Amongst all the Liverpool, Manchester United and Barcelona jerseys worn by the next generation of aspiring Sierra Leone footballers, there'll also be plenty of youngsters donning the royal blue of one of Bathurst's most iconic football clubs.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Bathurst 75 Football Club has donated hundreds of old junior and senior jerseys to the Madiba Project, a not-for-profit charitable organisation that aims to help end poverty, humanitarian needs and distress in underprivileged communities in western Africa and abroad.
Bathurst 75 treasurer Ian Wells said he heard about the Madiba Project after the Bathurst Library's donation last year.
"Bathurst Library donated their old bookshelves to Sierra Leone last year and that's where I first heard about the Madiba Project," he said.
"All these kids in Sierra Leone who probably didn't know what a library was are now going in, picking up a book and learning how to read."
Mr Wells said his point of contact with the project - Mikhail Kallon - is a big football fan and was excited about the news that Bathurst 75 would be donating their old jerseys.
"[Mikhail] is a big football fan and I got a hold him and said, 'Bathurst 75 have all these old jerseys. We want to donate them to a worthy cause'.
"He said he'd love to have them. I dropped them off in Sydney last week and they were ecstatic.
"Sierra Leone will be a big feeder for Bathurst 75 and BDF in the future."
To donate an old jersey, contact the Madiba Project on 0410 279 091.