Whatever it takes

...a must watch

It's all in the mind.

Mind.

Think straight.

Don't get frustrated.

Mental mesti kuat.

Too little mind and you will bagai rusa masuk ke kampung.

Too much and it starts to feel heavy.

Just right, then settle d.

Your mind lets you see.

Lets you hear.

Lets you react.

Just don't lose your mind.

(okay i'm starting to sound like ky. better stop. but it's relevant.)

...

The first problem started on the day I got the form. The last problem was solved at 12:30a.m. on Saturday. Problems are like silly mistakes - they make your life interesting (well at least that's the optimistic side).

Lack of players. No one wants to be keeper. How to get the parents' signatures on time? Keeper's helmet and gear. Not enough jerseys. Players no transport.

...

Then finally, the day itself. All the efforts put in - it all culminates down to this. We did it all for this.

And, by some weird stroke of memory loss, I FORGOT TO TAKE MY FLOORBALL STICK OUT OF THE CAR.

Oh noooo.

Nevermind, borrow stick, different feel but still ah what to do. It works.

Bak Hu Loti first game. Bak Kua Loti second game. Bak Hu Loti again third game. Settle, spend the whole first hour at the court.

...

Bak Hu Loti's first game - Hybrid: Sugar & UniHawks. Eventual runners-up.

Wah, honestly, it was mensiasuikan (means embarrasing). The ignorance of the players was most definitely NOT bliss, not at that very moment.

You know what, maybe we should've sent one team in only.

Ah, but for the sake of the growth of floorball :).

I can't bear to watch.

...

And that day, for me, when in court, half of the battle was in the mind.

You kinda feel lost on court sometimes. Where do I go? What should I do? What am I doing?

Or frustrated, till your patience is cut when your teammates don't know what "tap" (tap the ball during a free hit) and "clear" (clear the ball) mean.

Or just struck in disbelief when the ball somehow rolls past your keeper into the net.

Or wishing you could play floorball properly.

...

And eventually Bak Hu Loti did pick up their pace - with the synergic combination of sisters Natalie and Stephanie stabbing in some less-than-beautiful-but-still goals; first-time goalkeeper Joyce making some very good saves and catches; and the defense beefing up with Vern Ern clearing the balls.

No, I don't regret sending in two teams. For the sake of the growth of floorball :). It was good exposure.

For Bak Kua Loti, I'd say it was an off-day, including myself. For me la, from my perspective. Opponents seemed to cut through the defense and weave around as if nothing was there to stop them. And the forwards weren't delivering. The goals weren't coming.

Okay, uh, before this gets taken wrongly, I don't mean the players weren't good. They are.

Anyways, even step-in coach / team manager Gary was so kin-cheong at the sidelines.

Let's just say we were the underdogs, the small fish.

...

At the end of the day, once all's said and one, it was good exposure, much fun, experience gained, knowledge earned.

"...just too much pressure on you to perform alone"

Well said, Von.

...

Penghargaan =D

ALL the players (i mean ALL), for being willing to join and wake up early and play to the best of your abilities. I appreciate you, honest.

Beverly and Joyce, for agreeing to be goalkeepers. Thanks.

Gary Lee Kah Yoon, for the big HELP he's been to the teams. Like driving from Tanjung Tokong to PISA to collect parents' signatures, solving the problems I dumped on him after he stepped in for Alex, buying kneeguards, supporting, and being the only guy involved at a team's sidelines throughout the tournament.

The organizers, referees, secretariats, ball-pickers - for making the tournament historic and to remember.

And God, for being there. Means a lot.

*i know this write-up is very messy. it's a personal-experience-report-thingy. proper report and reviews to be up.*

So What Can I Say?

Lesson #01: Don't you ever take Wall posts on Facebook nonchalantly.
Cuz that's how this particular friendly kicked off.

Lesson #02: Friendlies're much more than just coming together and playing.
Yeah, loads of legal, logistic, leadership and locale issues to settle. Still it's good work, cuz at the end of the day you just step back and can't help but marvel at the results.

Lesson #03: Technology always helps.
I can't imagine how this friendly would've happened if not for Alexander Graham Bell and (I forgot) whoever created the Internet. Thank you all.

Lesson #04: Of inspirational speeches.
Ah yes. Mikey's favourite topic.
Get your team pumped, brainwash them!
After all mental's real important.
"Therefore, whether you eat or drink, or in whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God." - 1 Cor 10:31
So, that's it! Play floorball for none other than God's glory, have fun in between, give it all you've got.



Lesson #05: Winning isn't everything.
The main dish is playing your best. Winning's an extra. Like, buy 1 free 1, y'know.



