Singapore dominates with 24-goal win against Singapore A to make it three wins on the trot, as Cook Islands bounce back with convincing win over Canada while Papua New Guinea maintains top spot by defeating Sri Lanka
Singapore, 25 October 2023 – The fourth day of the Mirxes Nations Cup showcased outstanding performances from all the winning teams, with Singapore, Papua New Guinea, and Cook Islands clinching victories by substantial margins of at least 16 goals.
The final match of the day featured an all-Singapore showdown, with the Singapore Opens emerging victorious with a 24-goal lead over the Singapore A team.
During the first half of the game, both teams went goal-for-goal in the early stages of each quarter. However, the Singapore Opens team eventually asserted their dominance, scoring 16 goals in each quarter while limiting the Singapore A team to 15 goals (32-15).
The second half saw the Singapore A team putting up a more formidable challenge, but the Singapore Opens held their ground for a convincing 55-31 win.
Singapore is set to face Asian rivals Sri Lanka once again this Friday after defeating them twice earlier this year at the Netball World Cup in Cape Town. Looking ahead to the match, Tan Yi Jie said: “We definitely want to work on our strong, speedy movements and take it strong. We know that Sri Lanka is going to go hard on us, especially after World Cup. So we are going to give them a good battle and give it all we got.“
The day's opening match witnessed the Cook Islands ending their losing streak with a resounding victory over Canada, achieving a 63-37 scoreline.
The first quarter was a closely contested and physical battle, with the Cook Islands edging the quarter 13-11. However, in the subsequent three quarters, the Cook Islands dominated, securing the most significant winning margin of the tournament thus far with a 36-goal victory.
17-year-old Cook Islands shooter Maya Piakura, who earned her first cap in today’s game, exclaimed: “We had tough two losses these past days. Today, we had so much hunger and so much fire. Caps off to my teammates; they pulled through, and it just shows their character and resilience.”
In the day’s second game, Sri Lanka sought to halt Papua New Guinea’s three-game winning streak. However, the Asian Champions fell short, as Papua New Guinea once again impressed, claiming their fourth consecutive victory with a 16-goal win (67-51).
Sri Lanka had a strong start, winning the first quarter 13-11, with their experienced attacking unit displaying flawless attacking play throughout the court.
The introduction of Goloa Ovoa as Goal Shooter in the second quarter led to more composed play by Papua New Guinea, allowing them to take the lead by two goals at halftime.
In the second half, the robust defensive effort from Papua New Guinea’s Goal Keeper Jeperth Tulapi and Goal Defence Lesieli Vele Taviri made securing possession challenging for Sri Lanka's shooters, resulting in only 24 goals. The game ended in Papua New Guinea’s favour 55-31.
Looking ahead to their upcoming match on Friday against the Cook Islands, Papua New Guinea midfielder Yves Angelina Chee said: “It’s definitely about playing to our strengths. We know that as a playing group, our strengths are our speed and our agility to get around players. Seeing as the Cook Islands is quite a tall team, we definitely need to use that to our advantage to get the win for us.”
The Mirxes Nations Cup takes place from now to 28 October 2023 at the OCBC Arena (Hall 1). Tickets are still available for purchase through Ticketmaster.
Final Scores:
Cook Islands vs Canada: 63-37
Papua New Guinea vs Sri Lanka: 67-51
Singapore vs Singapore A: 55-31
Fixtures - 27 October 2023
3pm SGT: Canada vs Singapore A
5pm SGT: Cook Islands vs Papua New Guinea
7pm SGT: Singapore vs Sri Lanka