Sporting events can bring out peoples' best competitive efforts, spiced with a dose of goodwill.
That's what brough the Nigerian Community Association of Greater Sudbury out Saturday for a soccer match with the Greater Sudbury Police Service (NCAGS)., played at Ecole secondaire du Sacre-Coeur.
It was a goodwill challenge match according to Tonye Oriakhi, NCAGS president.
"Just you know it's all good to get people outside for this game, so it's not all just work, work, work, without any kind of play," she said.
"Right, you know this helps with our health and our mental health and well being," she added.
Oriakhi said this follows an effort by GSPS chief Paul Pedersen who contacted the association.
"This is to show that we we support the work, because we have had the chief reach out to us so just to, you know, support each other to ensure that there is this cohesion and community between us and the police," said Oriakhi.
She said the idea of a goodwill game goes a long way.
"So that it's not when when we see the police, we are afraid of them or that kind of thing. So this is to know that, yes, the police are actually our friends. We can go to them for help and things like that, right. So this is the first of hopefully many more years of soccer matches" said Oriakhi.
"We call it football, by the way," she smiled.
Speaking right before the game Oriakhi thanked GSPS for honouring the invitation.
"We will probably take it easy on you guys," she laughed. Nigerians have a long history of success with international football with a gold medal win at the 1996 Atlanta Olympics, silver in Beijing 2008 and bronze in Rio de Janeiro 2016.
GSPS Police Chief Paul Pedersen thanked the association for inviting police to the soccer match
"We talk a lot about a relationship with communities, relationship with all parts of our communities. And I always say it's so much easier to have a relationship when there's a reciprocal feeling of trust. And this reciprocity for having us invited here means a lot. So we want to give you guys a big round of applause for thanks for inviting us," said the chief.
As the various players took to the field, Pederson remarked to a colleague.
"I knew we had a good hockey team, but I never knew we had so many good soccer players."
