Final note for Year 2015

This will be my final post for the year of 2015.
I believe it had been an eventful year for all of us, both the teachers and the students.


First, I would like to say farewell to our graduating players;

Sandy, Lea, Samantha, Puala, Li Xuan, Qian Xiu, Xiang Min, Ponni, Tanish, Xavier, Joshua, Evans, Rhui Qing, Sam, Wen Zhong, Cheng Yang, Zhi Wei, Jian Kai, Heng Yi, Matthias and Lu Tong.

Thank you for your contributions to the team.

Second, I would like to say welcome again to our new players who have joined our team this year;

Fiona, Siti, Nevin, Zhong Soon, Maisarah, Amiratul, Cidrick, Bryan, Dharshak, Zuriel, Manying, Fitri, Qing Li, Ke Xin, Zoey, Cheng Xian, Marc, Yan Liang, Jiet Yi.

Thank you for choosing Badminton as your CCA.

Third, I would like to give my recognition to our existing players;

Pui Woon, Sabrina, Jason, Yi Sheng, Wei Wen, Bradley, Val, Nisha, Xhi Chun, Si Ying, Ching Han, Dinesh, Yixin, Wendy, Joshua Teng, Martin, Elaine, 'Ain, Shao Xian, Kevin and Rahul.

Thank you for staying with the team.

And yes, Vishnu, If you are reading this, We all miss you. Do send us a post card to update us on how you are doing ok?

Forth, I would like to thank the teachers and coaches for administering the CCA and training of our players.

Mdm Rafilah, Ms Quek, Mrs Yeo, Mr Phua,
Coach Welly, Coach Zhi Cay, Coach Bryan, Coach Dini


Thank you for all the time and effort that all of you have put into the team to it a better team.

Fifth, I would like to recap on the events for year 2015.

For our CCA,
We had our first CCA photo shoot.



For competition,
We had the West Zone Inter-school Championship, Wee Kim Wee Badminton Challenge and Ashaway Badminton Youth Games.

For friendly matches,
We had with Evergreen Sec, St. Gabriel Sec (Away) and St. Gabriel Sec (Home)

For school events,
We had the CCA Fair, Principal challenge, Sports carnival and Open house.


Sixth, I would like to update on some of the events that is going to happen in the Semester 1 Term 1 of Year 2016.

Looking forward, upcoming events will include,

• CCA Banner ~new!
• CCA Fair
• Secondary 1 Orientation Programme ~new!
• Badminton T-shirt for Year 2016
• Preparation for West Zone Inter-school Badminton Championship
• West Zone Inter-school Badminton Championship

Lastly, I would like to share with all of you about my thoughts on Training.

Having been to a number of competitions and also umpired for quite a number of matches, I have seen my fair share of badminton players.

From going to competition,
I notice that schools like River Valley, Commonwealth, Kranji and Nanyang Girls, all have one thing in common and that is they never fails to end up the top 4 of the west zone.

And from umpiring their matches,
I notice that their players almost always beat their opponent from other school with ease.

I know that it is definitely not the case of their players having an unfair advantage because I was the umpire for the match. I did the shuttle toss myself, both players started off with a zero score.

After a while, I figure that it actually boils down to training.
It is the type of training that the player subject him/ herself to that have created the gap, be it the in of mental focus or physical endurance.

It is the type of training that a player subject him/ herself to.
Therefore, as a competitive team player, we must take our training seriously.
Therefore, for next year,

You are going to try your best to attend every training that is being planned you.

You are going to train more at on your own at home.

You are going to take your training more seriously!



Happy New Year and I will all of you back in school on the 4th of January 2016.

Ashaway 2015 - 4th Day and Final update on Ashaway 2015

Hi all, here is a quick update on the third day of Ashaway Badminton Youth Games.

On the fourth day (Wed),
We had the following players who played.

GDU14 Nisha & Val @1400 (lose)
GDU16 Wendy & Lixuan @1330 (lose)



Final update on Ashaway 2015

I apologise for not being able to see the matches that are being played on the 3rd and 4th day as I had to attend to the new secondary 1 registration. Therefore, my comment will be based on the 1st and 2nd day.

