It may be several months since England Lions returned from their successful tour of South Africa earlier this year, but they were thanked this week for leaving a positive legacy in Bloemfontein.
Siphiwe Masete, the general manager of the city’s Protea hotel where the Lions were based for more than a week, emailed pictures of the proceeds of the squad’s donation to a Shoes for Schoolkids campaign which the Protea Hotels chain was running at the time.
“I would like to take the opportunity to thank you for the contribution your team made towards this," said Masete, who accepted the donation back in January from Hampshire's James Vince, the Lions captain for the one-day series against South Africa A.
“It was a nice surprise to receive the message,” said Dr Guy Jackson, who was the Lions tour manager.
“The staff at the Protea in Bloemfontein, as with almost everyone we met in South Africa, were really helpful and welcoming, so the lads were all keen to help out.
“It was a really enjoyable tour in all sorts of ways, as well as successful on the field. After Bloemfontein we moved on to Pretoria, where we played a one-day match in the township of Mamelodi and the players were again delighted to donate various items of kit to the youngsters of a local club.
“We're happy to have made a positive contribution in Bloemfontein as well.”