Lesson #06: Support is very much appreciated.
Firstly, A BIG BIG BIG THANK YOU TO ALL FIREBRANDS (and G12 too!) SUPPORTERS, whether you're from fireBRANDS, Frontliners, Ztec... thankyouforcoming!
Right, but not only that support, but from all the players who agreed to play, and who came for the trainings, and who turned up to tire themselves out during the friendly.
Yes, I know I probably put you girls (and two boys) up against markedly tougher opponents, but the exposure was good. You don't lose much but you definitely learn a lot.



Lesson #07: Listen to your coach, stand-in or not.
Yup. Coaches are usually older, and with old age comes much wisdom. It helps.
And to put this lesson into practice, listen to this bit:
"..But they did do a good job although they didn't really know the rules and some of them came in only few weeks before this thingy. It was all pretty good I guess." - Coach James.



Lesson #08: It's consolation, but it's still a prize.
That brings us to my favourite match (which is obviously the one we won. yes i kiasu.).
The first goal definitely sparked something, and I knew it'd be like really mensiasuikan if we lost all our matches.
I thought only of clinging on to the lead and hopefully surviving through G12's pace (Charmaine's, most glaringly obvious. She definitely rocks at this sport.).
But. Opportunity came, and I snatched it. It was the first time I'd run for the ball directly after a face-off.
Then I remembered Kuan Yang's words of wisdom: Try taking shots from your backhand.
It totally worked :)

Lesson #09: Floorball gets us new friends.
Yup yup! Close friend, Von!



Lesson #10: Come back with a vengeance: come for training.
The momentum's definitely there.
Rallying 8 girls for the friendly was definitely well worth it.
Firebrands FC definitely has its unexpected growth spurts: this is one of them.
So yeah, keep the (floor)ball rolling!
And soon we'll be the top girls' club in Penang.

The Frontliner-turned-Firebrand Speaks Again.

I would be studying now, and I should be studying now, if not for this! And now I wonder what sparked that charitable spirit to voluntarily write a post here.

Well, some things just need to be said, I guess.

This is a personal account bytheway, so if you're looking for something a li'l more picture-fied and general go to www.firebrands-irri.blogspot.com, and wait for the write-up by Joyce.

..

So it was all down to this moment, after two good months of cajoling and people pulling out and last-minute additions.

Me, at the face-off, with a Salichick. Knowing full well that Firebrands Mah won their first match against G12's J-square. Also knowing that I kinda reek at face-offs? Thinking: Look, ref, I'd appreciate it if you blow that darn whistle already cuz the tension's killing me!

We, Firebrands Lor, wobbled off to an uneasy start, obviously not warmed-up yet, still kinda blur. Salichicks were obviously the stronger half, in experience, in pace (compared to us la), in skills.

That match was frustrating, for me. Seriously.
Strike One: I ask someone to tap the ball to me during a free hit. She taps it to the opponents. And I was like: ...WHAT?!
Strike Two: A Salichick, aggressively determined to hustle for the ball, pressures me. I sidestep past her with the ball, I trip over her stick, I take a nasty fall. My elbow suffered for the rest of the day. Even washing it with water was like setting it on fire.
Strike Three: A teammate of mine kept keeping the ball away from me and didn't pass it over. No hard feelings, I really thank her for playing, but well frankly it was frustrating.

I think we lost 2-0. Something like that. I forgot.

..

We had to win this match, or we'd just hafta pack our bags and leave.

But still, Ednamodes. What's the chances of beating G12's second string?

So I took the ball, possibly controlled it for a second or two, and shot. And when it went in I was so friggin' HAPPY.

And I worked extra hard making sure Ednamodes wouldn't get that equalizer. Eulene and Nathania did a great job down in front of the goal.

Whistle blew thrice, and I felt the utmost relief! We actually overcame the odds! And we were actually going through to the next round! (It's the luck of the draw that both Firebrands Mah and Lor got through, I'm telling you.)

..

The next match we had against Ztec was good, in a sense that we actually held them to a draw. Yes, I know I wasted so many opportunities to score, but ah well. Even if we did win it wouldn't have made much of a difference (just bragging rights..), cuz we took a beating after that from Contact Sugar and another thrashing from UniHawks.

The odds of beating Contact Sugar were like the odds of an elephant eating a panda bear. With ladies like Sheryn and Serene?

I lost track of the score. The most baffling moment was when there were three Firebrands in front of the goal, and the ball still rolled in. So much for beefing up the defence - Contact was just in another league. I gave up in the middle of the match - darn.. mental tak kuat lagi.

