Nick and Tessa in Kisiizi

Hey everybody, thanks for your support once again We have just uploaded our best photos yet onto flickr, so be sure to click the photos link, or go here:    http://www.flickr.com/photos/33079877@N02/

Football

All 23 of us with both of the hospital

“What team do you support” is the first thing a lot of the guys here will ask.  People are fanatical about football here, especially the boys.

The ground here is extremely hilly, and space is scarce so it is difficult to justify soccer pitches. Kisiizi’s pride and joy is a little less than full size, has a couple of rather major slopes, has 2 large trees inside the touchline (great for confusing people), and is only about 80% grass. Despite these minor foibles, the pitch is one of the best in the region, and many teams travel to challenge the locals on it. 

I have played a lot of football on this hallowed turf. We “train” every weekday, which involves 2 teams being picked and playing a game for about an hour! Needless to say coaching and team structure are sorely wanting. The talent of the players however is impressive. There are sublime skills, and flair not practicality is the order of the day with little flicks, bicycle kicks and shots on goal from everywhere!!! People of all ages play, from 13 through 40, if they are good enough to get picked by the captains… After “training” has been a fantastic opportunity for me to get to know the local people, and talk to them about their lives and God. I have bonded better during and after football than at any other time.

I recently had the pleasure of playing a Kisiizi vs Rukungiri match. Ne’er have I played in front of such a large crowd, with over 300 people watching. The whole occasion was modeled on professional play, with everyone shaking hands before the game, and the referee playing strictly by international rules. We were down 1-0 with 5 minutes to go when we scored. It was a privilege to be around as the crowd erupted onto the field, doing somersaults and yelling like crazy. This has to be one of the best experiences in my life, and although I didn’t score I made 4 or 5 shots that were very well saved (if I may say so myself), and provided some excitement for the crowd. After the game for a couple of days loads of people came up to me and said “thank you for the game, thank you for the game” which was very strange. I replied with “thank you for watching” as only my faithful family comes to watch in New Zealand

But in the weekend, the soccer pitch is empty. Instead over 100 people pack in the local hall and sit on wooden benches to watch professional soccer on a couple of small televisions (see photo). People travel from local villages and try to sneak in without paying. If they get kicked out they watch through the windows from outside!!! The chaplain takes pride of place with his personal chair in the middle J The English premiership is part of the local culture. Everyone picks a team to support, and this is their team for life. Predictably only the top 4 teams have supporters!!! People are remarkably quiet during the games, until a goal is scored and such a yell goes up we can hear it from our rooms 200 meters away.

2 Weeks ago I co-coached an under 16 team (with one 25 year old???) to a match in Kabale. Most of them had never been to the local centre before, despite it being just over 1 hours drive away. The trip was anticipated for days, and the boys were up at 9:00am on game day running around the field before we left at 12:30pm. I’m not quite sure why, I didn’t have the heart to tell them it was best to conserve energy.

                      21 in the back

We picked 14 boys to go, but somehow 21 boys packed into the back of the Kisiizi ambulance (see picture). And don’t ask why one of 2 hospital ambulances is taken for soccer trips. After spending 2 anxious hours finding the people we were supposed to play, the match began. The Kisiizi boys have never lost a game vs. the local villages, (I have seen them slaughter 3) but the city boys were too good going down 2-0. The boys will blame it on the pitch… The match was played in great spirits and I was happy to be part of Kisiizi. On the way back the ambulance was still buzzing with excitement, despite the driver having to stop twice as fights broke out for the millimeters of spare space. There is still post-match analysis at training (although I can’t understand most of it).

Perhaps I have convinced Tessa the merit of sport. Kama Simwe