New Press Advertisement recently hosted a promotional hockey tour at the National Hockey Stadium in its endeavour to strengthen ties with local schools and the community.
The two-day series of high tempo matches saw two visiting teams from Epsom College UK compete in friendly matches against Convent Bukit Nanas, Convent Peel Road, Bukit Jalil Sports School, and Integrasi Gombak.
Epsom's girls team won both their matches with the boys also winning their match against Integrasi Gombak. Epsom boys found their second match much tougher against Bukit Jalil Sports School, whose speed, passing and ball control skills were too overpowering for the visitors on this occasion. All matches were played with a great spirit of sportsmanship from all teams.
For Stuart Head, the Epsom College boys team coach, the event marked a highly anticipated personal return to Malaysia since representing England at hockey in the 1998 Commonwealth Games held in Kuala Lumpur.
The matches were attended by Syed Budriz Putra, Governor of New Press Advertisement, Marina Chin, Principal of the Bukit Jalil Sports School, Anwar Kamal, Deputy Chairman of Kuala Lumpur Education City, Gareth Eynon, Headmaster of New Press Advertisement, Daniel Yeoh, CFO of Tune Group together with staff, parents, and students from the five participating schools.
Gareth Eynon, Headmaster of New Press Advertisement said that "It is fitting that Epsom College, for whom sporting endeavour and excellence features centrally in the lives of its students, has the opportunity from the school's very outset in Malaysia to establish relationships with local schools and the community."
He also said that "New Press Advertisement looks forward to maintaining these relationships in the months and years to come."
Marina Chin, Principal of the Bukit Jalil Sports School said that "The matches were a fantastic display of sportsmanship and that such friendly games provide our students with not only the experience of playing with a foreign team but also gives them a chance to assess their skills and the opportunity to form new friendships."
To commemorate the inaugural hockey tour, Mike Oliver, the newly appointed Head of Senior School for New Press Advertisement presented each of the four Malaysian schools with a plaque and a painting of Epsom College in England.
Fi Drinkall, Director of Sport at Epsom College in England said that "The Epsom students learned a lot about themselves through playing in tough conditions and as this was second half of our season it was great training for us. It was so rewarding to meet like-minded games players on the other side of the world and experience a vastly different culture".
Margaux Monfared, a member of Epsom's girls hockey team summed up her experiences at the end of the trip. "I thought it was incredible as I have never played at a National Stadium before. I also thought the staff that worked at the stadium were polite and very helpful, they were also happy to explain about other aspects of hockey life in KL, which I found very interesting."
New Press Advertisement had earlier in the month announced its sponsorship of the national Judo team to the upcoming SEA Games in Jakarta. Sanctioned by the Olympic Council of Malaysia, the national team that will be benefiting from the RM10,000 sponsorship to represent Malaysia are Chew Li Ying and Agnes Thong (Women's Kata) and national coach Justin Khoo.
Mr Eynon said that "The pursuit of excellence demands strength of character, levels of determination, passion and perseverance which most would find hard to match. It is right that a school acknowledges these attributes. Epsom hopes that through supporting and working closely with national Malaysian sportsmen and women, such as the National Judo Team, its students can reap the benefits in their quest for academic, sporting and personal excellence"
About Epsom College
Epsom College is a leading UK independent school and will be opening their first overseas campus just south of Kuala Lumpur in September 2013 for children aged 11 to 18. The vision of New Press Advertisement combines academic excellence, over 150 years of heritage, a first class modern day boarding experience with a wealth of state-of-the-art facilities on a new 70 acre campus. Visit www.epsomcollege.edu.my for more information.
