05 Dec 2007 | OPS & TRAINING
HOME RUN FOR SAFSA SOFTBALL TEAM
STORY // Brendan Mark Foo
PHOTO // Lum Ngia
PHOTO // Lum Ngia
December 2006: the Singapore Armed Forces Sports Association (SAFSA) softball team is in Chiang Mai, psyching themselves up for the finals.
The opponents are a team that they've faced before, and lost to in the preliminary rounds.
Not this time. Following a tough fight to the finish, the SAFSA team, against all odds, defeat their opponents 8 - 1.
Prior to their win in Thailand, the team have participated in the Singapore Baseball/Softball Association's slowpitch, fastpitch and baseball tournaments, winning a spot among the top three teams for each tournament.
October 2007: For their numerous achievements both locally and internationally, the SAFSA softball team is recognised as this year's Best Men's Team.
The makeup of the SAFSA softball team is a rather diverse one. Young and old, regulars and full-time national servicemen (NSFs), the players find themselves united on the pitch by their love of the game.
These softballers come from a myriad of backgrounds. "All the players recruited into the SAFSA softball team played for their schools or clubs before they enlisted into the army [ ] some of the players are even national team players of national youth team players," reveals the team's Deputy Convenor Lieutenant-Colonel (LTC) Muralidharan.
The strength of the team is its unity, explains LTC Murali. The team's veterans, Captain (CPT) Lim Tien Wei and First Warrant Officer (1WO) Eng Kwong Choon, who have been playing for SAFSA for many years, "contribute greatly to the team in terms of experience and skills".
The pair, who are regulars in the SAF, have been imparting their skills to the rest of team, most of whom are NSFs.
This is a team that has seen its fair share of setbacks and disappointments, says LTC Murali. But despite these, the SAFSA softball team has come out tops.
Describing their fighting spirit in the games in Chiang Mai, he said: "They had to deal with fatigue as there were back-to-back games and substitution was limited. They lost in the second match but that didn t stop them from moving on.
"They faced the same team in the finals. But this time they learned from their experience and won the game 8-1."
The opponents are a team that they've faced before, and lost to in the preliminary rounds.
Not this time. Following a tough fight to the finish, the SAFSA team, against all odds, defeat their opponents 8 - 1.
Prior to their win in Thailand, the team have participated in the Singapore Baseball/Softball Association's slowpitch, fastpitch and baseball tournaments, winning a spot among the top three teams for each tournament.
October 2007: For their numerous achievements both locally and internationally, the SAFSA softball team is recognised as this year's Best Men's Team.
The makeup of the SAFSA softball team is a rather diverse one. Young and old, regulars and full-time national servicemen (NSFs), the players find themselves united on the pitch by their love of the game.
These softballers come from a myriad of backgrounds. "All the players recruited into the SAFSA softball team played for their schools or clubs before they enlisted into the army [ ] some of the players are even national team players of national youth team players," reveals the team's Deputy Convenor Lieutenant-Colonel (LTC) Muralidharan.
The strength of the team is its unity, explains LTC Murali. The team's veterans, Captain (CPT) Lim Tien Wei and First Warrant Officer (1WO) Eng Kwong Choon, who have been playing for SAFSA for many years, "contribute greatly to the team in terms of experience and skills".
The pair, who are regulars in the SAF, have been imparting their skills to the rest of team, most of whom are NSFs.
This is a team that has seen its fair share of setbacks and disappointments, says LTC Murali. But despite these, the SAFSA softball team has come out tops.
Describing their fighting spirit in the games in Chiang Mai, he said: "They had to deal with fatigue as there were back-to-back games and substitution was limited. They lost in the second match but that didn t stop them from moving on.
"They faced the same team in the finals. But this time they learned from their experience and won the game 8-1."
