Former Under 14’s parent Alan finds his job takes him all over the globe and last year he was called upon to visit the central east African country of Tanzania. Alan soon discovered that the locals in Mtwarra (where he is based) are football mad, however he was also struck by how little they had in the way of basic football kit, particularly the youngsters. As Alan explains, "During my first trip in July 2010 I noticed the kids playing football on open ground (it couldn't be called a park!) and the majority were playing in their bare feet and didn't have much in the way of football tops, shorts and socks."

Alan's next visit saw him returning with his son's boots, trainers and strips that he had outgrown. He handed them out at one of the 'parks' the local children used as a football pitch and the response he received from the youngsters was almost overwhelming. This prompted Alan on his return to the UK to approach his co-parents on the AC touchline to ask if they too had any surplus kit at home - not surprisingly he received a terrific response and was able to take more kit to Tanzania (which included some replica top bargains Alan had purchased from local sports shops).

Looking to keep his efforts as informal as possible, Alan goes on to say, "I simply drove about town stopping and handing kit out whenever I saw kids playing football and looked like they needed some help. I have since found out that they have formed a league covering two age groups - I have also purchased some footballs for them and will be taking them back over as a lot of the 'balls' they were playing with were just rolled up bundles of cloth."

Alan has just returned to Mtwarra and hopefully by now the children playing in their league will be proudly showing off their tops, shorts, socks and footwear including those much sought after footballs!

Here are the latest photos from Alan - click on an image to flick through the album ...

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