Upper Hutt Ethnic Tournament

       

       

       

       

Finals at Harcourt Park or Live on the internet

PETER MCDONALD

UNITED WE STAND: (Back) Cagri Kaya, Dave Tompleins from team Turkey, Mohammed Mahyup, (front) supporter Beza Abera, Usher Yusuf and Toni Ounei from Ethiopia after a game at Upper Hutt.

 

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"Everyone is Asian when playing for me," jokes Terry Yao, as he explains the inclusion of some Kiwi work colleagues in his Arakura Asian United soccer team.

"As long as they understand my English, then it's OK."

In Upper Hutt's Multi Ethnic Soccer Tournament, Yao isn't the only captain to take on players who don't fit teams' respective "ethnic" bill  for example, the Chilean team is captained by a Mexican and has two French players; Fiji has a young lad from the Solomon Islands.

Bridging different communities is the whole point of tournaments such as these, as Race Relations Commissioner Joris de Bres once said when applauding similar tournaments in Hamilton, Christchurch and Wellington.

"The All Whites will be all colours before long," he declared.

His claim might take a while to eventuate, but for the moment, picture this: Saturday afternoon at Awakairangi Park. Somalia are preparing for their game versus Ethiopia, UK Kiwis are about to go head to head with Zimbabwe and, later in the piece, Fiji put five at the back of the net against West Africa to qualify for the semis.
These "International XIs" are battling it out on field for an eventual place in the New Zealand Communities Football Cup. A record 20 teams and 360 players have entered the local Regional Ethnic Communities Football tournament this year.

Rallied by support from Upper Hutt MultiCultural Council, teams have pulled together players from as far afield as Chile to as close as the local cop shop.

Most are in it for the social aspect  getting to meet people from diverse cultures and enjoying a 90-minute game of soccer with mates.

"The tournament is such a pleasant environment where everyone shows camaraderie," says Salim Singh, manager of Fiji Football Association.

His team's reasons for entering range from wanting to create a forum for young people to engage in, to showing unity despite the problems back in their homeland.

He says the aim of the tournament, to have different ethnicities getting along, has been achieved.

But, at its heart, soccer is a highly competitive sport and naturally some teams covet the trophy, donated by local Police four years ago when the competition started.

The UK Kiwis include players from Upper Hutt 1st Division; some of the Somalians play for Wellington's 3rd Div; Zimbabwe has players involved in different levels of Capital Football  just to name a few who have maximised their chances.

On the other hand, there's first-time entrant Chile, with a ragtag bunch including backpackers, students and hospitality workers.

Captain Luis Solano, who works as a chef at Lower Hutt restaurant Las Margaritas, says it was difficult putting a team together because other players also work in hospitality, and are bound to shifts and working weekends.

"I have a real passion for soccer and so do all the other guys in the team. Back home, I used to play for school and then a club; I think there, people practice a lot more so they have more techniques."

Solano, who moved here three years ago, tried to get into a Wellington team but was derailed by an accident in which his femur was broken in five places.

He says it's good to be back on field and the tournament is a great opportunity to have fun and play with all different ethnicities.

In a country where rugby is religion, this tournament is a refreshing chance for some soccer-starved players to pit their skills against like-minded competitors.

Hailing from Iraq, like most on the Assyria team, captain Mark Esho says he has played soccer for as long as he can remember.

He appreciates the soccer scene here, which he says is more vibrant with fresh opportunities.

Similarly, Yao is drawn to the game because of the available football grounds around New Zealand.

''In China, we didn't have enough ground and the situation wasn't as good as here.

"If your country wants to battle in football then you have to get more players from the real people.

"There's a big gap between everyday people and professional players in China but not here [and] the Ethnic Soccer tournament is an example.''

Yao also enjoys the freedom of being able to play soccer, having been disallowed by his father all his childhood.

''I didn't actually play football till I moved here [in 2002]. My father was a professional football player, in a state where the government pays and supports its sports pros, but he never allowed  me to play.

''I was a good boy and I didn't play [but] when I moved here it was like, who cares?''

Family is an important reason why Zimbabwe captain Nelson Gapera has entered the tournament every year it's been held.

There is a strong Zimbabwean community in Wellington and with football being the main sport in the African nation, the tournament was one way of getting the community together and mixing with other local ethnic groups, he says.

''Lot of us are families with children so it's a platform for bringing up kids with the sport.''

Like most players in this tournament, Gapera says he doesn't find anything different between playing in this tournament or back home.

''No matter where you are in the world, it's a game of soccer  same rules, same language. We're all from different backgrounds but soccer is one thing in common.''

Lower Hutt Police team captain Sergeant Anthony Tebbutt agrees, adding their reasons behind entering the competition is to help build relationships with ethnic communities.

''Their previous dealings with the police might not have been the most positive so this is a good way of showing them a different side of police.

''I get along well with some of the Sudanese boys and they stop and say hello on the street now.''

As something the Police have supported for the past four years, Tebbutt is glad to see the tournament growing.

''It started with eight teams, then 12, then 16 and now this year we have 20...the worst thing is though, this year is the best team we've got, whereas other teams have been getting better over the years.''

The police team have won the Fair Play award for three years running.

Not every team can reach the finals, but they have fun and are already looking forward to next year.

South Africa captain Clint Williams says the tournament needs to be promoted more.

''There are some players who are very talented and they need to be seen.''

Ethnic Finals Live Streaming on http://www.planetstream.tv/ or now called Video on Demand.