By IAN YEE

DODGEBALL is back, and in a big way, too!

The Figos Dodgeball Carnival in Selangor last Saturday saw the debut of the Taylor’s Lakeside Storm dodgeball club’s awesome new jersey … which has the R.AGE logo on it! We’ll have our logo on that Manchester United kit in no time.

The Storm are one of the strongest clubs on the campus dodgeball circuit, which is growing rapidly thanks to the aptly-named Malaysian Association of Dodgeball – MAD.

And to play our part in helping to bring this crazy fun sport to the next level, to give it that extra bit of prestige, R.AGE is now Storm’s first jersey sponsors.

It was a proud moment for Storm president Adam Riff, handing out the jersey to his players before the games began.

The Taylor's Lakeside Storm dodgeball club wore their new R.AGE-sponsored jerseys proudly, and gave a good account of themselves by having three guys' teams reach the quarterfinals, and one making the semis.

“It really feels good because we’re the only team with a customised jersey and a sponsor’s logo. This is going to make us more confident, more spirited when we’re playing,” said Adam.

Club captain Heidy Yusoff was absolutely thrilled with the design of the jersey, which is customised according to the team name and symbol.

“It’s amazing. There are so many elements on this jersey that mean a lot to us – there’s our team logo, the R.AGE logo, our names and numbers, the lightning design in the background, which is our team symbol, and the Chinese ‘Lei’ character on the back, which means lightning,” he said.

The club gave the a good account of themselves at the Figos tournament. The girls’ team, the Taylor’s Lakeside Storm Girls, bagged the champions’ trophy in the female category, while one of their four guys’ teams finished third in the male category.

The Storm Girls survived a tough semi-finals against The Seven, a team comprising experienced players from different colleges and universities.

Storm Girls captain Andrea Low said: “We’ve had a long history with these girls. They’re such a strong team. We’ve played against them in a few tournaments now, and I’ve also trained with them. I think they were our toughest game this time around.”

The Taylor's Lakeside Storm Girls dodgeball team, wearing their new R.AGE-sponsored jerseys, receiving their prize for emerging as champions at the Figos Dodgeball Carnival.

Both Heidy and Adam spoke about the close bond between members of the Storm, saying the club were like family, and Andrea demonstrated why when she dedicated the Storm Girls’ victory to her teammates.

“I really want to appreciate my teammates. They did so well at the tournament. They were really the reason why we won,” she said.

Unfortunately, the Storm guys couldn’t replicate the girls’ success. The male category final was contested between the UCSI Devil Dukes and UCSI Red Legion, with the former emerging as champions.

Though none of the Storm’s guys’ teams managed to make it to the final, they showed their quality by having three teams make the quarterfinals.

There, they were unlucky to have two of their teams, Storm 1 and Storm 2, pitted against each other, with the latter eventually finishing joint second runner-up with team UC2.

While the guys were disappointed to not have won, they were still excited for the future with their new jerseys.

Former Storm president Jerrard Leong, one of the club’s more experienced players, says the jerseys show that the club is being run well by the current board, and that they can only grow from here.

“This isn’t just a dodgeball team, it’s a dodgeball club. We have to manage it like a club, like a family, and I believe the current president and his board are doing just that. That’s why I stepped aside, because I felt they could do a better job than me.

The Taylor's Lakeside Storm dodgeball club having a team photo with their new R.AGE-sponsored jerseys right before the Figos Dodgeball Carnival tournament, where the club had four guys' teams and one girls' team competing.

“Everything now is running smooth, so we’ll just have to keep the momentum going. Keep winning titles, keep working hard; especially with so many new clubs coming up,” he said.

Jerrard was quick to pay tribute to those emerging clubs, with teams from Politeknik Shah Alam, Universiti Putra Malaysia and Masterskill all having caught his eye recently.

He also spoke about how teams from other states were starting to bring in new strategies, which made the game even more interesting.

“I’ve seen teams from Terrengganu, Kedah, and there was one from Malacca too, if I’m not mistaken. The way they played was so different! It’s not the same strategies we’ve been used to at these tournaments. It’s just really great for the game,” he added.