Singapore Paintball Championship tied up with MPOC!

OFFICIAL ANNOUNCEMENT:

The Malaysia Paintball Official Circuit - MPOC, in collaboration with Red Dynasty Paintball Park and Paintballer's World in Singapore would like to announce that the following will be implemented for the 2010 and 2011 season.

- Recognition of the Singapore Paintball Championship (SPC) as an associate league in Singapore - Feeder status in 2010.

- Paintballer's World to be MPOC representative office in Singapore - Where all registration and MPOC matters can be attended to. Singapore teams that register via the Red Dynasty Paintball Park and Paintballer's World will get registration discounted by 50% for 2010 and 2011.

With immediate effect:

- SPC Player ID will be recognized in the MPOC and vice versa.

- The Champion of the SPC will receive free entry and waived ID into the World Cup Asia 2010 (Either D3 or D4).

Singapore Paintball Novice Series 2009 Leg 3

After 2 days of field set up in West Coast Park, the Singapore Paintball Novice Series went smoothly with no major hiccups. Congratulations and thank you to the people who are behind this tournament, staff of the Red Dynasty Paintball team, the "Ironmen" (people who laid the field), the referees, the volunteers, the photographers, the sponsors and the players of course...

One of the staff told me that one player asked him: "The field seems to be dry, just wondering if you guys will be watering the field before the start of the game?" In my mind, I was thinking "Nah... we wouldnt be doing that". In fact, I was eager to find out who this person was... so I decided to note this down and reminded myself to write it in the blog. That's Singapore paintball...

Well, the good thing is... someone up there heard his request and came the morning shower just before the 8 am mark and immediately, we all knew paintball was going to be fun that day. 12 participating teams for the last SPNS leg in 2009, a reasonable number indeed considering that there were a handful of new players and some of the "older players" (I used older because there are no divisional games in Singapore) who came back from retirement. All games were evenly fought and there were no simple walkovers. In fact, we have seen the most number of draw games in this leg of the tournament in the entire SPNS history, it could have been anybody's game.

Credits to Team X Factor who played with only 4 players throughout the day. It was certainly tough to be outnumbered but the desire to win was evident. The team defended well and made a few good kills... We had Red Bull girls this round... and yeah, most male participants seemed a little happier during the tech breaks, must be the sugar acting up on them. On the sidelines, Mr. J (Junaidi, PALS Ultimate Referee) told me that some players are playing very well and looked very seasoned... that's only a good sign for Singapore paintball.

4 semi final teams from SPNS Leg 2 came out tops again, Dark Militia, Five-O, Red West and Contract Killers... talk about consistency. Again, it was anyone's game. Dark Militia who only started playing in SPNS this year went home with the Champion's title for Singapore Paintball Novice Series 2009 Leg 3. Having came so close on 2 occasions, Grant (Houdini) sealed the win with an overhead shot over the centre 50s bunker.

Top Gun was awarded to Sharkil from Contract Killers though we would usually prefer a new face. So you know what I mean... Series title went to Team Red West for 2009. Elle concluded the event with a piece of good news for Singapore paintball, it was announced that the center barrier, a requirement in paintball field operation has been removed by the Singapore Police Force. Abolishing a requirement that was set out 10 years ago and convincing the authorities that paintball can be played safely in Singapore. We look forward to a more exciting 2010... spread the love and as Kiko always say: "Keep the fire burning..."

Singapore Paintball Novice Series 2009 Leg 3 - Team Preview Part 2

Karma Troopers - A "new" team in the local scene... Karma Troopers is actually not that new. With a regular presence in the MY-NPL, Karma Troopers are a force to reckon with. With podium finishes in overseas tournament, we will be expecting some very tough fight from this team. Led by team captain Isnaen, this is surely another team to look out for. A team with experience and wits, this team is not here to make up numbers! First step in supporting local tournament!

