Singapore's netballers in M1 Nations Cup final

Oct 25, 2019 10:14 pm

The Singapore netball team marched into the M1 Nations Cup final for the first time since 2014, following a 57-47 victory over Papua New Guinea at the OCBC Arena on Friday (Oct 25).

Despite losing wing attacker Kimberly Lim to an injury after just eight minutes, the Republic, who are ranked world No. 28, held firm and led 13-12 against their 20th-ranked opponents after the first quarter.

Singapore stepped on the gas and extended their lead to 26-20 in the second quarter and 43-29 in the third, before sealing the 57-47 victory and a place in the final against Namibia, who defeated Botswana 54-47 in an earlier game to stay unbeaten.

Singapore had drawn 54-54 with Namibia, who are ranked world No. 30, in their opening game on Sunday.

Singapore coach Natalie Milicich knows her side are in for a difficult time, saying: "It'll be a tough match tomorrow. It's really important we are nice and relaxed going into the final, so we'll enjoy this win for a little while and focus on tomorrow in the morning.

"I think the players are in a place where they have a lot of confidence, and they know that even if something happens, we have a back-up plan - which is what we proved today. We haven't won this tournament in a long time so we will try to win it.”