On the 1st day, we made our trip to Pasir Ris sports and recreational centre as a team + Yanliang. About half of the team (Jason, Manying, Sabrina, Yixin, Kevin, Rahul, Xhi Chun, Cidrick, 'Ain & Lea) were scheduled to play on the 1st day. The other half of the team (Puiwoon, Val, Nisha, Dinesh, Wendy, Lixuan, Yanliang, Bryan, Chengxian & Siying) stayed to support even though they were not scheduled for any match.

Most of the matches on the 1st day were loses but like what I mentioned on the previous post. We need to be able to rise above the mentality of only winning and losing to look at the bigger picture. Look back and reflect on the match that you had, be it a win or a lost. Discover both your strengths and weaknesses.

On the 2nd day, I saw Puiwoon, Sabirna, Jason, Val and  Fiona who came to support their teammates even though they were not schedule for any match for the day.

We had a mixture of wins, loses and BYE.

Then on the 3rd and 4th day, we had mostly loses.

By being in a tournament, putting yourself in a competitive environment, in a match, it is inevitable to end up with a winner and a loser. People will definitely ask about your wins and loses after a match and you can't stop people from asking or talking about it. That, you cannot control.

What you can control is that to the best of your abilities, you prepare yourself for your match, give your very best during your match, spend time to really reflect on what you did well and what you did wrong after the match and focus on training that will make yourself a better player. That is the most important thing.

Ashaway 2015 is now over for us.

I hope that at the end of the tournament, all of you to be able to tell yourself that;

"Yes, I may not have won even a match in the tournament, 

But I am not disheartened,

because from the tournament I had gained experience,

And that had helped me understand myself better,

I am going overcome my weaknesses,

It is not going to be easy from now onward,

But I know I have got a team that is going to be there for me when I need it."

Ashaway 2015 - 3rd Day

Hi all, here is a quick update on the third day of Ashaway Badminton Youth Games.

On the third day (Tue),
We had the following players who played.

BSU14 Cheng Xian @1030 (lose)
BSU14 Bryan @1030 (lose)
BSU16 Li Xin @1200 (lose)
BSU16 Xhi Chun @1200 (lose)
BSU16 Cidrick @1200 (lose)

GDU14 Siying & Puiwoon @1330 (lose)
GDU14 Nisha & Val @1400 (win)

For tomorrow (Wed),
We will have the following players playing.

GDU14 Nisha & Val @1400
GDU16 Wendy & Lixuan @1330

Ashaway 2015 - 2nd Day

Hi all, here is a quick update on the second day of Ashaway Badminton Youth Games.

On the second day (Mon),
We had the following players who played.

BSU14 Cheng Xian @ 1030 (win)
BSU14 Bryan @1100 (win)
BSU14 Dinesh @1200 (lose)
BSU16 Li Xin @1330 (BYE)
BSU16 Xhi Chun @1330 (BYE)
BSU16 Cidrick @1400 (win)

At this point of time, I would like to share a little bit about what I feel about our matches so far.

From my perspective, I actually view all your matches as a "performance" that is put up by you for your teammates, coaches and teachers to see, the fruits of your training and I can say that I really enjoyed some of your performance be it winning or losing.

A lot of people may see winning as something positive and losing as something negative but to me, winning is neither all good nor losing a match is all bad and both experiences are equally important for the growth of a team or an individual. In fact, there are actually much to be learnt and discovered from losing a match. Therefore, as a team or an individual, we need to be able to rise above the mentality of only winning and losing to look at the bigger picture.

We may not be able to take home the cash prize and trophy for Ashaway yet but I do sincerely hope that all the participants of this year's Ashaway will be able to take home at least one valuable lesson or experience to help you understand more about both your strength and weakness so that you can become a better player the next time I see you "perform" and I really look forward to it.

So, always remember to stay focus and discipline for your training.

For tomorrow (Tue),
We will have the following players playing.