X Factor - A newly formed team with the SPNS, X Factor is led by Beryl who used to be part of the Singapore's first female team. With the introduction of Dean and Irwan (formerly from Five O), this team needs to put in their best performance in every game. Assisting Beryl with be the beloved Nicky (WOOT! WOOT! sorry, cant help it) who has tons of playing experience.

Berserkers - Sons of Odin - Another new team with the SPNS, Berserkers - Sons of Odin (in short Berserkers, very long name...) is led by Jit who is a reliable mid player who is able to control the game very well. Back by his teammates, Haz, Zach, Neil and Suwandi... this is the only team in SPNS who submitted a 5 men line up... talk about consistency on the field. Another new team with hidden powers!

SPNS 2009 Leg 2 Team Preview

With SPNS just around the corner, a preview of the participating teams is something that we need to spice things up. In no random order:

Seek Family - This newly formed team has a big "Heart" when it comes to playing paintball. In heart, I mean the heart to learn, the heart to practice and the heart to listen. It has been a while since I last saw a team with such dedication. Made up from a group of army friends and friends of friends, this team is driven by the passion to learn and play. This is their first time playing in competitive paintball. Everything learnt is a big step towards something bigger. Some wins in the prelims will see this team play more and promote the game we all love. Captain Rudi is the driving force in the management of this team. Player to watch is a secondary school boy, Adam, who absorbs like a sponge when it comes to marker handling and posture.

Kamikaze - Having lost out in SPNS Leg 1 and dropping everybody's expectation, Kamikaze has come out strong this time. With almost a new team set up, the Kami boys added Mark (SPNS 2008 Leg 3 Champion), Delusion and Nicholas into the squad making the lineup look much stronger than before. Having won the MY-NPL Leg 2 Division 4 Runners Up, the new inclusions are not here to make up numbers. With SPNS Leg 1 MVP, Shadowknight leading the way. This team is surely a dark horse with tons of playing experience.

EVIL Avengers – A transformation of the former Hot Fuzz team, this team is all about experience. With most if not all of its players playing in the SPNS since the series formation, we will be expecting this team to showcase the best of paintball from the fundamental skills of snapshooting, bunkering and winning games. SPNS 2009 Leg 1 showed the team coming close to Round 2 qualification but with the inclusion of Shah who was a former SPNS 2008 Leg 1 Champion with Redlords and a SPNS 2008 Leg 2 Runners Up with Red Shadows. The question remains…

Contract Killers – Starring the same lineup, the SPNS 2009 Leg 1 Runners Up added depth to the team by recruiting Dragonfly for this leg of the competition. A “natural born killer instinct” is how I will describe this team, on their good days, they can beat any team that comes their way. With a good stronghold from their reliable back players, Benguin and Shark has form a formidable back partnership in becoming the backbone of this team. With the intention to change their name to Mastadon United, will this team be stronger than before?

Ares – Little is known about this team. Formed by a team of international students, this SPNS will be a first for everyone in the team. Led by Chris Hampton, this team can shoot a lot more paintballs than you can ever imagine. Working their way into their first competition, this team trains regularly at the field and is hoping to see their effort pays off in the field. Player to watch out for will be Chris who displayed good leadership on and off the field.

Dark Militia – Coached by Houdini, Dark Militia made their mark in the last leg by winning the 2nd Runners Up in their first SPNS appearance. Houdini who plays for Team Damnation a Division 3 team in the Malaysia Paintball Official Circuit (MPOC) will be the team’s player-coach in this leg of the series. Player to watch out for will be Abdullah who plays on the snake side of the field.

Red West – With 3 of its players playing in the Red Sevens team, this team is surely strong on paper, but we all know that even with the best lineup in the team, sometimes you just need that little bit of luck. Vincent who played with the team in last leg of the tournament has left the team leaving the team with a void to fill. However, with the team’s new inclusions such as WarLorD and spacemonkey, who are both playing in the back position; this team is able to find a good balance in agility and stability. Player to look out for will be Ryan Stoll who is versatile in playing all positions. Yes, even the snake…

Wargh!Cook – A newly named team from the former Wargh!Nuts, this team is one of the longest supporting guardian and ambassadors of the SPNS. Formed by a group of best buddies who went through the army together, they know what tough times are. The Semi Finalist of SPNS 2009 Leg 1, Wargh!Cook will be one of the teams to look out for. Known for their defensive tactics, Wargh!Cook will be sure to kick some ass! Commonly known to the paintball community as Chak, he will be bringing the game to the next level.

