Oh gosh. This blog setting changed so much! A year would be exactly how long I havent been in touch with table tennis. However, after watching my juniors' national match yesterday, I'm a proud senior. (I still LOVE these emoticons! ha.)

Oh well. Here goes:

 The match ended with 3-2. No words can describe exactly how I feel towards this match. I'll try anyways.

The first year when I first stepped into VJTT, we broke the 'curse' of being 3rd in the Nationals. It was a year we all thought a miracle had happened. So, naturally, we didnt even THINK about bringing a Championship Cup back. The second year when I was in year 2, we were all so tensed up yet determined to MAINTAIN our second position. We turned the tables at a time when hope seems to have given up on us. Being able to have a stand in the finals again, was a relief. Again, Championship still seemed a little too far. We took a step closer but stopped right there, choosing to believe that it was our limit. Now, seeing the way my juniors fight, I realised that limits are meant to be broken. They, like us, thought that we'd have to MAINTAIN our second position and took it as a MUST. For this, they've done it beautifully after beating HC 5-0. It was such a beautiful match that we could not believe that they were the same girls 5 minutes ago, getting all tensed-up and on the verge of tears. Against RJC was never an easy task for us all. Their players are mostly professionally-trained and we seniors thought the chances of winning might have been zero. It wasnt. Not at all. The juniors, once again, proved us wrong. They gave them such a tough fight that RJ almost thought they were going to lose. So, did us. We thought we were going to win it all. It was this day when I felt that our aim was no longer getting into finals. It was the Champion. It was the closest we have felt to clinching the title. ‘Just a little bit more’, my teammates have been repeating that in my ears. Right. It was a ‘so near yet so far’ situation. However, we must give the juniors credit. For this was the first year we actually believed that we could be the Champion.

I wanted to give a close analysis on every match but decided not to. I don’t want to bore you to tears. Well, just to summarise, the doubles brought us the two points which they totally deserved it. They played a wonderful match. Special mention goes to Yeow May and Chermaine. Both met up with 2 unbeatables. We would have hoped for Chermaine to win her match like she did when she was against HC. But the pressure seemed to have proved it was too much to take. Chermaine fought hard like we all thought she would, but didn’t manage to pull through. As for Yeow May, it’s always her that I ended up being really impressed. Before the match, she may cry, she may be so scared that she is shivering. But when you throw her up to the table, she’s a totally different. She may be scared, but I could not see it. I see determination in her eyes. She met the current (under 19)national champion. Our hope actually started to diminish but our faith hasn’t. Yeow May showed that she wasn’t someone to be trifled with. Probably because the opponent was confused by her bat, Yeow May managed to take the first match comfortably. Second match, towards in the end, the opponent finally realised that she had to throw in her best as well for this match. Second and third match, the opponent displayed magnificent skills that we all thought Yeow May lost for a reason. We thought it was going to end in the fourth match. But Yeow May fought back. Like a wall. I almost forgot. That was her trademark. As all the other matches ended, the silence in the hall, for this match, is deafening. Fifth match, Yeow May fought to the very last minute but the opponent still had the upper hand. It might have been wasted. But we have to realise that being able to fight to this stage is already quite a feat! In terms of skills, no way can we beat the opponent. From what we see, Yeow May fought with courage and determination, something that requires that extra effort than using skills. Every ball she won, was hard to get. However, with skills, the opponent could easily pull it back. It was tough, but she fought, to the very last moment. Frankly speaking, in all my life of playing table tennis, I’ve had had a team like that. A team that played such beautiful match. I’m not saying that we were not fighting hard enough, but our desire to achieve the Championship cup was not strong enough. There were bound to be times that some of us in the team feel like just getting the match over and done with, especially when meeting those so-called formidable opponents. I didn’t see it in this team. I’d have to say, I’m so glad to have caught this match. I wouldn’t want to miss such beautiful spirit displayed by the team. Still, well done, girls!

PS: It still turned out to be quite long huh? 

