HPB Voices Reloaded
September - October 2007
Nothing to Lose?
Acrobatic somersaults, half volleys, heroic saves and the boisterous bench was the order of the day as the HPB Futsal Team flew the HPB flag high as the only contender from the Health Family that reached the quarter-finals of the Public Service Futsal (5–aside) Tournament 2007. The tournament with a turnout of 41 teams was held on Sunday, 9 Sep 07 at the Chua Chu Kang Sports Hall.
The team made up of a motley crew of 12 strangers, who had managed to train only thrice before the tournament was the underdog in the preliminary group but this was not evident from their courageous display. Instead, the crowd was entertained with the gung-ho display of the team in eliminating the teams from MCYS (5:2) and MND (4:0) in the preliminary group stage. A never-die attitude was in full abundance as some even played through the pain barrier, caused by the many hard knocks received in the competitive tournament. Perhaps this was attributed to the close-knit team spirit forged, as apart from the fact that all the team members had a chance to don the HPB colours on court, no one wasted an opportunity to show their presence felt as the “sixth” member on the court through their loud cheers from the bench.
This is summed up nicely by Team Captain, Rohaizat bin Abdul Rahman,
“Nothing else matters except doing our best when it comes to representing HPB in any sporting activities. The valiant effort by the team reflects this and the team’s philosophy to put heart before mind to adopt a winning attitude. The team had nothing to lose or to prove and this propelled the guys to perform to their best ability. Never did we expect to achieve this outstanding result as this was our first participation in the tournament, pitting ourselves against more experienced opponents. The guys did a good job and they enjoyed themselves tremendously.”
The team fought magnificently in the quarter finals but finally succumbed to the much feared MOE (2) Team who had dazzled the crowd with their footwork and athletism. The loss rather than being a set-back has further spurred the team to look forward to next year and the team has promised another good showing.
The HPB Team
YHD : Rohaizat, Francis Ang, James Chan, Elamaaran, Mohd Mohsen, Ilyas & Muhd Yusri
CIOO : Mohd Bismillah
CMC : Mohd Razil & Patrick Wong
CS : Norani Atan
RSP : Mohd Azham
*Futsal : indoor version of soccer