period, they equalised through Nur Amalina (#15), who found herself in a one-on-one situation with the goalkeeper and hit the ball into the roof of the net.
Barely three minutes later, they took a 2–1 lead thanks to Nurliza Bte Sani (#4). Some nifty stickwork saw her turn past a Bukit Merah player on the right side of the court, and then send a long-range effort which swerved in.
It looked as though St. Margaret’s might cause an upset as they held the 2–1 lead for much of the second period. However, in the last five minutes of the period, Bukit Merah equalised and added another in quick succession to lead 3–2 through Agnes Loh (#12) and Tan Wan Ni (#10).
St. Margaret’s refused to give up the fight as they equalised three minutes into the final period through Adriana Ng Elynn (#5) after a scramble near the goal. Bukit Merah snatched the lead again a minute later, after Berdan (#21) found herself unmarked and coolly slotted the ball into the net.
Tired legs and a few lapses of concentration perhaps proved the downfall for St. Margaret’s as Bukit Merah began to pull away thereafter, scoring four more with only a single reply from St Margaret’s.
Bukit Merah’s seventh goal, for instance, was the result of a St. Margaret’s defensive mix-up, which allowed Berdan (#21) to go round the goalposts and slide the ball in.
The icing on the cake was Berdan’s fourth goal in the game, where she showed immense composure to place the ball into the top corner after a one-on-one situation with the goalkeeper.
On her team’s mentality going into the game, Bukit Merah captain Nureen Farishah (#11) commented, “We believe that we could do it, so we just wanted to play hard and have the desire to win.”
On her team’s chances of progressing far in the competition this year, she added, “We will try our best to top the group. The most important thing is not to be over-complacent and over-confident.”
The next round of matches for both teams would be held on Wednesday, February 10, at St Gabriel’s Secondary School. Bukit Merah will face River Valley High School while St Margaret’s will meet Holy Innocents’ High School.
Score By Period
Bukit Merah vs St Margaret’s
1st Period: 1-0
2nd Period: 2-2 (3-2)
3rd Period: 5-2 (8-4)
Top Scorers
Bukit Merah
Berdan Jerylou Concepcion (#21) — 4 goals
SMSS
Nur Amalina (#15) — 2 goals
Bukit Merah Roster
Abygael Attirmidzi Koh (#7), Agnes Loh (#12), Angel Thong (#3), Berdan Jerylou Concepcion (#21), Cheryl Tan (#28), Edelyn Grace Embile (#20), Fatin Athirah (#5), Jessica Chua (#16), Lim Hui Min (#17), Nureen Farishah (#11), Nurul Shahirah (#6), Nurul Syafiqah (#24), Siti Mariam (#8), Tan Wan Ni (#10)
SMSS Roster
Adriana Ng Elynn (#5), Ain Shahriza (#21), Ashmita G (#1), Caluza Denise Jazmine Carnate (#9), Charmaine Chan Yue (#7), Renita Chong (#10), Debi Ashley Winings (#17), Lua Jin Wen (#19), Nur Amalina (#15), Nur Arinah (#22), Nur Hidayah (#18), Nurliza (#4), Ruth Tan (#11), Shruti Kannan (#12), Syazwani Bte Yusoff (#16), Lois Tan (#14)
More photos next page
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