In the aftermath of the horrific October 7th Hamas massacre on their kibbutz Kfar Aza, which is one of the hardest hit communities, Shualei Kfar Aza uses football to try and find some comfort and even made a comeback to playing the beautiful game. The players from the kibbutz which was one of the many Israeli communities devastated by the October 7 Hamas massacre, lost teammates, family members and friends. On Friday however, they all met for a team activity that unites the entire kibbutz which sits five kilometers east of the Gaza strip, was infiltrated by around 70 terrorists and had more than 70 members murdered with around 20 taken hostage.
The Shualim (Foxes) football team participated in the first communal activity organized by The Sha’ar HaNegev Regional Council since 7.10 as they played in the traditional Kibbutzim football tournament which was hosted in Kfar Sava.
The foxes, who are the Regional Council’s reigning champions lined-up alongside 11 other kibbutzim before comfortably winning their group. A defeat in the quarter finals at the end of a penalty shoot-out surprisingly ended their run in the regional tournament which was highlighted by the support they received from the fans, the Maccabi Tel Aviv Foundation and sponsor ISRAEL CANADA.
Team captain, Idan Berman whose two brothers Ziv and Gali are held hostage in Gaza, said: “It is not even regarded as a little dent, feels like a defeat in the Toto Cup. We fielded some youngsters and are just happy to be here and meet everyone. Football, the togetherness and the support we receive just gives us a bit of light in these difficult dark times we are all experiencing.”