I promised myself to be more mentally kuat against UniHawks. If we won it would be like SpongeBob SquarePants permanently turning fluorescent pink. Not gonna happen, not against the likes of Sarah Ng, Wai Wai, Dawn, Suleen...

Oh yeah we got thrashed. Real bad. My 4th time getting thrashed by UniHawks. BUT, like last year's Youthwave, I managed to get a goal in. Nothing is impossible with God, that I know. It was a bee-yoo-tiful shot! A very nice consolation.

..

One thing I can never catch is Kutu's spirit of Let's Just Have Fun.

Thank you Firebrands Mah: Sarah, Eureka, Cherie, Natalie, Leanne.
Thank you Firebrands Lor: Nathania, Stephanie, Eulene, Me.
Thank you James, for the excellent draw, or we would've packed our bags earlier; and for the li'l coaching.
And lastly, thank You God, for being there. I know You were, when we prayed before every match.

Maybe next year?

Till then, COME FOR TRAINING ALL YOU PEREMPUAN-PEREMPUAN! :)

Through a Spectator's Eyes

So, you've heard it from a Fireliner's view, now it's time to hear it from a fireBRANDS' supporter.
Now I may not play floorball (I'm more of a Captain Ball person, you see) or understand the game completely, but I know enough to say that today's match was definitely worth the watch (even though my favourite player, Chan Per Yue was absent from the match)!

Shall I begin with how I was "warmly" welcomed into the court by the Frontliners' Captain, Michael? Yes I think I shall.
So I walked in just behind today's Center, Andrew through the doors closest to where the players were gathered. I then continued my journey cross court to the bleachers where Joyce was seated and where Sarah Khoo was very dutifully opening the blinds? As i passed the side of the court hidden beneath the cap I stole from Le Roy, I had not noticed a floorballer practicing his shooting just beside me until I heard a rather sharp, loud whoosh-ing sound pass me just inches away from my face. Had I been a few seconds later to walk past, I would've met my fate with a floorball ball to my face.
But of course, Captain Frontliner did apologize numerous times as I stood there in shock. Lol. It was sorta funny looking at his facial expression. I think the application of "look right and left and right again before crossing" would've been much to my advantage here if I had known better!

The match only started pass 11 and the rest of the fireBRAND noise-makers were no where to be seen. First half of the match for us started with a bang with Dan scoring yet another first-goal-of-the-match, giving us the lead 1-0. Being the fireBRANDS that we are, we made the whole place a ruckus even though there were only less than 10 supporters by the bleachers..? Ohhh yeahhh, that's the fireBRANDS power right there. LOL. Anyway, the match continued and the kin cheong-ness grew as the first half ended in a 2-1 lead for us :) Oh and not forgetting our very own fireBRANDer who played for the opposing team (haha, it's better than calling you "the fireBRAND who betrayed us", Tania) who fought over the ball with Dan numerous times! It was kinda funny watching no.5 vs no.5 going after the ball. I cheered for you, Tania!!!

The rest of our usual supporters then joined us in time for the second half along with our stand in coach for the day, Linken. Poor guy probably went home without half his hearing after sitting on our side of the bleachers. Nonetheless, I'm sure our team was thankful for his guidance and for giving us supporters even more to cheer for! Linken's words to us before the second half started, "This should be an interesting second-half" (or somewhere along that line, I'm sorry I can't remember the exact words) definitely came true.

Second half of the fireBRANDS vs Frontliners match was nothing short of exciting. The heat was on at it's maximum. The supporters were full-on ready to lose their voices. The weather was getting hotter. The crowd was getting restless. The players were getting tired. The camera batteries were dying.

fireBRANDS' team went full throttle, head-on with their attacks and Bryan's goal defence was at it's peak. We were shocked at Michael's sudden half-court goal which brought the score to 2-2, but we didn't let it bring us down. I missed that shot though. I must've blinked or something. Anyway, our fireBRANDS spirit and ever famous "never say die" attitude was given a loud awakening after that shot and floorballers' engines at turbo speed.

Before we even realised it, the match had come to and end as the final whistle was sounded. And even though we didn't win, we didn't lose either, so that's good :D

So to the fireBRANDS floorballers, game well played! Though saying "well played" may be a bit of an understatement for us who are relatively new to this sport. Keep up the fireBRANDS spirit, you are the fiery floorballers, after all.

To describe your performance today in one word ;- AWESOME.

Thank you for giving us supporters a fun match to watch... and sore throats. You make us proud to be a part of the fireBRANDS :)

Signing out.-

Pictures will be added as soon as
I get my lazy self to upload them into the computer!

by Chew Yan Y

The Fireliner Speaks.

