It’s hard to tell who had more fun – the Papua New Guinea women’s national team or the children from École Léonie Avril – after the side called in on the Poumebout school to take part in an OFC Just Play session with the kids yesterday.
After two comprehensive victories in the OFC Women’s Nations Cup, Papua New Guinea took a break from the rigours of international training to meet with the local students, finding new fans as well as making new friends.
PNG assistant coach Margaret Aka helped lead the activities with the differences in language proving no barrier to the enjoyment had by all as they ran through the different sessions, before culminating in a mini-tournament for the children to put their new skills into action.
Aka said it was a great experience for the team to give back to the local community, which has been so welcoming to the team during its stay in the North Province.
“The girls had such a great time meeting the kids and helping them to learn new skills,” Aka said.
“You couldn’t even tell they all spoke different languages, the kids took an instant shine to the girls and vice versa and when it came time to leave it was quite an emotional moment.”
The theme for the day’s activities was ‘Boys and Girls can play together’ and the groups each taught the other how to share the message in a different language.