Friday, May 2, 2008

I am unable to express my joy. We won Hwa Chong today. It was more than a win. We totally tore them down. I am elated, overjoyed. After the match, I just kept screaming and shouting. I was so damn happy. We are one step closer to our final destination - Toa Payoh Indoor Stadium A Division Finals. The first set was a lil' bad on my part. I kept losing points, and I let the team down. Guess I owe you all an apology. Coach had to even call a time-out in the starting minutes of the game, and he shouted at me. I felt quite bad, because I also kept stealing balls from other people, again, I apologise. After that, I got my act together. In addition, we had great team spirit, and they were very encouraging. From there, we made an incredible comeback, trailing by 6 points, we won consecutive points and won them the first set 25-19.

In the second set, we were already quite happy, and quite satisfied with our game, and we just kept our cool and played to our best. The constant shouting and the cheering of the fans were truly amazing. They just kept us going, and when we displayed great strength in all our areas - defence, blocking, spiking, setting, they were unable to break our "fortress", and we boosted our morale in the first few points of the 2nd set, thrashing them below five points. After that, their morale dropped to the max. We could see clearly that they had no more motivation to play. From there, we showed true talent, and in the end, thrashing them 25-11. That was when I nearly felt like crying. It really really felt very surreal to me. Like I was floating, and it was all a dream. That was when I heard everyone expressing their joy, I knew we had done it. We had beaten Hwa Chong.

I am beyond happy, yet deep down inside I knew I didn't play well today. Coach's shouting is still nagging inside me, and I'm so afraid I'll let the team down. So people, I will need all the encouragement I can get inside the court okay? Thank you. And I also know it's not over. Next match against Anderson JC, I know we can do it. Let's just play to the max of our abilities, and show everyone what we're made of. I know most of the referees aren't on our side, so we have to prove them wrong. We're the underdogs. We're the black horses. One more win, and we're in the top 4. Sounds good? Definitely.

There are a few people whom I want to thank especially. First and foremost, the most important of all, I want to thank God for seeing us through this far. I know alot of the team aren't christians, it's just me Sim and Shawn, but still, i kept encouraging them to pray (Charmain and Chloe also) and I told them, whatever the result, just thank God and honour his plans. Everything for His Glory. And truly, today he has provided victory. I am extremely happy to the max. Thank you Jesus. Really. True gratitude from the bottom of my heart. Everytime I'm nervous or anxious, I just pray, and this amazing feeling will just come upon me, like as if His hand is upon me, and I'm free from any burdens. Amazing stuff. (:

Secondly, I want to thank the coach, the volleyball girls and the seniors for their constant support. Coach has been encouraging us, and before every match he'll give a motivational speech, and say, "Wo dui ni men hen you xing xin. (:" And also, without the girls, training has been really quiet. There isn't anymore joking around already, and it is all dead serious, only once in a while I'll crack a joke. But it's just different y'know. And everytime it's my turn to serve, I walk to the service line, and I can literally hear each and everyone of them saying, "Go Joash!" And truly, it makes me want to play harder. Their screamings, their banging of the floor, just lifts our spirits and morale. Thank you people.

Thirdly, I want to thank the teachers from PJC, who are too many to count. Everytime they hear me make an announcement (which I'm now famous for by the way), they'll automatically come up to me and say, "Good job Joash! Continue to fight hard! (:" And really, it makes my day somehow. And everytime they praise us as a team, I really don't know what to say, i don't want to appear too cocky, and also quite shy. Like our principal Mrs Tan, who will always ask me what announcement I'm making, and then I say, "Oh, er, we won yesterday. Against ____". Then she'll say, "Well done! Whoa this year very good ah. How come you all keep winning?" I just keep quiet, don't know what to say. LOL. But still, all this makes my day. (:

Fourthly, I want to thank the netball team, some of them who keep encouraging us. They are just awesome. Everytime I see them in the canteen and we have a match on that day, they'll go like, "JOASH! Must win today okay! Jiayou!" and then a high-five. I always smile and say, "Yes, we'll try to beat them." As I said, I'm quite shy. Hahaha. I'll do my best to support the netballers also. GO PJ NETBALL!

Lastly, I wanna thank everyone else whom I've forgotten to thank here. Classmates, and school mates, you know who you are. And my parents too! They always call before a match and encourage me. Amazing huh! Thank you all. I know what you all thinking, not even the finals yet, this Joash start thanking everybody. Well, I just want you all to know that I really appreciate every single encouragment and support, and gratitude is important. So I'm thanking all of you here and now. THANK YOU ALL. Love you guys man. ROCK ON TO FINALS!

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