Ten years on, the fun is still there for two soccer-mad volunteers
By: Ashlee Buckley
The Canberra Times 17/7/09
Some of this year’s Kanga Cup competitors weren’t even born when volunteers Margot Prout and Peter Burrows began their involvement with the competition.
Now into their tenth year with the event, the two love what they do, manning the information desk at the University of Canberra throughout the tournament.
Prout came to the Cup initially as a parent, when the Kanga Cup was held in Blacktown, Sydney.
“I’ve been involved [with the Cup] for 10 years,” she said.
“I started off with the Kanga Cup when my son was playing under-13s when they [the Cup] moved here, they were looking for volunteers, so I volunteered from then on.”
Burrows’s first experience at the Cup was not as a volunteer or a parent, but out on the field with the kids.
“I started, right at the beginning, as one of the referees,” he says.
“I’ve been a referee most of my life.”
Both Prout and Burrows have taken on many different roles since.
“I started off being ground manager, at various fields,” says Prout.
“And then, after a few years of that, I was doing the merchandising, when they were selling the merchandising.
And they’ve outsourced the merchandising this year, so we’re [Burrows and Prout] doing the information.”
Burrows has also taken on a variety of roles.
“I became one of the ground managers and this year we decided that I would come back into it again. And so I’ve got this beautiful job, and Margot as well, on the information desk, for all the information for all the teams.”
Prout does not have any family playing at the Cup any more, but still comes back every year to volunteer. “I just enjoy it,” she says.
“Its just fun to do, once a year.”
While Burrows doesn’t think the Kanga Cup has changed much over the 10 years he’s been involved, Prout says several things have.
“It’s changed because it’s grown tremendously,” she said.
“The international players have added some sort of spice to the Cup itself.” She said one of the great things about the Kanga Cup is the camaraderie between sides.
As for Burrows, he just loves his football.
“This is the game that they really do play in heaven,” he jokes.
“It’s in your blood, you just cannot let go.”
So instead of just information, the info desk has a lot more to it. It has a lot of history, laughs and anecdotes from the wonderful volunteers behind it.