BSU14 Cheng Xian @1030
BSU14 Bryan @1030
BSU16 Li Xin @1200
BSU16 Xhi Chun @1200
BSU16 Cidrick @1200

GDU14 Siying & Puiwoon @1330
GDU14 Nisha & Val @1400

Next,
For the following players,

GDU16 Wendy & Lixuan

Your first match is scheduled on Wednesday @1330.


For tomorrow (Tue) and the day after tomorrow (Wed),
I will not be able to watch the performance that these players has put up because I am required to go back to school to prepare and administer the 2016 Sec 1 registration.

Fixtures had been updated for GDU14 and GDU16

Please check.

Ashaway 2015 - 1st Day

Hi all, here is a quick update on the Ashaway Badminton Youth Games.

For the first day,
We had the following players who played.

BSU14 Jason (lose)
GSU14 Manying (lose)
GSU14 Sabrina (lose)
BSU16 Yixin (BYE)
BSU16 Kevin (lose)
BSU16 Rahul (lose)
BSU16 Xhi Chun (win)
BSU16 Cidrick (BYE)
GDU16 'Ain & Lea (lose)

For the tomorrow,
We will have the following players playing.

BSU14 Cheng Xian @ 1030
BSU14 Bryan @1100
BSU14 Dinesh @1200
BSU16 Li Xin @1330
BSU16 Xhi Chun @1330
BSU16 Cidrick @1400

Next,
For the following players,

GDU14 Si Ying & Pui Woon.
GDU14 Nisha & Val
GDU16 Wendy & Lixuan

The date and time of your first match is not out yet due to BYE but it will very likely be on Tuesday (22/12/15). I think the organisers will be updating the match fixture on their official website soon. In the meantime, please refer to the official website for the latest update.

Pasir Ris Sports & Recreation Centre

For those who have never been to Pasir Ris Sports & Recreation Centre, here is a video footage of the venue I found on YouTube. We will be playing in the hall that is shown from 1:22 to 1:33.

After looking at the video, don't you think it will be a waste to go all the way there and not try their swimming facilities? Anyway, I will be bringing my swimming stuffs along for tomorrow. Feel free to bring yours if you want to.

Entrance fee for the swimming complex are as follows,

Adult: $2
Child: $1

Update on Ashaway 2015

The fixtures for this Sunday is out.

Please refer to the official website to check.

Please also take note that there are quite a number of BYE on the first day of the competition. So, some of you may not be required to play on Sunday but, we still be going together as a team for the opening ceremony on Sunday.

Transportation has long already been booked for the team for the opening ceremony, therefore, attendance is compulsory.

Details are as follows,

Date: 20th Dec 2015

Day: Sunday

Time: 0720

Pick up location: Outside school main gate.

Remember to start preparing yourself physically and mentally for your upcoming match!

And ALL THE BEST FOR THE COMPETITION!

*And also, please bring along your Ez-link on Sunday for verification.

Extra training for Ashaway (No coach)

I have managed to book 2 extra training sessions next week to help keep your engines running for the upcoming Ashaway Badminton Youth Games.

Training session 1
Date: 15/12/2015 (Tue)
Time: 8 am to 11 am
Location MPH

Training session 2
Date: 16/12/2015 (Wed)
Time: 8 am to 11 am
Location MPH

Please note that these practice sessions are not compulsory for all to attend and no coach will be around during the practice sessions. The MPH is simply being booked for you guys to train on your own or with your buddies to better prepare yourself for Ashaway.

Update on Ashaway 2015

There is two important updates for Ashaway in this post.

A. Due to low number of entries, the [Girls Single Under 16 Category] has been cancelled. 

Players affected:
1. Sandy
2. 'Ain

* I'm trying to get the organisers to slot both of you into the [Girls Double Under 16 Category] as a team now. Waiting for their response....

** The organisers had agreed to slot both of you into the [Girls Double Under 16 Category].


B. The list of registered names are out on the Ashaway official website.

Please do me a favor and go and check that your name is on the list.

Link: http://www.smbayouthgames.com/#!match-fixtures/pq723

According to the website, the fixture will be out soon.
So please stay tune...