In July, 23 pupils from Years 9 – 10, accompanied by three members of staff, travelled to Singapore and Malaysia for an unforgettable Hockey, Netball, and cultural tour.
Two netball squads and one hockey squad played six, very competitive fixtures against skilful and determined opposition.
The trip began in Singapore, where the squads enjoyed a night safari, city tour and river cruise, before playing their first Hockey fixture against the Crescent School which they drew 0-0.
Following an amazing night Light Show in the bay, the tour departed the next morning by coach to travel across the border to Malaka, Malaysia, for a cultural walking tour and their first netball fixture. Here they experienced two tough games against very strong opposition at SMK Seri Kota.
From here the tour moved on to the bright lights and skyscrapers in the busy city of Kuala Lumpur, where pupils experienced cultural experiences at Batu Caves, The Forest Research Institute of Malaysia, a visit to the National Mosque and a tour up the iconic Petronas Towers.
More tough netball games followed against at Selangor Sport School, but unfortunately the hockey fixture against Kuala Lumpur Sports School had to be abandoned midway through the match due to torrential rain and a terrifying but spectacular thunderstorm.
Before departing Kuala Lumpur, the girls enjoyed some down time at the Subway Lagoon Water Park and the markets in China Town!
The tour continued up through Malaysia to Penang to the Golden Sands Beach Resort Hotel. The girls enjoyed the hotel pools in between cultural visits to George Town, the UNESCO stilt houses at Chew Jetty, and Buddhist temples.
The third netball fixture was played against older and competitive teams from Mutiara Impian, but our teams gave determined and improved performances.
On the way toward Ipoh for the final leg of the tour, everyone enjoyed a boat trip to the Bukit Merah Orangutan Foundation island.
The tour ended on a high note with final hockey game in Ipoh against RPS School at the Sultan Azlan Stadium. Our team played with grit and determination, implementing learning from the previous matches to finish with a 4-5 loss.
It was very rewarding to see the our pupils showing determination and resilience in coping with playing in the intense heat and humidity against very strong opposition, and wonderful to witness the improvement in everyone's sports performance throughout the tour, as well as seeing them mix with the opposition and embrace the cultural experiences.