KNYSNA NEWS - The spirit of the Fifa World Cup came alive at Oakhill Preparatory School as pupils, parents and staff traded classrooms for the soccer field during the school's annual Family Soccer Day.

Held to celebrate Father's Day week and the end of the school term, the popular event brought the Oakhill community together through a shared love of the beautiful game.

This year's event embraced the excitement of the Fifa World Cup, with every learner proudly representing a different nation. The occasion felt even more special as South Africans celebrated Bafana Bafana's historic progression to the knockout stages of the tournament.

There was lots of laughter and friendly competition as the parents laced up their boots to play alongside their children, and many experienced the sport from the sidelines for the first time.

Adding to the fun was a surprise appearance by Alan, the much-loved Oakhill mascot, who delighted the learners with high-fives and doughnuts.

The day's festivities concluded with the traditional Grade Seven vs Staff match, during which head of school James Cross produced one of the highlights of the afternoon by scoring with a well-taken header from a corner kick.

Oakhill Preparatory School thanked its parents, staff, coaches, the support and grounds teams, bus drivers and security personnel for their enthusiastic participation and continued commitment to building a caring and connected school community.

The annual Family Soccer Day remains one of the school's most anticipated traditions, celebrating not only the joy of sport, but the strong sense of community at Oakhill.

Alan, Oakhill’s mascot, interacts with the excited foundation phase students.

Eden Ismay and Rachel van Staden compete for the ball with teammate Ava Avice du Buisson looking on.

Tanatswa Jonam displays his ball skills while Dylan Berman watches him closely.

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