A north-east football club has established links with a Christian community in Africa.
Deveronvale FC has donated a supply of old football strips to the Global Leadership Academy, in Jeffrey’s Bay, in South Africa.
The Banff organisation, which competes in the Highland Football League, are famous for their all-red kit, which will now be worn by emerging players in one of the Republic’s fastestgrowing towns.
The strips will be conveyed to their new home by a team of 17 people from Banff’s Riverside Christian Church, who are embarking on a 10-day mission.
Rob McArthur, who will lead the team to Africa, was confident the football gear would be put to good use.
He added: “The football shirts will be worn proudly by the school teams in various inter-school competitions.”
Global Leadership Academy teaches some of the poorest children in the region and is part of a wider Christian community called the Global Challenge which has ties with the Riverside congregation.
The school – which is mixed race – has been hailed as promoting greater harmony and understanding between different racial groups.
Deveronvale Football Club’s chairman, Jim Mair, said the club was keen to help in that unification process.
He added: “We are very happy to provide a small measure of support to this initiative and wish the Riverside Christian Church a successful trip to the Eastern Cape of South Africa.”
Highland League sides have a history of supporting charity efforts in Africa.
Last year, Fraserburgh FC donated kits to an amateur Ugandan team.
And Watoto Children’s Choir visited the Broch in 2009 when a link was established between them and the town’s Assembly of God.