13th Straight Title - What a Remarkable Feat!

After hogging on to the Schools National C Division title for 12 consecutive years, ACS (Independent) did it again when they claimed this year’s title after a hard fought 22-15 win over their ACS (Barker Road) brothers at the Co-Curricular Activities Branch Stadium at Evans Road on 21 August.

Underdogs Barker Road drew first blood when they scored a fabulous try in the first 5 minutes. However, Independent rebounded strongly to end the first half with a 10-5 lead. Despite the disadvantage of one man being yellow-carded for a dangerous tackle, the lead was increased to 17-5 early in the second half, and further again to 22-5 after Independent captain Samuel brilliantly shrugged off at least two defenders to score a try down the left.

But the game was not as one-sided as the score suggested. The Barker Road boys gave as much as they took and they really made the Independent boys work hard for their favourites tag. Following a period of sustained pressure in the Independent half that resulted in a series of penalties and a second Independent player being sin-binned for persistent fouling, Barker Road took advantage of being one man up this time and scored down the right through some good forward play to reduce the deficit to 22-10. At this stage, the Barker Road boys ably led by captain and stand-off Wesley took control; their kicks and runs gave the Independent fullback and backline a torrid time and before long the deficit was reduced by another five points when their determined backline broke through to score on the right again. The game ended 22-15 in Independent’s favour.

Although they lost the match, it was the Barker Road boys who stole the show and received the loudest cheers as they left the field. With the odds heavily stacked against them after losing 103-0 and 53-17 in two previous encounters, they fought tooth and nail and nearly created an upset with their fine performance. Those present were full of admiration of their determination and perseverance which epitomise the ACS Spirit.

According to Mr Boon Swan Heng, former ACS Rugby player and currently one of the coaches of the national U11 Champions ACS (Primary) team, “It was indeed a memorable final! It was such a great feeling to attend a match where it did not really matter which school wins!”

Mr Boon paid tribute to the coaches of all the schools in the ACS family for their efforts and dedication in bringing the ONE ACS Rugby programme to where we are today. He also expressed his appreciation to all the Old Boys and parents for their support and commented, “Nowadays, I see so many parents (non-Old Boys) who are extending their support to the school even after their boys have graduated. This augurs well for ACS Rugby!”

To celebrate the occasion, ACS (Independent) hosted a post-Final thanksgiving dinner at the Orchard Hotel. Gracing the event were the two Principals – Mr Peter Tan and Dr Ong Teck Chin, as well as the Mr Richard Seow, the Chairman of the ACS Board of Governors.