校际乒乓赛 莱初蝉联女甲冠军
● 吴秀金梁麒麟（摄）

　　虽然拥有三名少年国手级球员压阵，但昨天在中正中学（总校）进行的2004年全国中学校际乒乓球赛女甲大决赛，为上届冠军莱佛士初级学院锁定最后胜利的却是另两名球员。

　　莱初凭着蓝锦萍／张凯薇在第二双打的出色表现，以总比分3比1拿下维多利亚初院，蝉联女甲冠军。

　　有了现役少年国手李欣和两名前少年国手林斯环、陆思敏，莱初打入大决赛途中，一盘未失，实力可见一斑。为此，维初只能在大决赛改变战略，调遣单打球员陈耀女美负责第一双打，加强双打实力，但事与愿违，最后还是与锦标缘悭一面。

　　出任第一单打的莱初主将林斯环先以11比5、11比3、11比7轻取林嘉僖，打响第一炮。陈子平／陈奕翔却以15比17、11比9、7比11、2比11遭维初的杨宜玲／陈耀女美击败，两队打成平手。维初第二单打龙丽娟接着以2比11、7比11、6比11败在李欣手上，莱初再度以2比1夺得领先权。

　　士气高昂的莱初第二双打蓝锦萍／张凯薇，一口气以11比7和11比3取得首两局后，表现突然失常，以致让维初代表张丽娟／陈晓玲以11比5扳回一局。蓝／张第四局一度以6比1领先，节奏却让对方这时叫的暂停给打乱了，虽然之后还得一分，但张／陈突然球风大起，连得7分，反而以8比7超前。

　　蓝／张临危不乱，连取3分，以10比8领先，但张／陈仍不气馁，争回一分。不过，张／陈之后的一个出界球不但让对方以11比9胜出，还毁灭了维初夺冠的希望。

　　莱初教练李树河赛后说：“我们有林斯环和李欣，基本上已经稳赢两分，所以要从另外三分拿一分，并不是很困难。即使第二双打输了，我们还有陆思敏负责的第三单打。”

　　他表示，球队夺得冠军，学院院长和老师们的支持也扮演着非常重要的角色。

　　维初乒乓球队负责老师黄献德说：“球员们半决赛落后0比2，最后打败大热门华中初院，进入大决赛，已经很不简单，而且莱初实力比我们强许多，因此对方理应获得胜利。不管怎么样，球员们体现的拼搏精神和团队精神，比成绩本身更加重要。”

　　男甲大决赛将于本月28日举行。


昨天其他战绩

＊女甲第三、四名次赛

华中初院胜圣安德烈初院　 3比0

＊男甲第三、四名次赛

安德逊初院胜淡马锡初院　 3比2

it's been such a loooong time since i last blogged here...but i have sooo much vjtt stuff to say now that it is impossible for me not to blog. did i mention that we got into finals AGAIN, beating hwachong? did i mention that we were down 2-0 at the beginning and made a comeback..winning 2-3 in the end? did i mention how great the guys team were...cheering and supporting the gals? did i mention how much vj spirit was shown during the matches? no? let me tell you all of it.

first match...me being the sacrificial lamb...met the best player of hc(one whom im SUPPOSED to meet ) naturally...i lost. then our strong double(lijuan/ngee leng) comes along...and meets hc's strong doubles...to say the truth...our doubles just paired for ONE day...so that day itself...they were quite confused...and when they lost their match...we were losing hope fast...but we never showed it to our own players...we cheered even harder...and louder...to show them that we never gave them up... determination was shown in our eyes...

and there comes the turning point. chermaine went for the match with confusion cos she was not expecting to meet meishi...so when she start to lose confidence...we were scared. when we saw chermaine tearing during a timeout...we thought the match is gone. me and jiaxi dont wanna end this way. so wenhui suggested we shout the miracle cheer : CHERMAINE, PERSERVERE! TURN THE TABLE, BE THE WINNER! and she fought back...hard and tough that the opponent lost her confidence and grip. we won. hannah/seowling threw in their best effort...and threw the opponents off-guard. the opponents might be stronger than they are...but the opponents never had the fighting spirit like ours..they beat them 3-0 FLAT. and our last singles yeow may...now burdened with extreme pressure...one whom broke down during competition before...showed her never-dying spirit...no matter how her opponent smack her back...she never loses the ball...i see light. from the darkness in the beginning...i see light. yeow may won. 3-0 FLAT.

