Singapore Kicks off Mirxes Nations Cup Title Defence with Dominant Win over Canada

by ActiveSG Circle, on September 2, 2024

2:44

The Singapore Vandas kicked off their title defence at the 2024 Mirxes Nations Cup with a commanding performance, securing a resounding 78-20 victory over Canada.

From the first whistle, the Vandas showcased their strength, with Goal Shooter Lee Pei Shan, Goal Attack Amandeep Chahal, and Wing Attack Toh Kai Wei leading a sharp and dynamic attack. Their quick, precise play set the tone for the match, while the defensive pairing of Reena Divya and Jamie Lim effectively shut down Canada's offence, ending the first quarter with a 19-6 lead.

Singapore maintained its dominance throughout the game, consistently scoring at least 18 goals per quarter. The defensive unit, which included Sindhu Nair in her 50th international cap, held Canada to just six goals or fewer per quarter—a clear display of their control over the match.

Amandeep Chahal, who recorded an impressive 98% shooting accuracy, missing just one attempt in the second quarter, reflected on the team’s performance: "We’re quite happy with our game today. Although we had a slower start with a few mistakes, I’m glad we were able to recover and improve as the match progressed.”

Looking ahead to their next match against the Republic of Ireland, Chahal acknowledged the challenges they would face: "We’ll need to execute sharper runs and make better passes. Ireland has taller and bigger players, so we’ll have to be more clinical in our play."

Head coach Annette Bishop, while pleased with the victory, stressed the importance of continued improvement. "Being the first game, there were some nerves and basic errors. We need to address these and tighten up our play because it’s going to be a long week. Teams like the UAE, Ireland, and Kenya will make us pay if we don’t improve."

Kenya and UAE Impress in Their Nations Cup Debuts

Elsewhere in the tournament, Kenya marked their first-ever Nations Cup appearance with a solid 64-31 win over Ireland. The Kenyan team demonstrated their physicality and agility, with shooters Lydia Atieno Nyapere and Dorine Akinyi Onyango combining for an impressive 94% shooting accuracy.

Kenya’s captain, Parin Nasambu Simiyu, commented on the win: "The match wasn’t easy, but we expected to come and play hard. We thank God we won the match as Ireland gave us some challenges as they are a strong team."

In the final match of the day, UAE secured a 65-41 victory over Singapore A, the Netball Singapore Development team. UAE took an early lead with a 21-9 score after the first quarter. Despite Singapore A's fightback in the second quarter, winning 14-12, UAE regained control in the final two quarters to secure the victory.

UAE captain Carly Lewis expressed satisfaction with her team’s performance: "It was a great game. I thought they pushed us right till the end. It was a good opportunity for us to run some combinations today and mix up our play a little. Obviously, we've got lots of different teams and lots of different styles over the coming week. So it was good for us to run different things and just be confident in our set plays. We’ll go back to the drawing board tonight, and we'll work hard again ahead of Kenya tomorrow.”

The Mirxes Nations Cup runs from 1 to 7 September at the OCBC Arena (Hall 1).