Founded through friendship, community and faith, Coptic United FC is one of the smaller clubs within the Hills Football Association. Though as one of the association’s founding clubs, it is a deeply connected club that aims to play, act and spiritually serve the community through sport.
Coptic United previously participated in the Churches Football Association from 2007 until the formation of the Hills Football Association in 2016. Initially formed by a group of friends who all attended the same church, the club has always been rooted deeply in their faith and religious values, and the belief that the values taught and preached on a Sunday are transferable to the field and the wider community.
“I think [our foundation in faith] is very important because it tries to reaffirm to everyone that we want to play, yes, for the enjoyment and all that, but we also want to respect the badge and those whom we represent,” Coptic United President Anthony Bekhit said.
“The faith itself is a part of our core. But in saying that, we still do accept a lot of people from all other religions, and that again goes to our faith, where we want to be accepting of everyone.”
“It’s been really good in that sense that we’ve welcomed a lot of other players that don’t necessarily feel like they are a part of the faith, but they are still wanting to be a part of the club.”
With only 150 players at the club, the importance and emphasis on a strong community and club culture are ever-present at Greenup Park Reserve. This has been exhibited through their connection with the youth and junior teams, local and cultural food in the canteen and their development in the women’s game.
“I know each and every player at the club personally, and any issues, they can come to me, and we’re all there to help each other,” Bekhit said.
“At the canteen, there’s a little bit of our culture in that. In some of the food we serve, it’s not just the sausages and the snacks, but it’s also like our local kofta meat that’s cooked there, and the sandwiches are a bit different. So even something so small as that makes a huge difference on the weekends.”
“And the older ladies love going to church together at times and then coming to the game together.”
A new initiative that the club is hoping to begin to integrate is a new youth program. Aimed at kids from 6-12 years old, the club is hoping to bring together a wide range of youth footballers to further develop their community values, inclusiveness and football abilities.
“The way I approached it is [to create a program that] helps remove the stigma from disability and not interacting with them. The way I want to phrase it is interacting with the lesser abled and creating that community feeling to make them feel welcome,” Bekhit said.
“We’re going to start a program where they’re essentially just kicking a ball around together. We want as many kids as possible to come and interact with those who are less abled. So that all of them feel like there is no difference between them. Everyone feels welcome and realises that I’m playing. They’re playing. We’re all playing together.”
