The unlikely rise of Gaelic football on the fields of Cambodia

[dec]

https://www.bbc.com/sport/gaelic-games/65064562

Sovann ThidaAva has never met her parents. Born in the mid-2000s, she was found abandoned as a baby on the street in Cambodia's capital, Phnom Penh. She was taken in by a local non-governmental organisation (NGO) for disadvantaged children, where she was raised. "I have no idea where my mum went," says ThidaAva, who goes by the name Ava. Life in care was crowded and chaotic, but over the years she built up a close bond with the other girls there. "We were like sisters because we grew up together... we lived together in one group," she says. During playtime, the boys played football and volleyball, but the girls were not encouraged to join in. "The girls were encouraged to do dancing and art," Ava says. Despite being around large groups her entire life, Ava knew little beyond the walls of the organisation.

That all changed in 2018, when somebody offered to take her to a training session for a sport she'd never heard of - Gaelic football - at a club that was barely a year old.Cairde Khmer had been formed in 2017 by two Irishmen - Conor Wall and Paddy Campbell. "It was meant to be a bit of craic - go to Bangkok one time to check out a Gaelic tournament," says Ronan Sheehan, the club's chairman. The trip to Bangkok was a success and the decision was made to keep the club going. To begin with, Cairde Khmer was made up almost completely of Westerners. But in 2018, the club started seeing a small influx of Cambodian players turning up to training. Ava started playing around then, despite only being about 13. She initially found the rules confusing but soon became one of the team's best and most fearless players.

"She is absolutely vicious," Sheehan says. "Her tackling can be quite rough. I used to take great delight watching grown women in their 20s and 30s asking the referee to protect them from this rampaging 14-year-old. "Referees are always coming up to us and telling us she has to calm down. But we can't calm that out of her because it's a big part of her game. She plays it right on the edge." Soon a trickle of Cambodian players became a steady stream, as word started to spread. Vat Sreypov joined the team in 2019. As a child, Sreypov had always longed to play sports like the boys in her village, but was never given the chance. "I was not allowed to play football because my brother said it was not for women," Sreypov recalls. "Most women are not encouraged to play football in Cambodia. There are so many norms about women and how to behave - you are told not to walk fast and you should not be heard when you walk." Cairde Khmer was a breath of fresh air to her....

[seafoid]

Amazing stories.
They are raising money to go to Derry in July.

[Eamonnca1]

Warms my heart.

[armaghniac]

Amazing stories.
They are raising money to go to Derry in July.

From one war ravaged impoverished place to another.

[Itchy]

Brilliant, shows the power of sport.

[Fear ón Srath Bán]

Fair dues to Conor Wall and Paddy Campbell, keep 'er lit a chairde, mighty stuff!