MLC – Yes, they took the paintball community by storm and surprise when they first participated in the 3rd leg of the SPNS series in 2008. Don’t be fooled by their age and looks, they might not look like the ordinary paintballer but hell these guys are aggressive on the field. They think fast and they move fast too. Just to add to their credentials, these guys won the SPNS 2008 Leg 3 1st Runners Up in their first competition beating teams such as PSG Warfreakz. So yes, they mean business. Target man to look out for will be Kay, who thinks fast and acts fast, yes some say shoot fast too.

Rebels R Us – You might not have heard of this team before but they have been around. Painting and training mostly in Malaysia, this newly formed team will be vying their skills against our local lads. Don’t be mistaken, this is a true Singaporean team but little is known about them.

So there you go…the registered teams so far. More reviews of teams will be posted if there are new inclusions. SG Troopers, Ice Cubes, Death Mavericks…

Surely, these are just my personal observation of the teams. You will be a fool to believe what I wrote, so just take it with a pinch of salt.

A new year... a new beginning...and then the recession...

Couldnt find much time to blog nowadays, been busy with reservist (yes, I did try snapshooting with SAR21, hehehe), planning for paintball tournament and participating in paintball tournament. Just came back from KL participating in the MPOC with the Red Sevens gang. We did a 5th position after 10 rounds of qualifying with 15 participating teams. Qualified for the Quarters but luck was not with us. We could have clinched a couple of games but it didnt work well for us. Individual mistakes... team mistakes. We were glad to have the assistance of Kiko and Ivan. Kiko is an "old bird" in tournament, as Seburo mentioned on his blog, this guy has got more medals than us as compared to the markers we own. To date including Kiko's, we have 10 e-markers in the team, quite impressive actually... On the contary, Ivan is a "new bird"... his first game with e-markers and he certainly did well enough to earn him 5 MPOC games under his belt. In his first game, he even came back with the flag. Considering that this is the first time he is playing with e-markers, this guy is a born talent.

We did not surpassed our record of reaching the semis...but I am pretty confident that we should be able to clinch a spot before the season ends. Although we did not came back with a metal piece, I am excited about how this team is going to progress in 2009. This year, we have the inclusion of a few new faces: Jon, Edi, Kiko and Ivan. Not forgetting our 2 friends from US, Zach and Ryan. We are looking good. Time will tell... its a pity that we were unable to get Tom to join us but we'll never know. Now that we have a lot more players...perhaps the International Super Sevens? We'll see... certainly looks good.

Team Damnation is the other Singapore based team which travel to KL for the MPOC. I was hoping to see Atrox and PSG Warfreaks... but I guess the recession is hitting on everyone.

In Singapore, we are also busy planning for SPNS 2009. There seem to be a decline in the number of participating teams this year... what did we do wrong this time? Its funny because things were more uncertain previously, we had to find sponsors, we had to get the ambulance, we had to get approvals, we had to get prizes, we had to sign teams up for games, we had to conduct training for newbies, etc. We did many things to get SPNS 2008 started. 2009, we are more familiar with the proceedings, we did as many awareness clinics, workshops as before and yet, it seems like we are unable to get more teams to participate. Hmmmm... cheaper paintballs, cheaper entry fee, better prizes and prices...and yet, we have falling numbers. Its weird. So the myth of lowering prices and more people will play paintball is not true afterall. Okay okay...its the recession. Everything is the recession...

While we are planning for our local tournament. Somewhere out there... there is a group of people who are also playing competitively. It was mentioned before in Team Damnation's website of the new team known as Team Karma. Team Karma is not new to the local scene, it was a group of friends who decided to play paintball on a regular basis. They were at RD when we organized our clinic for newbies. They bought paintball stuff at our place too. If you were observant enough, you would have noticed that we even had a thread for them in our forum. (It has been removed about 2 months ago because no one was upkeeping the thread).

