By Raffles Press
After two weeks of intense competition, the games have finally come to a close. Raffles Press brings you the highlights of TRG Week 2 (Part 2), featuring the games played on 6th and 7th August.
Piano Ensemble: Noteworthy
By Benjamin Liew (20A03A)
Soothing music, beautiful communal singing, and a healthy dose of school spirit were the features that defined piano ensemble’s TRG. That, and an unhealthy amount of angry-bird-plushie-smacking.
At 4.44pm, the activities commence. First up is a game that tests the participants’ pitch accuracy (and quadriceps, in fact). With each member assigned a note, a piece is played on the piano, and the participants must squat upon hearing this note. While initially confusing, teams eventually warm up to this game, and most houses easily clear this first round.
The real excitement starts with the introduction of the second game: Guess the song. Players gather tensely around a piano stool while a single red angry bird plushie sits nervously upon it. The piano ensemble member begins playing, a beautiful melody wafting through the air. Players sit cross-legged, staring intently at the floorboards as they try their best to decipher the notes—
‘WHAM’.
The bird is slammed mercilessly into the hard wooden stool. With no shortage of confidence, a HH player declares, “Perfect by Ed Sheeran”. With a nod and a smile from the piano ensemble team, cheers and applause ring out from the players. With the allure of earning even more points if the correct lyrics are sung, the HH player is encouraged to attempt to sing along. He does so with gusto, and soon the room is filled with a dozen voices all melding together beautifully as the players temporarily lose themselves in the music.
With other hits like ‘A Million Dreams’ and ‘The Institution Anthem’ inciting much more excitement (and violence; the poor bird) it is suffice to say that the TRG was a huge hit, regardless of who won or lost.
Rankings:
1st: BW
2nd: BB
3rd: MT
4th: HH
5th: MR
Volleyball: You Just Got Served
By Rachel Leong (20A01A), Megan Soh (20A01B), and Mah Xiao Yu (20A01B)
One might expect the Volleyball TRG matches to be friendly ones amongst amateurs who didn’t know much about volleyball. Imagine our shock when we entered the volleyball courts only to find them akin to a battlefield. Warm-ups were intense from the get-go and it was clear to see that players were going all out for victory—they weren’t about to show any mercy to their opponents. An electrifying set of games was sure to come.
The game had been modified such that each side could have a maximum of five hits, as opposed to three in regular volleyball games. This provided more leeway for team members to be more involved as everyone could actively go after the ball everywhere it went. And the players were indeed involved. After the starting players assembled on two separate courts and the long-anticipated whistles blew, the players launched into a blur of relentless spikes, steady receives, and incredible saves.
True to the spirit of volleyball, the players used all parts of their bodies. Arms and legs extended out to save the ball from falling onto their side of the court, resulting in many entertaining and amazing saves. Many a time, some players even kicked the ball to save it, resulting in a resounding wave of cheers from the spectators. Services were also equally unbelievable, with serves that frequently went out of bounds due to the sheer force and power. Spectators and players alike were kept on their toes and everyone watched with bated breath. The audience was taken on an emotional rollercoaster: spikes that were believed to surely win a point for one team and celebrated with early cheers ended up being deflected by the other in a split second, turning cries of happiness into screams of frustration. And yet, no matter whose side the point went to, players straightened up, dusted themselves off, and came back for more.
The spirit of dedication was a constant throughout the event: even during the respective teams’ breaks, they practiced among themselves, seizing whatever pockets of downtime they had to brush up on their skills and strengthen their teamwork. It was heartening to see how seriously each house took the games and how much they desired to emerge victorious. What was even more heartening was the virtue of sportsmanship displayed by all houses; win or lose, they concluded the matches with good-natured high-fives and fist bumps all around in appreciation of everyone’s individual efforts.
The setting of the sun and the darkness that slowly enveloped the sky did nothing to douse the fiery enthusiasm of everyone present at volleyball TRG; despite the fact that it was getting late and there was still school the next day, no one harboured any desire to wrap up and leave quickly. Perhaps the fact that it was one of the last few TRGs loomed close by, and even though everyone was clearly enervated by the intense rigour of the games, we knew they’d choose to do it all over again in a heartbeat if they could.
Alchemy / RSBS: I Scream, You Scream, We All Scream for Ice Cream
By Rachael Koh (20S07C)
There’s a buzz of excitement in the air in LT4 as friendly taunts are being thrown around. In the corner of the LT, some are gathered around a biophysics textbook, hoping to get in some last minute mugging before the quiz starts.
“Okay, we’re starting!” The air seems almost still, the teams quiet as they wait for the battle of the brains to begin. It doesn’t. The first game is revealed to be… ice-cream making? ‘What does that have to do with science?’ you might be wondering.
Turns out, there’s a lot of science behind ice-cream making. With some simple ingredients, you too can make your own ice cream at home!
The teams from each house line up at the front of the LT, collecting their equipment and “chemicals”. They mix their “chemicals”, before collecting some ice and salt. Now, it’s time to shake!
BB seems to have employed the strategy of throwing the bag filled with their ice cream to each other, while MR and HH go for the classic, taking turns to shake. Meanwhile, in MT and BW, one member shakes the bag for the entire 15 minutes.
As they hand their ice cream over to the judges, the teachers-in-charge of Alchemy and RSBS, it’s time for the moment of truth. BB seems to have done the best, gaining the title “closest to tasting like ice-cream”.
We now move on to the long awaited quiz segment. There are a total of 4 rounds, where teams warm up by guessing concepts based on pictures, followed by guessing phrases based on words, then Jeopardy, and lastly the speed round.
By the end of round 2, HH is far in the lead with 150 points, while MR is last with -35 points. However, there is still a chance to change their fate in Jeopardy. The teams aim for more points, taking the risk to answer brain boggling questions that may give them 50 points.
After Jeopardy, HH remains in the lead with 255 points, while BB is close behind with around 230 points. With the place of champion riding on the speed quiz, the last round begins.
Shouts of “Press! Press! PRESS!!” echo in the LT from BB as they absolutely dominate the speed round, clinching first place for their house.
Rankings:
1st: BB
2nd: HH
3rd: BW
4th: MR
5th: MT
Basketball: Shooting for Victory
By Coco Liu (20S06L)
Though it was the last TRG to be played, enthusiasm levels ran high for the Basketball TRG. Half an hour before it was due to start, there were already many participants at the courts, making their preparations. By the time the TRG started properly, at 4.30pm, the courts were crammed with both participants and their supporters.
First, a briefing on the rules of the game. It was simple: two teams of four—three playing, one as a reserve who could be substituted in during the game—played against each other in a half-court. Points were scored by shooting into the (lone) hoop.
5.00pm, and the games began. Within a minute an accident had occurred: in one of the boys’ half-courts, an MT and BW player collide, sending them both to the ground. Yet though the BW player’s spectacles were sent flying, his first action was not to check on them—as most myopia sufferers are to do—but to extend a hand to his opponent, as if to check that he was alright. Fortunately, they were unharmed and continued the game as if nothing had happened.
Over at the girls’ courts, the games were no less intense. At one point a BW player shot, and—while the ball hung in the air and our hearts hung in our throats—the whistle signalling the end of the game sounded. Amidst the cheers in the background, the ball bounced on the rim of the rim of the hoop and out onto the ground.
The games lasted over two hours in total. At the end, sweat-soaked, and exhausted, two teams emerged as the champions: MR for the boys, and HH for the girls; HH also took home the title of overall champions. Nevertheless, good job to all the houses for their excellent playing and hard work!
Rankings:
1st: HH
2nd: MR
3rd: BB
4th: BW
5th: MT