Written by: Irving Alexander de Boer
Edited by: Angelina Grace Pandiman
Photos by: EusoffWorks
The long anticipated IHG 21/22 season kicked off early on Monday morning with EH Takraw’s preliminary round against Raffles Hall. Despite the challenges posed by the pesky coronavirus, the day had finally come for the season to get under way. With a stacked team and high spirits, the EH Takraw team sought to start off their season on a high note.
1st Regu: Ethan, Dylan, CJ/Amirul (W/W/W)
After warming up and a quick team huddle, the season was underway with the first Regu fielding Ethan, Dylan, and CJ, as well as Amirul who came on later as a substitute. Getting off to a strong start, they won the first two sets 15-7, 15-9. Raffles managed to muster some semblance of fighting spirit and clawed back one set, piping our boys 10-15. Any hope of a comeback was soon quelled as our boys wrapped up the third set with an easy 15-7, winning 3-1. This quickly set the tone for the day.
Ethan with a strong header!
2nd Regu: Brandon/Joel, Haiqal, Ryan (W/W/W)
The players of the second regu soon took to the courts, with Takraw captain Brandon featuring. Despite being decidedly hammered prior, Raffles Hall began to mount a stiffer challenge towards our players (finally showing up), pushing them hard and not letting the game go as easily. However, after a nail biting half an hour of intense volleys, agile athleticism and solid headers, our players prevailed, even coming back from being 4 points down in their second set. Yet despite the deficit, they resiliently clawed back the lead and pulled ahead. The final score for the second regu ended off with 15-13, 15-11 and 17-15 with all sets going to Eusoff’s Takraw team, ending in a resounding win of 3-0.
Victory cheers after scoring!
3rd Regu: Keefe/Wayne, Shawn, Said (W/W/W)
With two regus won, victory was well within grasp. The 3rd regu made quick work in the first 2 sets, smashing Raffles Hall with a 15-6 first set followed by 15-5. Despite a commendable effort to put up one last fight, the RH team could not stop our EH Takraw team. Every point was fought tooth and nail, with the points being frequently traded between the sides. Eventually fell with the final score being 17-15 going to the EH, resulting in yet another clean sweep of 3-0.
Nothing but focus from our regu 3 players
Despite the absence of supporters, the verbal exhortations of “SIIUUUUU” rang audibly through the MPSH constantly, with Penaldo’s trademark celebration inspiring our players to similar athleticism and sporting excellence. The lack of physical supporters did little to dampen the spirits of the players, with people teeming in to give support virtually.
Starting off the first game of the IHG Season with a resounding win is the perfect way to start off the IHG 21/22 season. The EH Takraw team will next face our friendly neighbors from Temasek Hall on Thursday where they will seek to replicate their dominant performance and destroy their opponents once again. If today’s performance is any indicator, they will go far In their IHG season and we can look forward to seeing them in both the semis and even the finals of this IHG season. Let's continue to give them our utmost support in their bid to win this year’s IHG!
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