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Singapore floorballers defeat Philippines 4-1 to retain Women's AOFC Cup

Chia Han Keong
·Editor
Updated ·2-min read
Singapore players celebrating during the Women's Asia Oceania Floorball Confederation Cup final match against the Philippines at OCBC Arena. (PHOTO: Eng Chin An/Singapore Floorball Series)
Singapore players celebrating during the Women's Asia Oceania Floorball Confederation Cup final match against the Philippines at OCBC Arena. (PHOTO: Eng Chin An/Singapore Floorball Series)

SINGAPORE — Singapore retained the Women's Asia Oceania Floorball Confederation (AOFC) Cup on Saturday (28 May), defeating the Philippines 4-1 in the final at the OCBC Arena.

Following a 2-3 defeat by their opponents the day before, the hosts scored first through Sandy Koh, but Michelle Coritina fired home from long range to equalise for the Philippines. However, the defending champions ramped up their firepower in the final period as they reeled off three goals to for the emphatic victory.

Koh was named Player of the Match after scoring twice in the final, and said, "The Philippines team are very tough opponents and we really worked hard for this, we came a long way... and we took our chances well today.

"Playing in front of home fans is a big motivation for us. We’ll continue to aim higher – we’re training hard for the SEA Games and World Championship, so we hope Singapore continues to support us.”

The victory ensured that Singapore forward Ong Hui Hui capped off her 18-year playing career in style, with the final being her last match. The 33-year-old, who joined the national team in 2005, concluded her career with 84 caps including seven World Championship appearances.

In the battle for third place, Thailand and Malaysia delivered a thrilling match, before Thailand came from behind for a 3-2 victory.

Malaysia had cruised to a 2-0 lead after two periods, but Thailand scored twice in the final period to level the score. The match went into extra time and Thailand’s Nelly Johansson’s golden goal tipped the scales in Thailand’s favour.

Meanwhile, the Singapore Under-19 team ended their campaign on a good note after beating Indonesia 6-1 in the fifth-placing match.

“I would say that we did relatively well for a young team with no experience. You can always train with your team, but when you go against opponents, I would say that the intensity is really high," said the U-19s' Player of the Match Natasha Lim.

"That's an area where my team actually managed to step up, even though it's our first international competition. We did pretty well.”

Floorball fans can return to the OCBC Arena next week for the Men’s World Floorball Championship Qualification tournament, taking place from 31 May to 4 June.

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