Written By: Liang Shu-Jing Edited By: Valerie Chua & Jolene Wong Photographs By: Eusoffworks
It was finally down to the semifinals, after many long hard fought matches in the preliminaries for our Floorball boys. Despite it being a Saturday evening game, there were Eusoff supporters who had come down to specially support their fellow hall mates. As usual, the audience were in for an adrenaline pumping match! In this semi-finals, they were up against King Edward VII (KE) Hall!! Everyone was all hyped up and our boys were all confident especially after their previous spectacular games with Kent Ridge and Raffles Hall that came really close.
Right from the get-go, Jaypy scored down the line with a drag shot down the middle from mid court, setting the momentum for Eusoff. As a result, KE’s defence got dragged out wide, leaving the centre open — a golden opportunity for Jaypy. SCOREEEEE! Yun Sol soon followed in his footsteps, dragging the ball down the middle and forward with a super fast dragshot. He was a beautiful playmaker, dragging the defence out, prying on holes in the KE defence. However, once bitten twice shy, KE’s goalkeeper had learnt his lesson, and succeeded in defending the ball, preventing another goal and keeping KE in the game. Jaypy’s quick dribbles were flawless and his strategic passes put his team in a favourable position to assist. However, they were cut off by KE, as their defenders swooped in and cornered our players, forcing them to give up possession of the ball.
Hao Yuan (#71) looking to make a pass to his teammate, Jon (#91), for a chance to score
Maintaining their composure, Jerrell’s insane reflexes and driven tackles managed to shut down KE’s pressing offence, preventing the ball from even travelling past the attacking zone. Eusoff really set the standards high with their solid defence. With Jerrell attempting Zorro-esque moves, his insane freestyle plays allowed him to successfully intercept the ball in mid-air to pass it on to his team mate for a quick turnover. Together with Zorro Jerrell, Haoyuan was also always quick to divert the ball from the danger zone, with his crazy stickwork and dribbling pace, he was able to go solo on court and dribbled the full length of the court uninterrupted as he made a pass to his team mate near the attacking zone. However they were cut short, as their opponents were hot on their heels and with stick defence, Haoyuan was forced to make a mispass. Unwilling to let this slide, Josh made a mad steal, letting no chance for the KE forwards to attack, cutting short their offence. The period thus ended with a score of 1-0 to Eusoff.
In the second period, Yun Sol then made a beautiful reckless steal, dashing forward half court, catching the ball mid-air and taking the ball down with him. Eusoff passed the ball by taking advantage of the side barricade and it’s deflection to carry the ball forward. It was a strategic trick, which allowed more fluid passing of the ball, which got KE frantically trying to keep up with the unusual passes. As the ball nears the attacking zone, Edwin and Yun Sol had a great setup as the ball was passed from the far left right to the front of the goal post for Yun Sol to take a swing. Unfortunately it was stopped by the KE goalkeeper.
The game went on with passes back and forth, both sides unwilling to let up. Despite the non-stop attack from KE raining down on him, Goalkeeper Ardy displayed incredible saves, securing the ball sturdily before it enters the goal. His decisiveness and agility kept the scoreline at 1-0 to Eusoff. He was definitely not ordinary. Unvanquished.
However, a momentary slip up left our defence open and KE leveled the score with a quick layup, ending with a top corner goal! Eusoff continued to press on against a tough opponent and fought hard, attempting many shots that unfortunately did not make it in. Tough luck. Subsequently, a foul by KE earned Eusoff a timely penalty, which was taken by none other than Captain Terry Pupu. With a flick of the wrist, the ball zoomed pass the KE goalkeeper, earning Eusoff our second goal as it hits the goalpost and rebounded in. What a crazy shot!!
Jaypy (#48) driving the ball down the line as everyone looks on
The match was one hectic frenzy, as players went all out on their man-to-man defence, highlighting the intensity of the match. It was truly a frantic mess, with just seconds after getting into position, a ball was let in. And KE equalises the score to 2-2! The game remained a stalemate with both parties putting up concrete defence, forcing misspasses and turnovers to one another.
Just then, Jaypy decided that enough was enough and casually stole the ball right under KE’s nose, bringing the ball forward and giving a chance for Eusoff to score, Edwin’s swing was so powerful, his shot went a little wide, and missed the goal post narrowly by a a few millimetre. What a close call! There were many chances to attack, but both sides were just so swift and persistent, pursuing the ball relentlessly.
With the clock ticking, both halls were eager to score the goal to hopefully seal the deal. What ensued was a display of breakneck speed turns and breaks, as well as lightning pace pursuits. Everyone was desperate, desperate for the deciding goal with only a period left to go. Who will come out victorious?
Going into the last period, Lloyd won a beautiful defenceful tackle, clearing the ball. Eusoff became much more aggressive in their plays, and KE followed suit, taking shot after shot, adding pressure to goalie Ardy, but he was one huge fort, tracking down the ball relentlessly, triumphantly clearing them. Amongst the hustle, Jaypy gets knocked out in an injury while chasing the ball, but with a little rest and he bounces back into action. At the climax, as the ball was shot, the referee called a foul! It was a close goal! Captain Pupu came close with a slapstick shot, but the ball came a little short and bounced off the goal post. SO CLOSE. Another great attempt by Lloyd as he broke through the KE defence like a hurricane, wiping out any obstacles in his path. However, KE’s goalie had long anticipated it and stopped the ball in its path. Yun Sol continued with the reign of attacks as his sweet ball handling skills had his opponents fooled with a flick of his wrist back pass.
Goalie Ardy with his hawk-eye vision, guarding the goal
As the game dragged on, the intensity heightened, and so did the player’s competitiveness. Eusoff pressed on strong, a beautiful combination of passes between Captain Pupu and Jerrell secured another goal for Eusoff, leaving their poor defenders in the dust! This goal widened the lead and victory was in sight, with the score of 4-2 to Eusoff at just thirty seconds remaining. KE continued to make a valiant effort to equalise the score but it was just too late, with little time remaining and Eusoff’s defence proving to be impenetrable, defeat was inevitable for them.
All hopes of a comeback was snuffed out for KE as the match ended with a 4-2 to Eusoff! WEW! We are through to the finals!! Continue to put on a great fight as we look forward to the guys team progressing on for championship!!! Let’s get gold!!
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