KIDLINGTON residents have been urged to dig deep to buy footballs for orphans in South Africa.

Villagers created the Fund a Football campaign to help as many youngsters as possible in North West province, which has a long link with Kidlington through the Anglican church.

The scheme will run alongside the country’s Create Fun for Children project, which aims to involve children in this year’s football World Cup in South Africa.

Hundreds of thousands of children have been orphaned in the country by HIV/Aids, malnutrition and poverty, and many youngsters have never kicked a real football.

Fund co-organiser Kathryn Ellis said last night: “Our friends in the diocese of Kimberley and Kuruman have asked us here in the Oxford Diocese to help them to finance the distribution of balls in the poorest areas for the whole community of children, whether they belong to the church or not.

“In 2010 South Africa will be hosting the World Cup but the excitement and euphoria generated in the big cities will never reach many thousands of the poorest children in this part of the same country.

“We are appealing for the help of the whole Kidlington community to raise money to distribute footballs to these deprived children. The anticipated generosity of people in this area will bring a lot of pleasure to the lives of needy children.“ This year’s World Cup, from June 11 to July 11, is the first held in Africa and the build-up to the tournament has been mired in controversy.

Organisers have been accused of evicting residents from some shanty towns in a bid to beautify cities.

In addition, the N2 Gateway housing project in Cape Town may see more than 20,000 residents from Joe Slovo Informal Settlement shifted from alongside a busy freeway to make space for rental flats and bond houses.

The residents will be moved to the poverty-stricken Delft township on the outskirts of the city and out of sight from the main road.

The footballs cost £15 each – for details call 01865 372709 or 01865 378014. Donations should be sent to Kidlington Parish Office, 19 Mill Street, Kidlington, OX5 2EE, with cheques made payable to Kidlington PCC.

Fund a Football should be marked on the envelope and the back of the cheque.

dhearn@oxfordmail.co.uk