AN ANNUAL pilgrimage to India for a team of people with Bendigo sporting ties will kick some new goals early in the new year.
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The January trip will be the sixth to be led by Golden Square Football Netball Club chaplain Bruce Claridge to support humanitarian endeavours on the sub-continent.
In what has quickly become a tradition, a key focus for the 17-member travelling team will be running the annual AFL India National Championships.
The January 5-6 championships will feature at least nine teams, emanating from various parts of India.
But the touring party will break new ground in 2019 by running soccer and netball clinics.
Claridge said the soccer clinics would be run with the help of his 15-year-old granddaughter Azhia Claridge, who plays in the National Premier Leagues with South Melbourne FC.
“From further north, Jo Bear - from Macorna - with the help of other team members will use netball to assist in the rehabilitation process of young girls rescued from the sex trafficking industry so prevalent in India,” he said.
The first team members will leave for India on January 1, with the rest following two days later.
From teenagers Claridge and Connor Byrne, to well-known Bendigo identity Bill Wilkinson, who will be making his second-consecutive trip to India, the team covers a spread of ages.
Coming off her second NPL season with South Melbourne, Claridge said she was looking forward to a likely ‘life changing’ experience.
“I’m pretty excited to be running some soccer clinics and helping out in any way I can in India,” the 15-year-old Bendigo South East College student said.
“South Melbourne has given us some playing equipment to take over for the people we’ll be teaching.
“I haven’t been to India before but I have heard lots about it from grandpa, so I’m excited to experience a new culture.
“I’m not really sure what to expect, but I’m glad for the new opportunity and to experience somewhere I haven’t been before.
“I think my eyes will be opened to a lot of things, and maybe some quite confronting, which will change me for the better.”
The trip will be the third for 17-year-old Byrne, who was a member of the first Bendigo delegation to travel to India in November 2014.
That initial touring party included his father Paul, Bruce and Jan Claridge, Toni and Ben West, and former AFL Central Victoria regional operations manager Justin Abrams.
Byrne described his first Indian experience as ‘eye-opening’ and was looking forward to seeing what developments had been made in terms of infrastructure in Kolkata.
He was also looking forward to catching up with friends made on previous trips.
“I had no hesitation in wanting to go back, any opportunity to go to India is one I will take,” the recent Year 12 graduate said.
“I have kids (from India) messaging me at 3am in the morning saying ‘hi’ and that would happen five or six times a week.
“It will be great seeing those kids again and hearing what they want to do in the future.”
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Team leader Bruce Claridge said the trip would not be possible without the generous support over many years of Andrew Zegelin, from Travelcentre Bendigo, Golden Square Football Netball Club, AFL Central Victoria South Melbourne FC, Adidas and Paul Byrne.
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