SEAG netball: Singapore crushes Phl

The Philippines' Janelle Mendoza tries to stop Singapore's Charmaine Soh from scoring. (Mark Cheong/ST)

The Philippines ran into tough Singapore right on the first day of netball competitions and lost, 28-80, at the Santa Rosa Sports Complex in Laguna on Monday.

The 2015 champion and 2017 runner-up Singapore had a shaky first few minutes but eventually settled down to take the first quarter, 21-6.

The dominance continued in the next quarter for a 43-15 halftime time lead.

Singapore coach Natalie Milicich said it was significant to kick off the tournament with a lopsided victory that saw all her 12 players contribute, including SEA Games rookies Angelina Lim and Jamie Lim, aged 20 and 19 years old, respectively.

“We had the opportunity to try lots of different combinations, so it was a really good start for us,” Milicich said

Team captain Charmaine Soh said the win boosted their confidence for the succeeding matches. They face the Brunei squad on Wednesday.

“Everyone got on court and wanted to start the competition well. We had different set-ups, different kinds of communication and we were trying to work things out today,” said Soh.

Singapore will face its biggest test against defending champion Malaysia on Friday. (Straits Times)