At the recent Junior African Cup, 4 young umpires from Europe were appointed and given the opportunity of a lifetime to be part of the African team in Johannesburg.... 

Paul Walker from England, along with Lia Waine, ENG, Aisling Keogh, IRL and Mike Gerwig GER, accepted their appointments and Paul gave us a quick summary of the trip. 

"The appointment to umpire the Junior African Cup of Nations provided the opportunity for four European umpires to travel to a fantastic country and umpire a different style of hockey to Europe.

It was an important tournament as both qualification for the Junior World Cup and becoming African champions were the prizes at the end of the tournament. As a result, the games were competitive and provided a mixture of challenges, with some close score lines and a few less so.

The men's final really was the pinnacle of the tournament and was a game that really showed what African hockey has to offer. Both South Africa and Egypt played with intensity and skill to produce a game that was great to watch and even better to umpire. We are grateful to the South African Hockey Association for being wonderful hosts and making us feel very welcome in Johannesburg." 

The photographs are from Paul and show the guys in action and as part of their team.