Accused of betrayal, the Firebrand/Frontliner has decided to write a personal account on the recent Frontliners 300 v Firebrands match.


I really don't know why I bothered waking up so early.

I had a healthy two hours before June'd come and fetch me (thank you june!), and I felt like practicing floorball.

Went to get the stick, and guess what? I forgot - it wasn't with me.

Pfft.

So I read Sejarah Tingkatan 4 instead. Yes, before that floorball match I so very badly and desperately wanted to win (partly so that Andrew won't have a chance to scoff at me lol).

..

Gosh the black jersey's huge. I was drowning in it.

..

The morning at Dalat started off with exchanging grins with Andrew while thinking of the repercussions of a loss.

Yup, one thing Firebrands has which Frontliners definitely lacks sometimes: a bunch of supporters.

Really, I didn't know whether to be happy or otherwise to see 'em in one awesome group in the stands.

I think the warm-up was kinda lackadaisical.

..

So the first half was pretty great, for me - at least I got to go in there (the court I mean).

Go in there and chase after that pesky fella (apple-green number 5 with Mikey's old pink stick) who basically ran everywhere.

And so it happened while I was out of court, watching from the sidelines as the ball came towards our goal - Daniel Tan taking very good advantage of the loopholes in 300's defense - and, to say the least, it was messy. Scrappy. The horrible ball-bouncing-helplessly-in-front-of-goal-as-huge-clump-of-people-try-in-vain-to-clear-it scenario.

You could see that everyone's stick was trying so desperately to clear that ball. Except for that one pink blade which kept uncannily calm until the perfect moment and...

...the pink blade slapped the ball.

And the ball went past Soon Khai, and the Firebrands supporters cheered and Daniel Tan was all smiles.

Oh crap.

What a way to start off.

The goal was nothing like the ones from the land where Henrik Quist and Swiss cheese comes from. It was messy. But still, it was a freakin' goal.

..

And after what seemed like really, really long moments, Mikey equalised, thankfully. Great job Mr Cheah.

..

And boy oh boy those Firebrands were quick and more than happy to reply, this time with a beautiful long shot from (correct me if I'm mistaken) Andrew (the big, fat (no offense! but relatively, he was?), hulking number 10) and the ball went past Khai like lightning, flying past the keeper into the top of the net.

EDIT: Sorry. Pesky (you know how he runs everywhere...) number 5 scored that goal, not Andrew.

..

So we shall skip now to the second half, when I didn't get to play, to the dismay of my adoring fans who just came from JYB. Haha.

It's okay I'm used to it. Plus firstly, I wasn't the only one and secondly, cheering from the sidelines still counts.

It was extremely excruciating waiting for an equalizer, which took like forever to come.

Even more dumbfounding was June getting sent off (from the first half, spilled over into the second) once for I-don't-know-what, secondly for walking over to the sidelines once her 2 minutes was over, thirdly for the same reason as the second time. It's okay, we would've done worse without you, June.

Mikey was placed in defense with June/Roselyn backing him up, and Megan centre, and Julian/Tristan/Kenneth as forwards.

And the Coach's (who I forgot to mention lost his voice so Kuan Yang did most of the shouting from the stands instead) plan finally paid off, well into the second half, when one of Mike's terrific long shots found its way past Bryan.

What a relief.

Mikey looked like he'd just won the lottery.

Andrew won't have much scoffing rights after all.

..

That was it for the match, and I wasn't happy, obviously, cuz firstly I wanted to win against Firebrands and secondly, like Carrard said, most of our hopes for a medal went up in flames.

..


Conclusion?

I love being a Frontliner. Darnnn I'm gonna miss you guys.

But still.

I'm a Firebrand. And that's that.

(And yes, it was hard but I've thanked God for the draw, even though I don't like the measly one point when we could've gotten two, but ah well, give thanks for everything.)


One last note: Unfortunately Andrew still managed to scoff mildly at me and I had to endure countless references to the floorball match later that night. Pfft. Though, I admit, as a Firebrand, I'm happy we (Firebrands) got a draw. As a Frontliner though, I'm not satisfied with the draw we (Frontliners) got.

posted by tania loke

The Account of James as Stand-In Coach for the day.

