Written By: Jonathan Go Edited By: Valerie Chua & Jolene Wong Photographs By: Eusoffworks
To say that the EH Trug Boys IHG campaign was a success would be an understatement. Their journey for this year’s competition was nothing short of an incredibly well-prepared and deserved W. That’s a capital W mind you. BIG. WIN. They trained hard, worked together cohesively, communicated effectively and played to win every second they were on the field, regardless of opponent or scoreline. Their attitudes were nothing but those of winning mentalities, which they proudly displayed right from the beginning, against RH.
EH boys absolutely battered RH 13-0. Yeah. 13-0. Read it again. You didn’t read it wrong. President Matt led by example and opened the scoring 1-0 by faking a pass, confusing 2 RH defenders in the process and ending his solo move in a try. From then on it was as if a switch had been flicked and the boys steadily began to function as if on autopilot. They moved like water, as the legend Bruce Lee would say. They were adaptive, fluid, in control but yet, they were also aggressive and brutally decisive in their plays, executing them with a precision unprecedented of other halls. In the blink of an eye, there was one, two, three more tries. Suddenly the score was 4-0 and no one had any idea how. The players on the field had ascended to a heightened level of teamwork, so in-sync were they with one another and so practised they were with their interplay. On the 5th try it was Matt yet again with another dazzling solo try, faking a pass and fooling a defender, then a deft step to the inside and then the touch of the ball to the ground. 5-0 it was and more it would go. Halftime proved no sort of reprieve for RH, as the instant the whistle sounded to continue did the rampage of EH continue. Captain Wesley’s vision lets him pick out Shern (or you can say 神) coming in on the wing for the 7th. There was no way EH was going to stop here. Matt in particular looked dangerous on every approach, so high was his threat level with his deceiving steps and superior handling skills. This was a man with a conviction, a man on a mission. One loses count of the number of tries he has contributed to the total tally of 13, and how many of those were simple step ins taking advantages of his fake passes. In a flash there were another 3 more tries, and its 11-0. Such was the speed of the EH attack that it was difficult to keep up with their game. Near the end of the game, Matt and Yujie showed off their LYLC chemistry, managed to pull off a really cheeky piece of play, with the latter alley-ooping a pass to Matt, who utilised the RH players’ confusion with the unorthodox pass to slip in to try. Don’t try this at home kids! Weilie contributed the 12th try, cleverly disguising his dive with a stumble, effectively confusing all opponents. By the end of the game, all present were made to know that the EH team was NOT to be trifled with and that they were the biggest threat around.
EH proceeded to show no mercy still when they came up against hosts KE7 in the next match. This one did not end in a double digit scoreline for EH, but it was almost there. Matt and Shern’s linkup play proved to be a big factor in the start of the game, quickly securing 2 tries for EH and putting them up 2-0. Kyle began to come into the game more as he dove in for the try, fooling opponents into thinking he was passing. Shern once again proves his nimble quality as he danced through 3 KE7 men with deft steps in and out for a ridiculous solo try. Captain Wesley also got in on the action, receiving a trademark swing from Kyle to tuck away another neat try. Closer to the end of the match, Wei Shien intercepted a long swing from the KE7 centre, and away he went. The entire length of the playing field was covered in record short time, and the fist pump celebration was well deserved. The match ended 9-0 to EH, just another match to play and another match to win.
SH was up next and this fixture was one to watch. This team was the greatest threat to EH, but they were not going to let this deter them, on the contrary it only spurred EH to play even harder and fight even fiercer. There was an initial deadlock where both teams defended too well for the other to squeeze through even a dive or a play. Mitchell eventually broke the deadlock from a Kyle swing out to the wing, where the former awaited unmarked for the first try of the game. 1-0 to EH and there were no signs of letting up, this was a dangerous opponent not to be taken lightly, but to be faced with even more fervour. Kyle again stepped up to the plate to show he was one to watch as he began on a solo run into the SH line. They attempted to stop him, but he was simply too skillful to catch and he easily slipped through the line for a try. 2-0 up and a comfortable lead, but more to play for in the game. The game continued with ferocity, both teams giving and taking space but not tries. It was firmly stuck in at 2-0. It was nearly at the end of the match that Matt took a blow to his left ear, and even from afar was it easy to see that he was bleeding profusely from that area. Instead of rushing off to receive medical attention, Matt the Hero swiped some of the blood and proudly showed it off to the crowd, receiving a mixed reaction of cheers and some confusion. Not even 2 minutes later, however, he was already back on the field and controlling the flow of the play. The match came to an end 2-0 to EH and went into the lunch break heads held high and visions optimistic.
Next on the fixture list was KR, who have the honour of being the only hall to score the first and only try against EH in the entire carnival, which only goes to show how indomitable EH is. They took the lead by a fluid play, exposing an unmarked gap on the right flank of the EH line. Shern however, decided that KR’s lead was not meant to be, and embarked on another show of his acceleration and speed, bursting through a KR gap to level the scores at 1-1. A deadly partnership was discovered this game between Mitchell and Kyle, where the latter would suck in multiple men to mark him, leaving Mitch entirely unmarked, free for a try. 2 tries were gained in this method, where a long swing to the wing was executed for a waiting Mitch to score 2 tries to put the score up at 4-0. To seal the deal for EH, KR experienced a defensive mishap later on in the game, where one of their players stumbled backwards while backtracking after a touch on Yujie, leaving a gaping hole in the KR line which they scrambled to cover, but were too late in doing so. EH players rushed through the gap and made the most of the chance to put EH up at 5-0 to end the game there.
A final game against neighbours TH awaited EH, and the boys met the match with enthusiasm and gusto, eager to end off the carnival on a positive note. Matt made this match his own, participating in 4 out of the 5 tries scored against TH this game. He was a whirlwind on the pitch, starting the attacking move in the centre but eventually drifting out to the left or right to facilitate the drive further. He blazed through a TH gap to give us the early lead for the 1-0. Later on he assisted Yujie twice, celebrating his second assist with a cartwheel on the field, demonstrating his talent as a theatrical entertainer. Marcus dove for the 4th try on the turn of a attack, making the most of a fresh 6 touches given after a TH offside. The final try of the carnival was scored by Matt, and suitably so given his major creative attacking role in the EH side. It was a simple fake and step, classic Matt. EH beat TH 5-0 to close off their Trug Carnival with 5 wins and 0 losses. What a record!
EH boys’ success in this year’s IHG was by no means any kind of coincidence or swing or luck. These men trained their hardest and took much needed time out of their busy schedules to perfect their craft and teamplay at least 2 times per week. They worked every session to improve their cohesion which is so obviously seen on the pitch with the speed they dump, pick, pass and go. They have the game boiled down to a perfect science, one which no other hall comes close to emulating, leaving them as the undisputed and undefeated champions.
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