After 128 games for Singapore, netballer Charmaine Soh retires with a gold medal
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Charmaine Soh, with her son Cruz, watches a video tribute by her teammates after she announced her international retirement on Oct 28.
ST PHOTO: ARIFFIN JAMAR
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SINGAPORE – Charmaine Soh promised herself she would not cry. But the tears came anyway after the final whistle of Saturday’s Nations Cup final.
She played the last 46 seconds against Papua New Guinea,
For Soh, 32, it was mixed emotions as her teammates hugged her.
“I told myself not to cry. But it was like, I’m so proud of the team being able to win gold. We waited a long time for this,” said the country’s most-capped netballer.
“So it’s really historic, man. For us to win this now and at my retirement is a big present for me because I told them that I have SEA Games (2015) and Asian Championships (2012, 2014) gold. Everything except the Nations Cup.”
More memories soon followed, as a tribute video containing heartfelt messages from her teammates and former coaches played inside the OCBC Arena.
With her 15-month-old son and husband by her side, Soh also received a bouquet of flowers and retirement-themed balloons.
After Cruz was born in June 2022, the former national captain had decided it was time to retire.
But, after an anterior cruciate ligament injury at the Asian Netball Championships three months later, she delayed her decision until the 2023 Nations Cup.
“I had to hang on for one more year,” she said. “I made my debut here in 2011 at the World Netball Championships, so to end it in Singapore is something I envisioned myself doing... with my family and friends.”
National head coach Annette Bishop said Soh’s legacy would be that she was an “amazing ambassador” for the sport.
“It’s just the way she’s approached any game, any training, just the all-round person she is on and off the court,” she added.
Singapore co-captain Toh Kai Wei, 27, who made her debut in 2017, added: “We can put her up there and say that she’s one of the shooting legends, people can say she’s ‘Champagne Charmaine’, well known for her long-range shot.
“That has impacted a lot of young girls from when she started till now, it’s been 12 years. They’ve grown up and I believe her fans are all still playing netball.
“Her coming back from pregnancy has also pushed women to continue to do what they want to do, push harder for what they want to achieve.”
Charmaine Soh (centre) intends to focus her efforts on Charmaine Netball Academy, which she set up in 2020.
ST PHOTO: ARIFFIN JAMAR
Goal-shooter Amandeep Kaur Chahal, 23, is seen as Soh’s successor. She said: “It’s difficult to live up to Charmaine’s standard but I always aim to achieve that because I just want to continue the legacy that our seniors have built up.”
Soh intends to focus her efforts on her netball academy.
She said: “It’s about giving back in other ways. I want to help other girls and hopefully groom them to become future stars of the national team.
“Other than that, I’ll be concentrating on my family because I sacrificed a lot of my time playing the sport. I really enjoyed it, but the time is over and I have to move on to the next phase in my life.”
That is one promise she intends to keep.
Additional reporting by Kimberly Kwek