While the Red Sevens and Team Damnation were in KL playing our hearts out. Team Karma had a small party of their own..."Acid Test Paintball Challenge", it was held in our former training ground, Octville Country Club up in the North. It was meant to be a tournament for local boys to try out paintball and have some fun playing in competition format. Kudos to you for coming up with this idea. Surely good for promoting awareness in the game and allowing more people to love and feel the game we all loved.

On a second thought...I am very bothered by this outing. The first question that pops out from my head: "Where are they going with this?"

Okay, I know most Singaporean paintballers visit this blog of mine...so being the visionary for Singapore paintball, here's my take (and I will share with you my views later):

1) They are getting more people to play paintball thus improving the standard of play in Singapore, both recreationally and competitively.

2) They are planning on organizing paintball tournaments in the North so that more Singaporeans can play competitively without having to go through BTO.

3) They are planning to start a paintball field in Singapore.

Okay...now that we have 3 options, let's review them:

1) Good move...more people playing means more people are aware about the game. While they can improve in their standard of play, they can only play competitive paintball in the North, as we all know that in Singapore, we have strict rules for everything...even paintball...haiz. The centre line...So to play competitive paintball in Singapore, players who are "Poison" to the game will have to go through the BTO.

2) Not a bad move...but what's going to happen to paintball in Singapore? Let's take an example... Due to gobalisation, Singaporeans are exposed to international jobs and are all moving out of the country. They work overseas, they marry overseas, they study overseas... see where I am going. The question mark here is: What will happen to Singapore paintball? Its funny because paintball is more established in the States...but paintball in Mexico is more fun and affordable.

3) Highly possible. Hahahah....I am saying this because, one of them approached me previously and told me so. So its good for Singapore paintball afterall...but dont wait till you start and then start promoting paintball in Singapore cos by then...you will be deem as the overseas expat who study, work and marry overseas. No offence to anyone, my dad for once is hardly at home too. Just dont wait until then...the idea here is to make the change, just like I did.

Singapore round up...

It has been a while since we have last provided an update on the paintball scene in Singapore. So here it goes…

Singapore Paintball Novice Series 2008, Leg 3, 12 Oct 2008

In the local paintball scene, our Philippines expatriates PSG Warfreakz won the Overall Singapore Paintball Novice Series (SPNS) Champion for 2008 and Team Carnage clinching the title of the SPNS Leg 3 Champion. Mid Life Crusaders and Team Damnation were awarded the 2nd and 3rd position respectively. Md Faris Bin Md Dawood from Team R.A.G was voted as the Most Valuable Player (MVP) for Leg 3. Photos of Leg 3, http://www.weplaypaintball.com/forum/index.php?topic=590.0

Malaysia Paintball Official Circuit (MPOC), Johor Cup, Leg 5

5 Singapore based teams represented Singapore in the MPOC Leg 5. Team Damnation Wargh! and Red Sevens participated in the Division 3 category while Team Red Dynasty, Team E.X.A and PSG Warfreakz participated in the Division 4 category. Singapore teams posted a reasonable performance with PSG Warfreakz and Team Red Dynasty clinching the 3rd and 4th position respectively.

Basic Tournament Orientation, 30 Nov 08

The Basic Tournament Orientation (BTO) will be held on 30 Nov 08. The focus of the BTO is to promote tournament paintball in Singapore and ensuring that paintball safety is adhered to. The BTO will comprise of a theory test and 2 practical games to assess players’ competency. More information about the BTO can be found in http://www.weplaypaintball.com/forum/index.php?topic=123.0

World Cup Asia 2008, 13 – 16 Nov 08

Singapore will be represented by 2 teams in this year’s World Cup Asia which will be held from 13 – 16 Nov 2008. This event will be participated by 66 Asia teams from 3 categories. Team Damnation and Red Sevens will fly the Singapore flag in the 3rd Division category.

