Burma new face in football tournament

A Burmese team will take part in Hamilton’s Ethnic Football Festival for the first time this year. Thlaro Manring, left and In Ah Mulla demonstrate their skills to Ruby John, right. Burmese ball skills will be on display at the Ethnic Football Festival for the first time this October.

The Hamilton-based NZ Ethnic Football Festival is in its 13th year and will bring together players from countries including Cambodia, Fiji, Somalia, Korea and the Solomon Islands.

The Burmese community was a relatively recent arrival to Hamilton, festival organiser Patricia Novoa said.

But the ‘‘unique and hard-working’’ members were keen to get on the field and share their culture.

The football festival is organised through the Hamilton Multicultural Services Trust. It’s on at Gower Park in Melville on October 4 and 5, 9am-5pm.