2B
Bumped into the legendary Chan Yik Ley sure evoked the memories of 2B '98 where the all conquering OKI party swept the class elections. It was a great team, reminiscent of the Brazillian team of the 1982 led by Zico, Socrates and Falcao. We conquered every single blade of grass in the Rafflesian campus and like all great teams, friendship blossomed and winning or losing didn't matter anymore as long as we are in it together.
Between the posts was late bloomer Derek Goh whose shot stopping ability and underdog status did him good against high profile and complacent opposition. The controversial goal scored by 2C which blasted his chin and went rocketing into the sky remains one of the greatest myths. Whether the ball really did go in remains a mystery as 2C celebrated without checking out the condition of the injured Goh. Chan Yik Ley scored the consolation goal via a spot kick as we lost 3-1. Derek is now at NUS and I have lost contact with him despite all the phonecalls we shared during sec2. Starcraft mates and best mates really.
There wasn't really a better striker of the ball than Andrew who is a natural talent at shooting and getting into dangerous positions. Nicknamed 'the Albino', he is a foreign import from Taiwan but has served the team well and done good to local footbal like Mirko Grabovac. Alessandro Duric, Egmar Goncalves and so on. I still remembered the 2 goals he scored against 4G during the interclass soccer tournament in the grouup of death. 4 years of secondary school life together but I really felt I should have gotten to know him just a little better. Andrew is now at NUS doing Medicine.
There weren't any great defenders at that time. Like all teams in the Brazillian league, defenders and goalkeepers were attackers as well. There were only 2 defenders in the team then. Ben Chew and Azrulnizam Shah who were both rugby players form the spine of the team. Azrul who loves venturing forward always leaves gaps in the defense leaving Ben Chew and Derek Goh helpless at the back but is no less a tough tackler who plays with a lot of heart. Ben Chew despite his size and strength is like Jaap Stam minus his footballing skills. He is nonetheless a member of MENSA and his father owns a coffee shop. Azrul who was in the VJ soccer team played together with David Beckham and has since moved on to persue his studies in a local university.
Junming who was one of my best friends was a youth national table tennis player and possess one of the most natural left foot in the modern game. He can play left back or left midfielder, he is also an excellent defensive midfielder with great ball distribution skills and a shot that spells more precision that power. 'Hopi Janmong' is a gentleman on and off the pitch, rarely loses his temper and is my choice for vice-captain of the team. Junming is currently at NUS law much to his parents' objection.
Goh Xueying, who together with myself, was one of the youth products who blossomed during the 2 years in lower secondary school. Goh was a menace down the left flank and aided by the experienced and composed figure of Junming at the back hits defenders hard with his direct style and fancy footwork. An extremely selfless player, Andrew, myself and others found ourselves with an abundance of crosses from his right foot. Xueying has since hung up his boots to do medicine in NUS.
Chua Zhiwei who is also known as 'emu', 'Paul Emblem' or 'cow' is a die-hard Alan Shearer fan. Like Xueying, Zhiwei is a speed demon that pushes and knocks down opponents down the right, he is an uncompromising player who gives his best on the pitch. After 2B, he has conquered void deck soccer and is the epitome of the 'hit and run' play. Zhiwei is now a 2nd year law student at NUS.
Desmond Wee who sat beside me for the entire sec 2 was one of my best friends in RI and also one of the most controversial players in the team. His fight with Irwanto A-lim was memorable just as his brawl with Chan Yik Ley that lasted for about 10 minutes that started from me clipping Desmond's heel was. A tough tackler, he slides his opponents, pull their shirts and head butts whenever neccessary. Such is the tenacity of the player. I would remember the days that we sat together and talked about tactics for the next game, we would talk about the game that we loved, the players we like. He is probably one of the reasons why I love soccer so much. We talked about literature and music as well.
Yik Ley was no doubt the best player of the team and the most influential. A natural athelete, he has great stamina, great passing skills and his dribbling was probably the best in our whole level. Easily the match winner of any game, he creates and scores but most importantly boost the morales of the weaker players and inspire them to sharpen their game. Sat beside me during our sec1 years, I was constantly reminded by my larger than life head size and my extremely low athletism. He bonded the rest of us though I always remembered the intense but friendly rivalry he had with Desmond.
