Former refugees take flight at Eagles Soccer Club in SA

Joel Hakizimana - vice-president of Regency Eagles Soccer Club

Joel Hakizimana knows better than most the unifying power of sport and its ability to bring people together.

The 23-year-old from Burundi began coaching handball and volleyball teams in a Tanzanian refugee camp in 2002. He credits sport with helping him through the most challenging time in his life.

‘When I went to the refugee camp I was alone – I had no parental support,’ Joel said. ‘I had to do something to forget about the conditions in the camp and I turned to sport to help me through.’

In 2005, Joel came to Australia after being granted a refugee visa. He says it felt like he had ‘died and come to heaven’.

‘I can't explain it – I was very, very happy to come to Australia,’ he said. ‘There's plenty of food and water and, above all, it's peaceful.’

Soon after he arrived, Joel was inspired to start the Regency Eagles Soccer Club for people with similar backgrounds to his, believing they would benefit from playing sport socially and competitively.

‘I looked around and there were young people in the community here doing nothing,’ Joel said. ‘I sat down with other people from the Burundi community in South Australia and said ‘what can we do for these boys?’ and we decided to start a soccer club.’

Joel then set about searching for players, pulling together a team of 20 teenaged boys and young men from the local church, school and community.

‘I met with them and explained the importance of why we wanted to start the club, as well as the importance of staying fit keeping busy,’ Joel said. ‘I wanted to help them forget the hard things that had happened in their lives.’

The club now boasts 32 players and fields two teams every week. And, while 90 per cent of the players are originally from Burundi, Joel believes their nationality is not important.

Rather, he said the main goal is getting the boys onto the paddock every week.

‘We don't have good pitches to train on, we don't have any lights and a lot of the boys don't have cars so we have to work together to get all the boys to training,’ Joel said. ‘It just shows how much they love playing and how much they enjoy being part of the team. Everyone at the club is a volunteer – no-one gets paid – and we don't get financial support from anyone.’

Most of all, Joel said he enjoys seeing the boys have a blast out on the field and enjoying themselves after all they have been through.

‘The boys have a very, very strong friendship,’ Joel said. ‘I am very proud of them all.’

Joel Hakizimana is vice-president of Regency Eagles Soccer Club and social coordinator of the Association of Burundi Community of South Australia. He became an Australian citizen in 2008.

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