To be part of our school’s sport team and challenge for more silverware is a fantastic feeling and I am glad to be part of the u19A Rugby boys team. We had a really successful first tournament at our home field, winning all the matches including the final. Something I took away from the first tournament was how the coach would make the team feel like family. Prior to the final, the team was nervous however the energy and the vibe that my coach brought to the team was one that embodied a father-like figure. What hit me the most was when Coach said “One, two, three, Family” just before we all sprint onto the pitch. The noun “family” meant so much more than “team”. From my perspective, the moment coach said “family”, the team knew that we had to fight for each other and win the final. This caused me to ponder upon my experience in the football team, and question whether our team spirit could have been even more stronger if we were a “family”, rather than teammates. The idea of being “Family” on the pitch meant that I was playing alongside my brothers. The hype, the energy, the will, the motivation is what drove us during the tournament. Thankfully, the outcome was a successful win which in turn meant that we won the tournament.
Unfortunately, I fractured my metacarpal during the first game of the tournament, and unknowingly played the rest of the tournament. I was lucky that the fracture was not severe and that it healed over 4 weeks. I knew that it was essential for me to still keep up my fitness, attend training sessions to understand the tactics and improve upon my tackling technique. Therefore, I demonstrated learning outcome 4 as I demonstrated regular involvement and active engagement in the activity. I had contribute to the team by being a player my teammates can rely on, thus attending the training sessions, even though I couldn’t physically participate, was crucial to help me adjust back into the team quickly once my injury healed. It was through this time period where I learnt the skill of perseverance and adjustment. Adjustment comes in the forms of working my way around of keeping fit, and learning strategies/tactics during training while recovering from the injury. In addition, since it was my first time playing rugby in over 2 years, it took time for me to get back to my full fitness, therefore going to trainings and re-learning the basics was key for my personal success.
Then there was another major tournament, the Marlborough College Straits Tournament in Malaysia. I was fortunate to be selected in the squad that travelled to Johor. In order to reach the final, we had to top our group which meant beating rivals such as Tanglin and Dover. And, once again, due to our fantastic spirit and determination we reached the finals of the tournament. Unfortunately the finals got called off due to Lightning. I was very happy with my performance, and it was an amazing opportunity for me to see the quality of the team on and off the pitch.
Try vs Dover MCM tournament-2kh2q7s
