Oak Flats goals well

By ROD WISE

That soccer is indeed the world game came home to Angelo Cignarella of Mt Warrigal in a big way recently when he decided to participate in a working bee in the mountainous central African state of Rwanda.

A group of four – two men and two women – from the Illawarra Church of Christ at Albion Park, had linked up with a building project organised by Sydney’s Hope Foundation to build a village for widows, abandoned wives and orphaned children in a village near the Rwandan capital of Kigali.

Angelo, who is a mechanical engineer, and his colleague, David Walker, a mining engineer, were to build and install water tanks in the village to ensure a supply of clean, fresh water for the residents.

Before he left, Angelo had found that the kids of the village were just crazy about soccer. As it happens, Angelo wears another hat, that of coaching co-ordinator of the Oak Flats Junior Soccer Club, so his luggage allowance was suddenly increased by 15 kilos of new Oak Flats club soccer shirts.

“And there are more on the way,” he added, because the local kids loved them, couldn’t wait to get them on and start kicking a ball around.

And who cares if they are Hutus or Tutsis: because now, thanks to Angelo, they’re all Oakies.