A different mentality at Crescent

In April, Crescent Girls' School hockey players Danica Goh and Anisah Musfirah Khanafi were sitting in the stands when their schoolmates won the National School Games' B Division title.

The experience made them and their teammates want to replicate their seniors' success and they did so yesterday, beating CHIJ St Nicholas Girls' School 1-0 to retain their C Division championship.

It is also the first time Crescent have claimed the double.

Danica, 13, who scored the decisive goal after squeezing the ball into the corner from a tight angle midway through the second quarter, was ecstatic with the result.

Recalling her experience as a spectator at the B Division final, she said: "Even in the stands, the pressure was already so high and our hearts were pumping so quickly. I was scared that it would multiply (exponentially) when we were the ones playing and I'm glad we got the job done."

Over 50 students and parents made their voices heard at the Sengkang Hockey Stadium, with a bunch of Crescent supporters donning colourful T-shirts and bandanas while waving flags.

With 10 seconds to go, the Crescent students started counting down before rushing onto the pitch to embrace their schoolmates at the final whistle.

Crescent captain Anisah, 13, credited pre-season friendly matches against other schools and the supporters for helping the team get the win.

She said: "I didn't have enough confidence at first but... we had quite a lot of friendly matches so I got used to the pressure.

"I felt very encouraged (by the cheering) and I had more motivation to persevere."

Nordin Manaff, who coached Crescent for 25 years, paid tribute to his charges and thanked the school's leaders and teachers for their support over the years.

"I'm overwhelmed because this is not just the work of this year. It's the past five to 10 years of development that's got us to where we are now," he explained.

"Our mentality was different this year because they followed the example set by their seniors (who were very determined in the final) and their winning mentality showed."

The 56-year-old added that the inclusion of an indoor hockey programme three years ago helped by improving the players' ball handling skills and technique.

Despite the loss, St Nicholas captain Melanie Chong, 14, said the result will motivate her teammates even more as they gear up for next year's competition.

"Regardless of the score, everyone has worked very hard and a lot have improved. We have no regrets," she said.

"We learnt a lot (like teamwork and communication) and hope these experiences will bring us to greater heights next year."

Her teammate Marabelle Lee broke down at the final whistle and also could not hold back her tears afterwards.

She said: "At every training session, we pushed ourselves 100 per cent and (today) I know we all played our best. We really have been wanting the gold and we were hoping for the win.

"But we told each other that no matter what, we would be proud of each other. So it was sad but at the same time, I was also very proud of the team and the way we played."