It has all the joy, passion and tears of the real thing, but the Homeless World Cup also offers so much more, writes Joe Humphreys in Cape Town
Tears. Passion. Tired legs. Sunburned flesh. Players squabbling. Officials fighting. Feuds over the quality of facilities. Claims of incompetence. Feelings of injustice. Harsh words. And lots more tears. Forget Saipan. Cape Town this week was probably the most emotional journey for any squad of soccer players representing Ireland. Eight young men, literally taken off the streets of Dublin and flown to Africa's southernmost point, experienced what their manager Sean Kavanagh described as a "rollercoaster ride" in the Homeless World Cup.
Just getting to the tournament was a major feat for the squad, which comprised some ex-prisoners and several former drug addicts. First, the players had to be selected from 1,500 applicants competing in a domestic homeless soccer league, and from follow-up trials in Dublin.
Then, more challengingly, they had to overcome their own personal demons and demonstrate discipline, good behaviour and a commitment towards the team.
For goalkeeper Damian Farrell (25), the journey began 12 months ago when he travelled as a fan to the 2005 Homeless World Cup in Edinburgh. "I got a taste for the atmosphere, and I said, 'I want a piece of that'."
The Clondalkin man's progress both on and off the pitch had impressed everyone. He had been sleeping rough for some time, and then suddenly found football. "My mother took me back in when she heard I was staying clean. So this has helped me, not only physically but getting back into the family and talking to them," he said.
Such small steps are the legacy of this tournament, now in its fourth year. Once the dust has settled on the pitch battles - and we'll come to those in a moment - the players will return to Ireland, with a strengthened sense of self-worth and added confidence. That's the theory, anyhow.
The game's organisers made the bold claim that "over 77 per cent of players change their lives forever". In a survey of last year's competitors, 94 per cent said they had a new motivation for life, 40 per cent said they had improved their housing situation and 38 per cent said they had found regular employment.
Kavanagh, who has managed each of the previous Irish entries, said the figures were borne out by his own experiences. He noted, for example, that three of the squad that went to Gothenburg in 2003 were now in full-time employment. "This is a stepping stone for the lads. You tend not to see the ones that make it again - because they have a different life now, and that's good," said Kavanagh, who edits the street paper Ireland's Issues, and also runs the Irish Street League with the help of the Football Association of Ireland (FAI).
FOR THIS YEAR'S players, any potential benefits from the world cup were in the distant future.
In fact, none could see beyond this afternoon's final and a chance of glory. "We are not here for a holiday," said Simon Canning (29) from Tallaght in Dublin. The team's imposing captain, he models himself on Liverpool midfielder Steven Gerrard. Relaxing in the grandstand before the first game, he disdainfully spied some competing teams practising step-overs and keepie-uppies. "Tricks don't win you games. We are a more . . ." - he searches for the appropriate word - ". . . a more passionate side." His confidence was not misplaced as Ireland thrashed Norway 6-2 in their opener. A narrow defeat to Latvia and a convincing win over Afghanistan followed, giving them safe passage to the next round - or so they thought as they went to bed on Monday night.
On Tuesday morning, they discovered Lithuania had put in a successful protest - claiming they should qualify on goal difference instead. Ireland were suddenly out.
Kavanagh and the normally mild-mannered Mick Pender, a former hospital porter turned coach, stormed the organisers' offices and - after some heated debate - got the decision reversed. Ireland were back in the world cup and, with emotions running high, had just 30 minutes to prepare for a clash against Liberia.
There followed another bitter episode. Two minutes into the game, with no score on the board, the referee called a temporary halt to play. The playing surface, a temporary foam matting which gave constant trouble throughout the tournament, had partially come apart. After a quick repair job, the referee rolled the ball back into play but neglected to blow the whistle. A Liberian player latched on to the ball and struck it into the Irish net.
Cue pandemonium and angry protests. A four-letter word was uttered, and star striker Thomas Grimes got his marching orders. In what was a four-a-side competition, losing a player - any player - had a terminal effect.
Ireland lost 6-0. Their world cup was over.
"There was a lot of frustration, a lot of anger, a lot of questioning. Everyone's morale dropped," said Anthony Hill, an addiction counsellor who travelled with the squad as "social coach". "We had to bring the lads away from it all for a while and let them get their anger and frustration out."
By Wednesday, the gloom had lifted somewhat. Ireland still had a chance of silverware - in a lesser competition for eliminated teams. They returned to the pitch to beat Germany 4-0. "That took a lot of courage," Hill added. "Fair play to the lads, they dealt with their disappointment in an honourable way."
PUTTING THINGS INTO perspective were the new acquaintances the team had made - particularly with a group of street children representing Kenya. The African team had been sponsored by Playing for Life, a sports charity set up by RTÉ presenter Tracy Piggott. As well as covering the team's travel expenses, the charity persuaded the FAI to commission a footballing strip for the Kenyan players - players such as Victor Amboka (18) who normally scrapes a living in a Nairobi slum by hiring out a bicycle to children for the equivalent of about one cent a turn.
"All of my friends are thieves," he explained, adding - with heartbreaking optimism - that he believed the tournament would lift him out of poverty. "My mother, everyone, is expecting great things from me. If I come back only with this . . ." - he tugged at the recently-donated tracksuit on his body - ". . . it would not be good." Struck by the Kenyans' predicament, the Irish players decided to give them a daily living allowance out of their own money. "You just want to give them everything," says Grimes. "There is so much poverty in them yet there is so much happiness too."
According to Hill: "We have all been shocked by the level of poverty here. We went to Kentucky Fried Chicken and were throwing some stuff into the bin when a girl pushed between us and grabbed it."
Another eye-opening experience awaits the team next week when they travel to Kenya with Piggott, who is filming their adventures for an RTÉ documentary. The players, who all got FAI coaching badges before they left Ireland, are due to train street youths attending a shelter project that is financially supported by Playing for Life.
Meanwhile, Kavanagh is plotting a bid for Ireland to host the 2009 Homeless World Cup - although, he said, he would do a few things differently. A particularly sour note was struck this year by the organisers' decision to accommodate players in an empty school - with no hot water, little privacy, and mattresses for beds.
Kavanagh, like a number of other team managers, decided to take his players out of the school and book them - at some expense - into a hotel instead. "My idea is that you would not put anyone somewhere where you would not sleep yourself, and I wouldn't sleep there," he remarked.
The Irish players may have a role to play in supporting the bid. But even if this was their last involvement with the world cup, "it has been a wonderful experience," said Farrell. Asked whether he thought it had changed him in any way, he replied: "Yeah, we have learnt an awful lot. I feel I would have a stronger character." For Kavanagh, seeing the players emerge with their heads held higher was reward for months of planning and effort.
However, he stressed, "I don't want them to see this as the highlight of their life. I want it only to be one highlight."
The Homeless World Cup final takes places this afternoon (www.homelessworldcup.org). For information about the Irish Street League, contact Ireland's Issues at tel: 01-8735137. For Tracy Piggott's charity see www.playing-for-life.ie