By Althea Ong, Jax Sutrisno and Jocelyn Chai
HEY! YOU!
Ever wondered what it’s like to try a new team sport? Raffles Ultimate (RU) might just be the place for you!
Ultimate is a non-contact, self-refereed team sport involving 7 players per team. Through communication and persistence, the team must work together to successfully pass the disc to a teammate in the end zone to score a point.
The crux of Ultimate entails ‘Spirit of the Game’—a unique and defining element of the sport. It relies on respect and fair play of all teammates to make calls without the help of a referee. These underlying principles reinforce mutual respect and trust between opponents, communication and conflict resolution skills, and self-confidence – both on and off the field of play.
Fun-filled for all adrenaline junkies, Ultimate not only hones your sporting abilities but is also sure to teach and instill in every player a deep camaraderie and respect for not only your teammates but your opponents as well.
Now that you have learnt more about the game Ultimate, let’s talk about us instead. Yes, not just Ultimate, but Raffles Ultimate!
The RU family is a close-knit one. Our “hellos” and “goodbyes” are certainly not limited to the field, and you are bound to find us hanging out at the amphitheatre tables, also known as the ‘Ulti Tables’, a commonplace where RU players connect.
It is not uncommon to see RU members hang out even on non-CCA days! It is a place close to our hearts—where we bond over meals, where we share our joys and sorrows, and where we suffer together in misery as we concede to a slew of unsolvable maths questions.
RU is a family that you know you can count on when times get tough—if there’s a school occasion you can bet that there’ll be somebody initiating a poll on our WhatsApp group to ask who’s going.
Our RU family also extends to our graduated players. Throughout the many years RU has been around, we have established a strong culture where alumni have many opportunities to return to school. These opportunities include Gryphon Recall—a day when players from previous batches (as old as 15 years ago) engage in a friendly game of Ultimate. The alumni also play a pivotal role in our CCA sessions. From time to time, alumni players will assist our training sessions, passing down their valuable expertise in the sport and sharing treasured memories along the way. RU players are also prominent in the Singapore Ultimate scene, with multiple alumni representing Singapore at last year’s World Ultimate Club Championships! Additionally, our more recent graduates competed in the World Under-24 Ultimate Championships in Nottingham, UK. We also have the privilege of playing against other schools in a bid to foster closer ties within the Ultimate community and build a spirit of friendly competition.
One of the highlights of the RU journey is the Inter-Junior College Competition (IJCs). Every year, we will send our best players forward to put our skills to the test at the IJCs, of which our school has the most first-place finishes!
The IJCs have been running for over 10 years and after a brief break due to Covid-19, it has since been back in full force where JCs from across Singapore compete over 2 days at Eunoia Junior College for the championship title. It is an intense affair, emotions run high as the 14 players on each field are the only ones who can decide the fate of their team.
Raffles Ultimate owes much of our success to the hard work and resolve of RU players, committed teachers and our highly respected coach Jonathan Yeo who is renowned in the Ultimate community. He coaches at several schools and is also the head coach of the Singapore Under – 24 Ultimate team – so you are sure to be in good hands!
Now you may be wondering, what do we do during training? Official training sessions are typically held on Mondays from 1545 to 1745 at the Gryphon Courts, and on Wednesdays from 0730 to 1030 at the Main Field. Besides the frequent drills and scrimmages, other highlights include our weekly runs and of course our extra self-initiated training. As frisbee enthusiasts, we never fail to use any pockets of time to get in some reps!
Interested but have no experience in Ultimate? Fret not! Ultimate in Raffles is a developmental sport, so you still stand a chance to pass the trials even if you’ve never touched a frisbee before. But for the RU journey to be fulfilling, one must be committed and be ready to go above and beyond, as we pride ourselves on grit, tenacity and discipline. As long as you are driven and willing to work hard, we welcome you with open arms!
Got what it takes to be in RU? Join us now!
