By Christopher Ong

A CONTROVERSIAL refereeing decision led to defending champions Unity Secondary losing their Schools National C Girls' basketball title at the Jurong East Sports Hall yesterday.

They lost the final 42-57 to Dunman Secondary, who claimed their first C Girls' basketball crown.

But Unity felt the result could have been different had they not lost power-forward Diane Seow, the West Zone's Most Valuable Player, in the first minute of the third quarter.

Diane, 14, challenged Dunman's Nur Syafirah Jasni for the ball from behind, but the referee ruled that she had committed a foul - her fifth.

Said Syafirah , 13: 'I was going to intercept the ball but she hit me on my hand.'

Diane and the Unity bench claimed otherwise. They protested fiercely but the referee stood his ground, leaving a teary Diane to sit out the remainder of the game.

'I couldn't do anything once the referee had made his decision. I could only support my teammates from the bench,' she said.

Unity coach Ng Choon Hong, 55, said Diane's premature exit made it difficult for the school.

Dunman's captain Rabiatul Adawiyah, 13, agreed that her team profited from Diane's exit as 'she's the West Zone MVP and a very good three-point shooter'.

Unity were trailing 29-36 when Diane, who had scored five points and averaged 15 in the competition, left the court.

The win was sweet revenge for Dunman, who succumbed to Unity in last year's final. They harried Unity throughout, forcing them to shoot from distance and miss their target.

Dunman coach Ryan Koh, 29, said his team had followed his instructions to the letter.

'I told them to hustle and harass our opponents, who got desperate and tried a lot of three-pointers.'

Centre Ong Ru Wei, 14 and the tallest player on the court at 1.70m, was crucial to Dunman's defence, making numerous blocks. She impressed offensively as well, contributing 12 points.

She said: 'We beat Unity (54-41) earlier in the competition, so we were afraid of becoming complacent.'

But her fears were unfounded, leaving Dunman to celebrate their maiden victory.

Said a delighted Rabiatul: 'We wanted to make history and we did.'

This article was first published in The Straits Times.