i cried. right. i didnt tear...i cried. im soooo proud of them...that i cried so badly. last yr...when we managed to beat hc...i didnt cry. i was happy...so when i saw the seniors crying...i wondered what was wrong...but now...as seniors...i realised how much that meant to me. i remembered hc said they would be back last yr..they were coming back with vengence this yr...the same confidence as last yr...but they dont noe how determined we were...to meet them...to win them...to show them that the reason we win them...was never because of luck. it's because we NEVER gave up. AGAINST the odds...we brought out our VJ spirit...and showed them what we've got.

i used to tell myself...i will still support hc as long as it's not against vj...but after what happened last year...it confirmed that my choice to vj was the correct one.

i guess after the big V...the next day when we met RJ...most of us were exhausted...we lost 3-1...got 2nd placing...maintained our result from last year. but you noe what...we gave RJ a run for their lives. my dad was standing at the RJ side watching our matches...well..i wanted to find him after our matches...but he disappeared before i could do so...so when i went home..he told me he was actuallie eavedropping on the RJ ppl...the principal who came down to watch...was sooo worried! well..i mean...if we had won the doubles...we would have more than 50% chance of winning...so naturally..they would be scared. but our doubles reallie fought back...i figured that it's reallie a nice match. can you imagine...from score of 1-7...they reached 9-9...it is amazing. im so proud of them alreadie! and ngee leng/yeow may pair of doubles is regarded as first class by my dad...so is lijuan who played against leexin...cos she reallie made leexin scared...haha...oh...and yep...hc cheered for RJ...which is kinda...erm...normal for them to do so...though vj would never do that...and we took photo with the rj ppl after our matches...i mean...we still got 2nd! however...next yr...our aim would not be finals...it'd be champion! (tho we wont be around anymore...i still believe my juniors can do it!)

so...at the end of it all...mr wee and kk treated us to mc buffet...scary-ly expensive...and scare-ly delicious! had a wonderful time...but when i got home...i received ALOT of smses. all sad and emotional which, for a moment, made me think that im heartless cos i never thot of that. kk said she had a tinge of sadness which is gonna make her tear cos we've come to the end of it all...wenhui sae she felt a strong sense of lost...lijuan said she never regretted staying with us...yeow may said everything would be different without us...sigh. dont make me sooo sad lah ppl...it's not lyk we wont meet again...it's not lyk we wont hang out together anymore...it's not the end okay? cheer up...just wanna tell the juniors...you guys are the best juniors one can ever have....so are our seniors...who is the most supportive bunch. i love you guys!

and one more thing. i will never regret coming to vj...instead of staying in hc.

figured that it has been too long since i just drop a note here. now that exams are over...i shall be the first to put up an entry!(dont ask how was the exams )

so anyways...will be going to shop around for stuff to give to the newbies at open hse later with the girls. hopefully we can get the best player from cedar and anglican ...and if you guys(sec 4s) stumble upon this site...please dont bear high hopes on vj ? well...we are not a new school...so you cant expect it to look all cool and stuff...well..at least i came vj because of the people...not the school...hee.

MAJOR NOTICE: 18th OCTOBER VJC OPEN HOUSE. forgot the time. hehe...err..you should know it yourself! -shirks responsibility-

oh..and sorry people for not going out with you guys recently ...need sometime to chill out at home you see...especially after the horrible promos...if you dont wanna see me retained..pray for me.

PS:skipped SAT today...woke up late. sighx.

yoohoo~anybody hm? hehe...damn long neva blog liaos..didnt go training ydae cos go terrible flu...but felt so much better now...tml is the last training be4 promos but cannot go!! got stoopid learning journey thingy...hais. so you ppl wanna go tan on sat anot? our last outing before promos!

PS: i figured that no one will reply. tsk.

today's training rawk! everyone came! keep it up! though the friendly match with vs...suck majorly ...wth was i doing man...think the way jiao lian puts it...is both demoralising...yet able to spur us on too...jiayou ppl! and erm...think zhebin is unofficially our pt ic...abit scared... dont be too hiong lah k? like 4.8km at once...then you might as well take my life...will be easier this way... after that we went for dinner too! "first time guys more than gals"(quoted keith) must continue k?

played bball after training ydae...reallie fun... even the fact that jiao lian joined in! haha..so anyways..reallie looked forward to play floorball after training on next wednesday!

