De Bruin: Singapore netballers have improved
New Zealand netball legend Leana de Bruin, a world champion and Commonwealth Games double gold medallist, was the special guest at yesterday's M1 Corporate Netball Challenge at Kallang Netball Centre.
She is the fifth player to achieve 100 international caps for New Zealand and is one of a select group to have played in five World Cups and three Commonwealth Games.
The 39-year-old de Bruin, who retired this year following an ankle injury, has been in town since Thursday.
The 1.90m-tall New Zealander and national player Yu Mei Ling played for the MPs and friends team, alongside Mr Tan Chuan-Jin, Minister for Social & Family Development and Mr Teo Ser Luck, Minister of State for Manpower, and MPs.
They played against an M1 senior management team and led 2-0 at half-time, but their opponents bounced back to 2-2 just after the interval.
The MPs eventually won 4-2, and M1 donated $50,000 to underprivileged children and youths-at-risk.
The event saw a turnout of 41 corporate teams competing in the competitive and social categories. They included teams from the banks, legal and audit firms, GLCs and MNCs.
De Bruin, who is also here as part of the M1 Schools Programme, will be conducting netball clinics for schools and the national age groups, sharing her tips and tricks with young, aspiring players tomorrow.
After the match, the bubbly de Bruin interacted with fans in a meet-and-greet session.
She said: "Going out there earlier, it felt a little bit weird, it felt like home!
"I'm looking at coaching now and coaching is my passion, so I'm just working out the papers first. But yes, you'll definitely be seeing me around."
When asked for her views on the Singapore national team, she said: "The girls have definitely improved.
"It looks like they have more knowledge of the game and they know the game's structure better. They're definitely more capable than before."
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