This year’s Monash Cup finally comes to an end on the 22^nd of September after nearly a month’s worth of events. For a lot of Monashians, it is a sad day but also a happy one. It was a day to celebrate the dedication and efforts of the participants. A day to celebrate sportsmanship and camaraderie. To say it went without a hitch would be lying, but wouldn’t a few bumps in the road make for a more memorable journey?

Taking my first steps into my first Monash Cup, I was bombarded with nostalgia. The sights and sounds reminded me of my high school Sports Days. Cheerleading teams practising on the field, chanting their house names. Students walking around with their friends, snacks and drinks in hand. The Monash Business Club and C&S Collaboration Bazaar single handedly kept everyone fed. From succulent lamb skewers to creamy Thai iced tea, there was something for everyone. Appetites were satiated and cravings were fulfilled. The bazaar was the main attraction before the event started, with lines forming at the stalls. 

The closing ceremony began at approximately 5.30 in the evening, with the organisers informing the visitors that the finals for the cheerleading competition will be held in the badminton court. There, the event goers were blessed with the performances of the four houses. Manticore with their furious roar. Opinicus with their charming cheers. Culebre who did it their way. Leviathan with their flips and twirls. Their music arrangements hyped up the audience, having samples from famous tracks like BTS’s “Dynamite” and Macklemore’s “Can’t Hold Us”. The crowd went wild during these performances, cheering and shouting for their respective houses. 

The night continued with some speeches from some of the event’s sponsors and organisers. It began with Lahpay’s co-founder, Mr Suresh Thanasagaren who thanked the organisers for approaching them to sponsor the event. He then proceeded to briefly explain the concept of Lahpay to the audience. Next on the list of speeches is the president of MUSA, Rashwan, who thanked everyone for their efforts in making this year’s Monash Cup possible. Next up were the heads of C&S, Ethan and Thineth, followed by Monash’s Sports Officer, James Lai. They all thanked the sponsors, including Genysis and Lahpay for their generosity and thanked the people who worked tirelessly to make the event a success.

After the speeches, the audience was treated to dance performances from the four houses for the finals. The audience was first introduced to the judges for the competition, Jonathan Loo and Jay. The dancers will be scored based on their choreography, techniques, costumes, synchronicity, and flow. Culebre was the first house to perform their act. Sporting green, black, and white, Culebre performed a dance inspired by the memories of being rebellious school kids. Up next was Manticore with their fiery-red passion. Their choreography encapsulates the feeling of having your freedom taken away by expectations of others. Truly a one-of-a-kind experience. Their performance was followed by Opinuicus’s thirst-trappy choreography which left the audience speechless. The alternating rhythms of their song tracks kept all eyes glued to them. Finally, we had Leviathan perform their act for the audience. With the theme of embracing differences, they offered a variety of moves to wow the audience in their house colours. As if that wasn’t enough, we were all treated to a showcase by the judges themselves, who immediately earned the crowd’s approval and cheers. That concludes the finals for dancing.

The closing ceremony continued with a performance by Team Cypher, Monash’s own cheerleading team. They wowed the audience with their jaw-dropping stunts, performing flips and throws that could easily result in injuries if done wrong. However, they proved to be masters of their craft when their performance was completed without a hitch. They earned themselves a massive round of applause and excited cheers from the audience. 

Moving on, we were treated to a collaborative performance with Taylor’s University’s Live Club who specialises in “a capella” music or music without instruments. The performers serenaded us with renditions of Blinding Lights and ABBA’s “Dancing Queen”, urging us to sing alongside them. We were then treated to a beatbox solo performance by one of their members. He shocked the crowd with his ability to make sounds you wouldn’t think was possible to make by a human. Needless to say, the crowd went wild over this performance. You can find out more about them here.

Following that, we were treated to music performances by the winners of the music interhouse; Culebre serenaded the crowd, followed by both Opinicus A and B, an explosion of sound and energy that had the crowd cheering and singing along. They thanked the crowd profusely as they left the stage, leaving the students simmering with excitement for the upcoming award giving ceremony.

One by one, respective teams’ players were called onto the stage to receive their medals and certificates for placing in the top 3. The sport houses’ names were called, nerve-wracking sport after sport, as students jumped out of their seats cheering and clapping for every win. After each individual sport was awarded, it was finally time for the biggest reveal of the night.

Amidst the excitement and the thunderous applause, the moment everyone had been eagerly awaiting arrived—the announcement of the overall winner of the Monash Cup. We held our breath…

…and the winning house of Monash Cup 2023 was Culebre! A jubilant cry erupted from the crowd as people hugged, laughed, and screamed, leaping from their seats in well-deserved victory. For me, it’d been my first Monash Cup; I hadn’t participated in the games, but the surges of pride I’d felt watching the sheer sportsmanship, excellence and dedication put on display throughout the month left me grinning from ear to ear. There’s really something about competitive sports that brings out the fiercest, most determined part of us; for ourselves, for our friends, for a community we might have only just become a part of.

Knowing that we did our best; we’ll cherish these lit flames and keep it burning, striving for greatness all the way.

Ggwp everyone, and here’s to keeping this fire burning for the next!

Written by Erika & Amir

Photos by Bryan. Michelle, Shawn & TC