Tickets to the Nations Cup 2022, one of Singapore’s netball iconic events returning to the OCBC Arena from 4-10 Dec this year after a two-year hiatus, are now on sale starting from just $4.
The 15th edition of the Nations Cup will feature six teams from five countries: 2011 champions Fiji, Ireland, Malaysia, Botswana, two-time champions Singapore, and a Singapore A team. The tournament will be played in a round-robin format, with the top two teams advancing to the finals.
“The Nations Cup is our flagship event and as Netball Singapore celebrates our 60th anniversary this year, we’re pleased to mark this milestone with the return of the tournament. This year presents a treat for netball fans in Singapore – we had the Asian Netball Championships here earlier this year and with the upcoming Nations Cup, there’s lots of exciting netball for everyone to enjoy,’ said Netball Singapore president Jessica Tan.
“Netball has grown in popularity over the last few decades and it is a well-loved sport here. We look forward to welcoming everyone back to the OCBC Arena next month.”
Singapore, who won the first two editions of the tournament in 2006 and 2007 and were finalists in 2019, return to competitive action fresh off their inspired performance at the recent Asian Netball Championships.
In the inaugural tournament, Singapore lost to Papua New Guinea in the round-robin match but managed to turn the tide when the two teams met again in the final as the host won 46-41 at the Toa Payoh Sports Hall.
The following year, Singapore defeated all their opponents in the group stage, before winning 56-32 against Trinidad and Tobago in the final.
The Singapore Opens team will be led by co-captains Toh Kai Wei and Khor Ting Fang, with veterans Kimberly Lim and Sindhu Nair also in the line-up. They will be joined by young stars including shooter Amandeep Kaur Chahal, defender Jamie Lim and centre Tan Yi Jie. Shooter Matilda Su-Yin Narayan is set to earn her first cap at Nations Cup 2022.
“The Nations Cup is one of the events we look forward to every year, and we’re glad it’s back. It’s a privilege for us to get to play on home ground again. The atmosphere we experienced during the Asian Netball Championships was electrifying, and knowing that the crowd was behind us no matter what really elevated our spirits and performance during the competition,” said Singapore defender Sindhu.
“We’ve been building on the lessons we learnt from that outing and finetuning some aspects of our game, and we can’t wait to put it all together at Nations Cup 2022.”
Spectators can also catch an early glimpse of the future of Singapore netball, through the up-and-coming players that form the Singapore A team. These include shooter Goh Wei Ping, who made her international debut at the Asian Netball Championships in September, as well as defenders Faithmaria Lawrence and Shannon Tan.
The Singapore A team also boasts an experienced defender in Aqilah Andin, who is returning to competition after giving birth in July. The 26-year-old has 80 caps and her international experience includes being part of the gold-winning team at the 2014 Asian Netball Championships, as well as competing at the 2019 Netball World Cup and SEA Games.
“It’s wonderful to be able to return to competitive netball on home ground and even more so at a tournament that holds such special memories. I’ve been playing netball for many years and had the chance to learn from senior players who have guided me well throughout my career,” said Aqilah, who was part of Singapore’s Nations Cup team at the last edition in 2019 in which Singapore finished in second place, losing 49-42 to Namibia.
“The Singapore A team has many talented rising stars, and I’m looking forward to being team-mates with them and enjoying ourselves on court next month.”
Tickets are available at (https://ticketmaster.sg/activity/detail/22_nationscup22)
Singapore team for Nations Cup 2022
*number of caps denoted in brackets
Shooters
Amandeep Kaur (10), Matilda Su-Yin Narayan (0), Tan Xinyi (19), Toh Kai Wei (54) co-captain
Mid Court
Angelina Lim (14), Khor Ting Fang (13) co-captain, Kimberly Lim (101), Tan Yi Jie (11)
Defence
Jamie Lim (18), Reena Divya (4), Sindhu Nair (42), Yew Shu Ning (7)
Singapore A team for Nations Cup 2022
*number of caps denoted in brackets
Shooters
Chloe Lee (0), Goh Wei Ping (2), Priscilla Wong (0), Syntyche Yeo (0)
Mid Court
Cheyenne Lim (0), Jenine Ang (0), Laura Low (0), Rachel Ling (3)