A highlight for LIV Village is welcoming visitors to tour our special home. In March we were delighted to host two Super Rugby teams – the Waratahs from Australia and the Sun Wolves from Japan.
Among the players that came from the Waratahs were Israel Folau and Curtis Rona. Israel has previously visited LIV and knew that some of his team mates would enjoy seeing how well some of South Africa’s orphaned and vulnerable children are being cared for and to have a chance to play games with them and encourage their dreams for the future. The other players that came were Taqele Naiyaravoro, Tolu Latu, Shambeckler Vui, Lalakai Foketi and Kalivati Tawake. Also visiting was Head Coach Darryl Gibson, Assistant Coach Simon Cron and Sports Scientist Ben McInstosh. Their visit to the Village included ball games with our preschool children and then some touch rugby on our main field with our bigger boys. They cleared the village shop of Moringa before they left and donated some treats for our children to enjoy. We loved having them here.
The Sun Wolves visited the Village on a humid Sunday afternoon and after a tour of some of our facilities our older boys enjoyed a game of touch rugby on our main field. Some of our younger boys were impressed with the players’ muscles and spent some time comparing their biceps. Among the team that came was South African’s Willie Britz and Hercus Van Wyk along with Atshushi Sakate, Hosea Saumaki, Koo Jiwom and Takuma Asahara. We were impressed with the interest they had in the work we are doing here and how beautifully they engaged with our children.
These visits foster the love of Rugby on the Village and also inspire our children to dream big. We are very grateful that the Waratahs and the Sun Wolves took time for their full schedules to invest into our children. Thank you from all of your little fans at LIV and all the best for the rest of the season!
For more photo’s of The Waratahs’ visit to LIV, click here.
For more photo’s of the Sun Wolves’ visit to LIV, click here.
