England C played host to the Nepal national team at Aldershot Town’s EBB stadium on Monday, which ended with a 2-0 victory for the non-League Lions.
On a rain-soaked afternoon in Hampshire, first-half goals from Barnet pair Nicke Kabamba and Callum Stead helped Paul Fairclough's team cruise to victory in this friendly against the Blue Tigers, with FA Chair Debbie Hewitt among an impressive crowd of over 5500 fans in attendance.
The fixture was part of a visit from the All Nepal Football Association (ANFA) to help raise the profile of football to the Nepalese community in England and increase participation from the wider south Asian communities as part of our Asian Inclusion Strategy, ‘Bringing Opportunities to Communities (Phase 2)’.
The All Nepal Football Association also engaged in daily community engagement events during their visit which was supported throughout by the Hampshire FA, Army FA and Aldershot Town FC during the visit.
Debbie also presented the England players with their caps after the game, while the Nepal team used the game as preparation for their forthcoming World Cup qualifiers against UAE and Yemen.
"Football has the incredible power of bringing communities together and today’s fixture is a perfect example of this," said Debbie.
"There has been a great deal of excitement and interest from the local Nepalese community in the lead up to today’s match, the first time that a fixture has taken place between our two countries at any level.
"I’d like to give a special thanks to Aldershot Town for hosting today’s match, as well as Hampshire FA and Army FA for their hospitality in welcoming Nepal FA as part of this friendship visit, promoting football for all. It has been fantastic to see the engagement with the large Nepalese community that live in the area, as well as the Gurkha Regiments based at the Aldershot Garrison."
