Kate Murphy, a long-standing fan of Leeds United, made an interesting donation to the Ugandan community of Nkuringo. She sent them a goat and 17 hens, with a small instruction – her only demand was they name the animals after Leeds United coach and his players.As The Athletic reports, she was inundated with photos of people in the village holding the beasts with name cards, with the Ugandan mountains in the background.”I doubt they knew much about Leeds before the animals arrive, but the trustees of the charity told me they know all about football. I assumed that out there it would all be your Liverpools and Manchester Uniteds. Not any more!”A goat called Bielsa and the 17 Ugandan hens named after Leeds players: Building a little corner of the club 6,500 miles away via @TheAthletic https://t.co/jQ10H9lnxv— Raymond Natukunda (@the_tenderer) November 16, 2021 The photos she received were a warming flow of individual children with hens and the goat, each of them holding a yellow name card written by the headteacher at the village’s secondary school (Raphinha, Struijk, Llorente and others, all spelt perfectly). The picture of the child with the bird named after Mateusz Klich stood out to her because the blue shorts worn by the boy are ripped and falling to pieces, in need of replacing.”The first time I came across the village, it was very obvious that they had nothing,” Murphy says. “Some of their clothes were torn to rags, some of them had nothing on their feet, but at the same time, they were all so happy, almost happier than some kids here, kids who’ve got so much.Children at Nkuringo with animals (©TheAthletic/SC)”I wanted to help, but I also wanted to find a charity who would show me where my money is going. I pay £200 for hens and a goat, and there they are. They’re in the photos, so I know what the money is doing. And the smiles of the kids, they’re amazing. I started posting them on Twitter the other week because they’re like that poem by Spike Milligan – Smiling is Infectious. It’s what happens when you look at them.”I’m told that the people in the village talk about the names we’ve given the animals and the reason why. I don’t think they’ll get the Bielsa = GOAT reference for now, but maybe one day. If I go there again, I’ll tell them. He had to be the goat. There was no choice, ” she concluded.Leeds United to the rescue – Afghan girls’ football squad trying to escape Taliban brutal governmentLast week, after seeing the response to the photos of Nkuringo she posted on Twitter, Murphy launched a GoFundMe page to raise money for food donations to other villages in the area. Her £250 target was cleared in four days. The next batch of names will be Leeds United legends.##NAJAVA_MECA_5983476##