Till now, there isn't a better group of people to hang out with. Those were the best days of my life. Can't wait to get re-united again. Only if we can.
Between the posts was late bloomer Derek Goh whose shot stopping ability and underdog status did him good against high profile and complacent opposition. The controversial goal scored by 2C which blasted his chin and went rocketing into the sky remains one of the greatest myths. Whether the ball really did go in remains a mystery as 2C celebrated without checking out the condition of the injured Goh. Chan Yik Ley scored the consolation goal via a spot kick as we lost 3-1. Derek is now at NUS and I have lost contact with him despite all the phonecalls we shared during sec2. Starcraft mates and best mates really.
There wasn't really a better striker of the ball than Andrew who is a natural talent at shooting and getting into dangerous positions. Nicknamed 'the Albino', he is a foreign import from Taiwan but has served the team well and done good to local footbal like Mirko Grabovac. Alessandro Duric, Egmar Goncalves and so on. I still remembered the 2 goals he scored against 4G during the interclass soccer tournament in the grouup of death. 4 years of secondary school life together but I really felt I should have gotten to know him just a little better. Andrew is now at NUS doing Medicine.
There weren't any great defenders at that time. Like all teams in the Brazillian league, defenders and goalkeepers were attackers as well. There were only 2 defenders in the team then. Ben Chew and Azrulnizam Shah who were both rugby players form the spine of the team. Azrul who loves venturing forward always leaves gaps in the defense leaving Ben Chew and Derek Goh helpless at the back but is no less a tough tackler who plays with a lot of heart. Ben Chew despite his size and strength is like Jaap Stam minus his footballing skills. He is nonetheless a member of MENSA and his father owns a coffee shop. Azrul who was in the VJ soccer team played together with David Beckham and has since moved on to persue his studies in a local university.
Junming who was one of my best friends was a youth national table tennis player and possess one of the most natural left foot in the modern game. He can play left back or left midfielder, he is also an excellent defensive midfielder with great ball distribution skills and a shot that spells more precision that power. 'Hopi Janmong' is a gentleman on and off the pitch, rarely loses his temper and is my choice for vice-captain of the team. Junming is currently at NUS law much to his parents' objection.
Goh Xueying, who together with myself, was one of the youth products who blossomed during the 2 years in lower secondary school. Goh was a menace down the left flank and aided by the experienced and composed figure of Junming at the back hits defenders hard with his direct style and fancy footwork. An extremely selfless player, Andrew, myself and others found ourselves with an abundance of crosses from his right foot. Xueying has since hung up his boots to do medicine in NUS.
Chua Zhiwei who is also known as 'emu', 'Paul Emblem' or 'cow' is a die-hard Alan Shearer fan. Like Xueying, Zhiwei is a speed demon that pushes and knocks down opponents down the right, he is an uncompromising player who gives his best on the pitch. After 2B, he has conquered void deck soccer and is the epitome of the 'hit and run' play. Zhiwei is now a 2nd year law student at NUS.
Desmond Wee who sat beside me for the entire sec 2 was one of my best friends in RI and also one of the most controversial players in the team. His fight with Irwanto A-lim was memorable just as his brawl with Chan Yik Ley that lasted for about 10 minutes that started from me clipping Desmond's heel was. A tough tackler, he slides his opponents, pull their shirts and head butts whenever neccessary. Such is the tenacity of the player. I would remember the days that we sat together and talked about tactics for the next game, we would talk about the game that we loved, the players we like. He is probably one of the reasons why I love soccer so much. We talked about literature and music as well.
Yik Ley was no doubt the best player of the team and the most influential. A natural athelete, he has great stamina, great passing skills and his dribbling was probably the best in our whole level. Easily the match winner of any game, he creates and scores but most importantly boost the morales of the weaker players and inspire them to sharpen their game. Sat beside me during our sec1 years, I was constantly reminded by my larger than life head size and my extremely low athletism. He bonded the rest of us though I always remembered the intense but friendly rivalry he had with Desmond.
Till now, there isn't a better group of people to hang out with. Those were the best days of my life. Can't wait to get re-united again. Only if we can.
posted by jingli K at 12:50 PM
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