PAINtball 101 Clinic, 7 Dec 08

New to paintball? Want to know more about the game? Can’t find the right gang to play with? PAINtball 101 Clinic will let you know more about paintball and best of all, you can come alone. Participants will get to skirmish with one another and get to know people from the paintball community. To register, please visit www.weplaypaintball.com/forum

Student Paintball Promo, 15 Nov – 31 Dec 08

Students who are keen to take up paintball during the December school holiday can book a weekday session at Red Dynasty Paintball Park between 9.00 am – 2.00 pm. A paintball promotion of $20.00 for 50 paintballs will be offered to all students (with student card verification) who are interested. Advanced booking is required.

“Dye or Die” Sales – Till 9 Dec 08

All Dye or Proto paintball products are slashed to low down prices. Offer items range from Dye I3 Pro Invision mask at $150.00 (usual: $198.00) only! More paintball products can be viewed at http://www.weplaypaintball.com/Item.html

Paintball Formula in Singapore

No BTO = Centerline = No speedball = No tournament

Cheap paintballs = Paintball breaks in marker and loader = Frustration = Lousy experience

Talk bad about people behind their back = Got found out = No more good deals

Mech marker = Cheaper = Use lesser paintballs

Wait for things to happen = Dont complain = Do something to make it right

PALS in Singapore = Possible = Just need more people

E-markers = Nice to play with = Expensive? Maybe? = Cross borders No No

More players = more games = cheaper paintballs

Complain a lot = Go elsewhere = Cant be bothered with you = go make trouble with the rest

Post SPNS Leg 2

Singapore (23 June 2004) - PSG Warfreakz, a group of Filipino expatriats walked away with the champion medal for the Singapore Paintball Novice Series (SPNS) 2008 Leg 2, which was held in Red Dynasty Paintball Park. A well deserved champion indeed where they have to battle 10 games before reaching the finals. The morning event was greeted by a mild rain that was lurking around the night before, however this did not dampen the mood of the participants as they have long anticipated for the home coming of SPNS Leg 2. After months of training, it is finally the day where they put their practices to the test. A double fold increase from SPNS Leg 1, SPNS Leg 2 welcomed the participation of 15 paintball teams. New to the competition were Carnage, PSG Bravo, PSG Charlie, Wargh! Birds, Red Shadows, Shinpu, Kamikaze and 20th Legion.

New to SPNS Leg 2 is the collaboration between Paintball Association (Singapore) PBAS and the Malaysian Marshals (MMs). This collaboration has indeed raised the standard of officiating in SPNS and provides an opportunity for Singapore Marshals to learn a thing or two from our neighbours. The introduction of PSG Charlie, an all female team from the Philippines, has certainly raised the public's eyebrow on their misconception of the paintball being a male dominant sport.

As the rain subsided, the wet ground becomes the perfect playground for paintball as participants slided their way through the muddy soil with most players perfecting the ideal paintball movement of sliding and dodging. After 8 gruelling qualification games, the top 8 teams can advanced into the 2nd round. Among the 8 newly established teams, 5 teams qualified for the 2nd round with PSG Warfreakz, which was the eventual champion, White Death and Death Mavericks. A well deserving note to Carnage which only lost 1 game during the qualification rounds and emerged as the chart leader.

As the competition rolled on, PSG Warfreakz clinched the Champion Title of SPNS Leg 2 by beating Red Shadows, who had to settle for the 2nd spot. At 3rd position was White Death.

The icing of the cake was given to Thomas Lee, a SIM 2nd year student who was awarded the Most Valuable Player (MVP) for SPNS Leg 2. The winner of the MVP award was selected through peer nomination from opposing teams.

SPNS Leg 2 concluded with an exciting exhibition match between Carnage and Red Shadows. During the process of the competition, footages of the match was captured by reporter from the Channel News Asia and photographed by representatives from The Straits Times. Talk about media coverage...

SPNS Leg 3 will be held on 12 October as "The Final Showdown"...