SINGAPORE — Since 2009, the national girls “A” division netball title has been in the hands of Anglo-Chinese Junior College (ACJC).

And it stayed that way as ACJC kept their unbeaten run this season to beat Hwa Chong Institution (HCI) 63-36 in the final of the National Inter-School “A” Division Netball Championship at Toa Payoh Sports Hall yesterday.

Speaking after the game, ACJC Co-captain Ainsley Chew said early preparations for their title defence was key to their successful run.

“We were really overjoyed because we started training in November and our hard work really paid off,” said Chew, 18, who was part of Singapore’s national under-19 side last year.

“We know our opponents also worked very hard, so we went in with the mindset to put up a good fight.”

ACJC, unbeaten over eight games in the 2013 season, and rivals HCI were locked in a tight, highly physical contest, but the defending champions eventually pulled away to win the first period 17-11 before finishing the first half 32-19 in the lead. With goal shooter Tan Xin Yi on fire in the circle, ACJC’s swift attack unit combined to sink in 17 points against HCI’s nine goals to claim the third period 49-28.

Despite roster changes in the final period, an error-ridden performance had already sealed HCI’s fate as ACJC cruised to victory at the final whistle to claim their fifth consecutive title.

Victory in the “A” division championships was certainly something to savour for ACJC coach Kok Mun Wai, who had already claimed this year’s National Girls “B” and “C” titles with CHIJ Secondary (Toa Payoh).

“They did quite a lot of physical work with runs, weights training and sprints during training sessions,” said Kok, who is aiming for more silverware in the Primary School Division with CHIJ Kellock Primary.

“I thought the game against Hwa Chong was quite close as I wasn’t watching the score, so it was a nice surprise. They kept going, challenged every point, and everyone supported in attack.”

Despite the loss, HCI coach Lin Shuang Ru was happy with her team’s fighting spirit on court.

“There is some disappointment because we wanted to win the title ... We came in with the right mentality and put up a good fight but made too many errors,” she said.