Soccer game to help a good cause this month

  • 2012-10-22
Underprivileged children will hopefully be the winners of a charity futsal competition in Abbotsford this month.

Firefighters, musicians and radio stars will all take part in the competition this weekend at Victoria Park on the corner of Abbot and Lulie Streets. Teams include Bendigo Bank, Melbourne Fire Brigade and Victoria Police, as well as a selection of teams from the local community.

This is the tenth competition to be organised and is the largest so far with 32 teams taking part. Futsal is a type of soccer usually played on a smaller pitch. Each team has five players including the goalkeeper and the sport is played by both men and women with mixed teams allowed.

On the pitch, players from the Melbourne Victory team will run a junior football clinic while off the field there will be live music, entertainment, and food throughout the event. There will also be a raffle and a silent auction.

The event in Abbotsford is being organised by the Happy Football Cambodia Australia Group. The organisation helps impoverished children in Cambodia's capital Phnom Penh play football by providing equipment and training and helps send a team from Cambodia to the Homeless World Cup.

The Abbotsford event will benefit children in both Cambodia and Melbourne. The money is raised through team entry fees, the stalls and raffle. Banner printing is one way to show support for teams and possibly attract the attention of favourite players for autographs.

The Fair Play futsal competition takes place between 11:00 am and 7:00 pm on Saturday, October 27. Entry is free.