KEY POINTS:
New Zealand Twenty20 cricketers took time out from the run up to the sport's inaugural world cup to coach children in one of Johannesburg's poorest townships, Alexandra.
In a country where the HIV virus affects over five million people, the Little Champs Sports Academy teaches underprivileged children not only about cricket, but also about Aids.
"Most of [the children's] parents are unemployed or earning a government grant, so they cannot afford to take them to the special classes," said Little Champs Coach Refiloe Phukujoa.
"So Little Champs is helping everybody and they don't have to pay and Little Champs is combining all the basics of sports, so it's easy for everybody,"
New Zealand cricketer Gareth Hopkins said it was rewarding to visit the township and help coach the children.
"They're a great bunch of kids and they're just like kids from anywhere else in the world," he said.
The visit was part of UNICEF's partnership with the International Cricket Council (ICC) to promote the global campaign Unite for children, Unite against AIDS.
- NZ HERALD STAFF
