SINGAPORE: Despite stumbling in the inaugural UAE Netball Cup final, the Singapore national netball team is gaining momentum as they prepare for the year-end Singlife Nations Cup and Southeast Asian (SEA) Games.
Although the Singapore Vandas put up a dominant performance throughout the competition, they were not able to clinch the title, losing 53-62 to world No. 18 Namibia on Saturday, June 21.
Kenya won the bronze medal match, defeating the Republic of Ireland 46-37, while the UAE won 65-48 in the classification match against the USA.
“While the result didn’t go our way today (in the final), I couldn’t be prouder of the team for their performances throughout the week. We’ve laid a solid foundation and shown that we can push top teams right to the end,” said Vandas head coach Tara Steel, who took charge earlier this year.
Singapore finished second in the six-team round robin stage. Both Namibia and Singapore chalked up 23 points in the opening round, with four wins and a draw.
The Vandas started the competition on June 15 with a commanding 64-55 win over the Republic of Ireland and claimed a slender 42-40 win against world No. 25 Kenya in their second match.
Steel’s team held Namibia to a 49-49 draw in their third match and continued their dominance with wins against the USA (62-36) and world No. 23 UAE (71-59) in their final round robin match on June 20.
“It’s always tough to lose a final, but I’m very proud of how far this team has come,” said co-captain Toh Kai Wei, who earned her 100th cap during the tournament.
“We showed that we can match up against better-ranked opponents, and this experience will only make us stronger ahead of the Singlife Nations Cup and SEA Games at the end of the year.”
Apart from Toh, other Singapore national netball team players also reached significant milestones during the tournament. Co-captain Khor Ting Fang, Tan Yi Jie, and Reena Divya earned their 50th cap, while Priscilla Wong made her international debut.
The runners-up finish comes just a day after the Singapore Vandas were named Team of the Year at the 2025 Singapore Sports Awards. Assistant Coach Yeo Mee Hong was also recognised as Coach of the Year, in honour of their historic Asian Netball Championships title last year.
“While we’ve missed out (on the UAE Netball Cup title), the team has flown the flag high for Singapore. Their impressive performances over the week have given everyone a glimpse of how far we’ve come and where we’re headed. With the Singlife Nations Cup and SEA Games up ahead, we will have more opportunities to show that Singapore netball has what it takes to compete with confidence on the world stage,” said Daniel Ho, CEO of Netball Singapore.
“It’s also been incredibly heartening to see Singaporeans rally behind the team, from fans who turned up in Dubai, to those watching online and sending their support from home. Their belief drives us, and it is now on us to keep the momentum going.”
The Nations Cup will be played from Nov 2 to 8, while the SEA Games will be held in December in Thailand. The Vandas will be eager to claim their first SEA Games gold medal which they last won when it was hosted in Singapore in 2015.
After that memorable win, Singapore was left heartbroken by their causeway rival Malaysia, who defeated the Vandas in the following two SEA Games finals in 2017 and 2019.
They will also be keen to recapture the Nations Cup title, after suffering a loss to Kenya last year. It was Annette Bishop’s last outing with the Vandas after the competition, having served as the Vandas head coach for almost five years.
Singapore has won the Nations Cup three times, winning it in consecutive years in 2006 and 2007. They last won it in 2023, defeating long-time rival Papua New Guinea.
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