FireBrands vs Ztec Phoenix

3 – 6

The Game of games we are to face. Placed at the top of the table the phoenix team have a greater advantage and experience on the court. I was faced with sleepless nights and distressing pressure on my part. The news came two nights before the game. To take note I was already trying to figure out what can the team do without a coach and not only that, the coach will be against us when we face the FL300. Then the coach let in the bomb.. “I won’t be around this sat.. coz of national training” my heart sank.. I was feeling desperate and now all hope is lost.. I couldn’t sleep for almost 2 weeks with the thought of facing 300 and now this.. the top team in the league. It was beyond belief or my imagination of worse things to happen in my sporting life. I was given the responsibility of taking over the coaching role of this team in a sport I hardly played for only once in the whole year against a more experienced team and this wasn’t a sport I’d come to personalize as I had with American football. Still I was already given the word which to me felt like weighed a ton on my already sleepless nights, on that night I couldn’t sleep till about 3 a.m. The only remedy I could think of was to somehow do something that would get rid of this feeling. So I called on our faithful goalie, Bryan the man who faithfully came to train with me for two days before the game Daniel and Gary were also there supporting and training at the same time. I really thank God for these two young men.

Finally the morning came I arose from my sleep feeling somewhat better from the past two days of extra effort training and letting out of my pumping adrenaline; I was calm and excited at the same time. I was confident that I could bring the team through. Gulp down a glass of creatine, went to Khaleel for breakfast with Daniel and Gary, and went on to the battle field or skills and mental health. The team was there early. I was preparing myself mentally and also thinking of what to say to boost the team. The younger boys were running around having fun with the ball that we split in half during training due the amount of beatings it took against the concrete wall. I was happy to see their carefree hearts as well as wanting them to get their head in the game that it’s no hobby thing that we’re doing out here but a competition that we are participating in.

I pulled myself together as I geared up myself with my guards(wrist, elbow, finger) to suppress the minor strains and injuries I sustained from the training the last 2 days. Got the team together for warm up, told them about the formation and play routes that were important to minimize the opponent’s score and gave some pep-talk before it all began. Alex prayed and we were off into the arena. My first team: Daniel, Per Yue, James(myself), Alex and Andrew. Everything felt still and quiet as I walked to face the opponent captain, I could almost hear my own heartbeat as we greeted each other somewhat silently, the wait for the whistle felt forever. I could almost laugh but nothing came out. It was so immense, thinking “c’mon ref we’re both ready, blow that thing already!!” As soon as the whistle went off everything passed like a whiff. Players running around the court chasing for the ball or guarding their assigned players. I was observing my line as I was hunting for the man coming with the ball hoping my team mates stayed in their course and thankfully they did. The ball went up and down the court swiftly, we were pressuring them as our forwards were trying to find an open space while our defense was also in the volley of tipping away the ball with our blades. After a series of attempts finally our team scored the first goal of the day. Even against a far superior team we managed to land the ball behind the net first 0:49 seconds into the game which came as a total surprise but quickly we settled down and played on and went on to a reverse in the score line as they returned us the favor 3 times over and the score was 3 – 1. Time was running short in the first half and we kept on pushing the line and trying to hold their offense away suddenly the ball was in their zone and unexpectedly a goal, for us; Per Yue our undersized forward line put the ball in their net the second time. The team, the fans, all were ecstatic, it was unbelievable as the Phoenix’s goal had only been broken once and by Dalat which was also a very good team last year’s reigning champion. We’ve made the score line close again. In minutes the halftime whistle blew, we were relieved at that, it meant a breather for us after running around the whole first half chasing scores.

After the first half and a close fight for scores at 3 – 2 the team deserved a pat on their backs. We all took a well deserved break and prepared for the next half with hopes of getting in more goals or preventing the other team from doing too much damage after seeing their spirits ready to give us a heck of a run. The ball rolled and I tried for a run for goal as soon as the ball left the face off but was met by 2 defensive players (=. They then kept the line of defense busy and being the centre trying to cover up for holes ended up taking shots from their forwards blades numerous times only to let one in the ball hit my foot and skipped over Bryan’s hands. The Phoenixes were keen on firing more shots at our goal, but our determined forward line were also eager to land as many shots as we can, so leaving the defensive player and the center behind Daniel managed to give their defense another run and this time managed to land another shot in the back of the net with the score now 3 – 5 and minutes left to go, we conceded another goal but tried to keep a balanced attack and defense routine however, the formation which held the team this far finally broke and the last score of the day was shot in by the Phoenixes. We were now playing to keep them from scoring anymore shots and then the whistle blew to our relief of holding up anymore, it is finished as I quote (=. Even though we physically the match in terms of score, we felt like winners inside. It was a great achievement for a team totally new to this game and the league to have maintained a 3 – 0 win and not more from the league leaders who only did the same to the two previous teams they faced.

OH and I finally got my sleep back!!

*taken from James personal account.