PS: fri meet at what time arhs? yay! going to watch homerun rite? cant stand everyone toking abt it nowadays...must watch! i finished shopping with my frens then meet you all k..settle a time k?

slept over ydae at kk's hse..cos it's her bdae~! went over straight after school ydae(it's at siglap which is damn near sch lah!)...bathe and had a delicious lunch there(didnt noe she could cook...fried rice!)...then stone around in her beautiful 3-storey hse...it's damn nice lah...wooden and stoney interior...i was busy exploring and it's nice until i feel like crying! haha...im like so excited to explore every corner of it lohh...played cards..bball(yes,she has a bball net at the doorway)..and watched vcd in her white spacious living room...but i got tired soon after..(tht's cos i didnt sleep the night before!) so i went to the 3rd storey(where we're going to spend our nite)...to lie on the super comfy "banana" cushion...and slept for awhile before the others came up to watch holland v...after that...all left except me and hannah...so the three of us went sun tec to walk walk...and im alreadie damn tired and sickly lah...wanted to watch movie at sun tec at 12midnite..but went esplanade to meet jx and then walk to boat quay(again) for dinner...felt damn tired but the food we ate is quite good...so i became slightly awake..food makes me happie you see..okies...then we walk around aimlessly...taking a few photos by the river bank...and went to coffee bean...but by tht time...im reallie drained..so i just slept there until they finished their food(took a few bites off the brownie kk bought...damn hot and yummy!)...then took cab back to kk's hse...i immediately wash up and slept lah...reallie CMI liaos! but i tell you..the 3rd storey is so nice..the 3 of us wanna rent frm kk loh...it's so damn near sch lah! then can stay together somemore...damn shiok.
lemme explain the interior of the 3 storey...there is a garden balcony(can have a heart-to-heart talk under the moonlight)...and in the air-coned room...there are 2 computers and one television...and own bathroom...it's 'nuff for us lah! hehe..qt paiseh to be soo tired ydae..sorta spoilt their mood to play through the night! sorrie ley ppl! just woke up..waiting for jx and hannah to come back(hope jx would come back though) after their games day...wanted to go...but i cant wake up...hehe...okies...kk better beware~like jx said...we'd be visiting you more often...hiak` shit...got alot of work to do and pw stuff to read...argh! im off! ciaos.

PS: happie bdae kk!

training is so intensive recently that my right arm doesnt seem to be able to move unless i use my left arm to hold it up... or it'll just fall limp to the side...and it's not farnie! nor am i trying to exaggerate lah...and then stoopid hannah had to keep hitting my right arm lah! went to makan place(i forgot what it's called!) at parkway before training starts and ate all the delicious food there...the chin chow is damn goot! but erm...all of the girls' food taste damn goot...but mine sucked lah...hrmpf. got the baskets to put the balls...well..you all noe how "spoilt" the old one was... we started training late...but not as late as the usual half an hr...like 10 minutes or smthg? but we(the girls) were still the earliest lahh...hais...hope the guys can be more..erm...initiative? hmm...at least try to come earlier or we'd hafta implement the late punishment ...and when you all come...dont stand around and wait for the girls to start setting up lah ...hope everything would improve gradually ...but for some...i noe it's qt hard to even get them to come...but just try your best? and i hope hs would be more involved in ping pong? at least dont let keith do everything lah...wont feel paiseh meh? went for dinner after training and our dearest hs missed it again(still dont believe he went out with his mum and tht's why he's late... )...and so few of us went lah...guess it's okie though...and we sorta neglected someone but it's something we..erm...always do?(qt mean eh?) hope the next time everything would be much better...we're putting in the effort to get the team together lah...hope it'd work..if ALL the guys are willing to cooperate... so why am i crapping now and typing with onlie my left hand is pretty tough...im damn tired liaos...off to bed! ciaos.

PS: kk! there's a song by dalai lama?! ahahhaha`

reallie had fun at your hse! sorrie for making it messy though...it's what we're best at, you see...hee why bin neva warn you? hehe...must blog often even when you're overseas okay? we'll be here for you no matter what... hmm...ive econs and maths tutorials due tml early in the morning...just came back from training...damn tired...actuallie training ended at 7.30pm..reached chomp chomp at 9.30pm with kk and hannah 'cos of the screwed up SBS schedule...the bus took half an hr to arrive lah...but still...food never fails to cheer me up...had a hearty meal and just reached hm! im satisfied...so...should i do work anot? hm.

PS: keith and huei siang owe me,hannah,jaex movie! please think of what you all wanna watch k?