Team NTU won an arm-wrestle and overcame a stern challenge from SMU during their opening inter-varsity clash with a 27-12 victory at SPE. The men in black were given one almighty scare during a resurgent SMU fight back in the second half before finally edging out with a hard fought win.

With the game kicking off at a frantic pace in the opening minutes, the Boon Lay Warriors started ominously, monopolising territory and constructing characteristic multi-phase build-up from the opening whistle.

NTU dictated the early exchanges but their attacking momentum was stifled by a committed SMU defence and a slew of ruck penalties favouring the opposition. The NTU forwards worked hard to lay a stable platform for their backline to attack but often find themselves at the receiving end of heavy penalties for infringing at the breakdown.

Despite some searching runs from the NTU backline, the SMU counterparts held strong in defence.

“We created enough opportunities, but we’re really disappointed with the amount of penalties going against our way,” skipper Kevin ‘Salsa King’ Ang told blogosphere reporters.

‘Catwalker’ ZZZ ensured the Boon Lay Warriors drew first blood in the match, scoring the opening try just under 10th minute. The try came off the back of committed mauling, with ZZZ diving his way over after collecting a loose ball.

A moment of brilliance from half-back Adam ‘Mat Solo’ Chan saw him stepping through the base of a ruck before dashing unopposed across the line for NTU’s second try in the 16th minute.

Team NTU continued to crank up the pressure and scored a third try against the run of play through KKK and fly-half Daniel ‘Potato’ Thiam extended the points with a drop goal just before the interval, making certain of a comfortable 22-0 lead going into halftime.

The second half saw a disastrous start for the Boon Lay Warriors as they were reduced to 14 men right from the start of kickoff after pack leader ‘Babyface Assassin’ Yik was sin-binned for an unintentional dangerous tackle.

Flowing rugby became a struggle with the reshuffling of players in the forward pack and the regular sound of the referee’s whistle further hampered as most breakdowns brought a penalty to one of the sides.

The referee particularly enjoyed the sound of SK’s number, frequently screaming out the NTU centre for straying offside throughout the match.

Gradually, SMU began to edge out and in the 56th minute they were rewarded when a foray into the NTU-22 saw a forward drive barreling over the line for their first try of the night.

It was a tough battle up front where neither side was able to gain a decisive upper hand but SMU showed they had more momentum going forward. With 12 minutes left on the clock, the lead was down to twelve as SMU scored through a counter-attack, displaying outstanding support play during the process.

Despite fading towards the end, ‘Potato’ Thiam pounced on opportunist pressure and picked up a loose ball to score against the run of play and put the match beyond doubt.

“We won the game, that’s all I’m asking for and we are very pleased about that,” said Coach Lincoln Tan.

On an abysmal second half from the forwards, Stormy Normy revealed, “We trained so well but we never took it on to the field in certain areas. We just didn’t gel, especially in the second half. We became anxious and probably didn’t hold our depth well enough.”

“In terms of the points, to be fair we don’t think the score line was a fair reflection of the second half we watched,” said SMU supporters.

Despite a strong all-round performance by SMU in the second half, they remain winless and bow out of contention after both rounds of the competition and the varsity champion will be determined between NTU and NUS as they go head to head in a title-decider next weekend.