Asylum seekers line out in Roscrea

On June 30, Roscrea gardaí in association with Killavilla FC held a soccer blitz for a large amount of new asylum seekers that have arrived in Roscrea town.

The blitz was held at Killavilla soccer grounds and was officiated by club members.

Appreciation must be shown to Councillor Shane Lee who was instrumental in the organising of the event and was a fantastic conduit between all parties involved. He also displayed his refereeing skills at the event!

Gratitude must also be afforded to Paul Fogarty, who housed the participants of the event, organised the transport of same to and from the grounds and also prepared the kindly donated Ashbourne meats burgers for all to enjoy. Paul with the help of Christine also organised the teams by way of country to assist in the smooth running of the event. Another word of thanks to Bernie’s Supervalu, who also sponsored food for the event.

In total, almost 50 participants took part, hailing from the several nations, playing for Algeria, Georgia, Somalia, Ukraine, Sudan, Eritrea, Swaziland, Ghana, Zimbabwe, Nigeria, Morocco and our own Killavilla FC. The final game of the night was cheered on by all present and involved the amalgamated side of Killavilla/local gardaí versus Algeria. After a great game, it was the Algerian men who proved the victors winning on a scoreline of 5-3. Finally, a very big thank you to the committee in Killavilla for the use of their facilities.