On 7 December, 27 Year Two Sport and Exercise Science students and 4 members of staff undertook the challenge of a 24 hour continuous football match, raising funds for the charity ‘United Through Sport’.
The students will be visiting Port Elizabeth in South Africa for 16 days in March 2018 where they will be working alongside the charity, in the hope of inspiring the children of the townships through sport sessions. During the visit the students will be leading football, netball, hockey and rugby sessions in the local schools, finishing by hosting a tournament for all four sports. They will also have the opportunity to teach English, Maths, Science and basic healthcare with the children. In preparation, they have been carrying out fundraising activities including bag packing at Morrisons, cake sales and a sponsorship raffle in order to raise money to go towards providing equipment for the schools, enabling them to continue sport in the future. The charity works with vulnerable and disadvantaged children across the province, offering a range of educational activities to aid their future.
Rob Hancox, second year Sport and Exercise Science student said,
“The trip is going to be extremely beneficial for both the children in the townships and sports students on the trip because it creates an eye-opener and great opportunities to help gain more knowledge and understanding within a sporting environment across different cultures.”
The format of the match included six teams who were scheduled to play in two hour stints from 10am on the Thursday to 10am on the Friday. As part of the fundraising process for the 24 hour match, the student ran a ‘Guess the amount of goals scored’ competition. The final amount of goals scored was an impressive 1,535, with James Salt winning the competition with a guess of 1,530 – congratulations James!
On completion of the match, despite feeling tired, the students rejoiced in a feeling of self-satisfaction and pride.
Aaron Gilbert-Muir, second year Sport and Exercise Science student said,
“The charity, United Through Sport, enables the children to develop skills to benefit their future. It gives them an opportunity to be part of a team and work well in groups to further their communication skills. The trip will be an amazing experience that I will treasure and never forget.”
Alex Leach, Course Leader for Sport and Exercise Science said,
“We would like to thank the college support team and sports department for helping to make the match possible. The students performed extremely well in challenging conditions, working as an effective team and should be proud of what they have achieved. We would also like to thank Yeovil Ladies FC who has donated a signed football to assist with fundraising, this will be raffled off in the weeks leading up to the trip.”
To find out more about studying Sport & Exercise Science at Bridgwater & Taunton College call our Information & Guidance team on 01278 441234 or visit the course pages of this website.
