An eye-opening visit for Ireland players

For the teams involved at the ICC Cricket World Cup Qualifier 2018 in Zimbabwe, not everything has been about cricket. A lot of the sides have spent time interacting with children and doing their bit for local communities.

On one such outing, members of the Ireland cricket team took some time out of their schedule and visited new mothers and babies at a rural health clinic just outside of Harare.

The Rutope Clinic, which is partly funded by Irish Aid and UK Aid in conjunction with UNICEF, is located in Bindura, about 80km from Harare. Nine members of the Ireland contingent, including included Andy Balbirnie, Gary Wilson, Ed Joyce and Niall O'Brien, found out about the challenges of working in rural Zimbabwe in a town with a population of around 14,000 people.

The players also saw a mothers' waiting home, which will be equipped with all the means and resources to help expectant mothers and provide them with pre-natal care.

“As international cricketers we have a relatively fortunate life, playing the sport we love and travelling the world," said Balbirnie reflecting on his visit. "What is truly inspiring and grounding is coming to a clinic like this one and seeing the remarkable work of everyone involved to try and provide an invaluable resource to the community.

“My teammates and I are very grateful to have been invited here, to see first-hand the work that is being supported by Irish Aid and UK Aid. We have met some amazing people who work so hard to improve the lives of others in their community and have particularly enjoyed meeting so many kids and learning a bit about their lives.”

It was a beautiful moment, especially for Wilson, who became a father recently, to meet a pair of six-week-old twins waiting for their first injections. The team also listened to members from the Sista2Sista Club – a community-run initiative that mentors young girls on the various aspects of life.

Chris Siddell, Ireland's Team Operations Manager, said: “Touring with a national side is often much more than just the action on the field and we always try and learn as much as we can about the countries we visit.

“We also recognise the responsibility we have as representatives of Ireland when abroad and it was a great pleasure for us to visit a rural health clinic supported by Irish Aid and UK Aid.

“It was humbling to see first-hand the work that is being done and the huge benefit it is having on the local community - particularly for parents with young children. We are proud that Irish Aid is working with local partners here in Zimbabwe to improve people’s lives.”