This Easter, Zimbabwean ex-pats from all over Australia will battle it out on the soccer field right here in Orange.

Zimpride is an annual soccer tournament organised by members Australian Zimbabwean community. It is all about good food, good music and friendly rivalry on the soccer field, said local organiser, Francis Phiri.

 “We run this tournament every year in different states and different cities, and this year we chose to play soccer here in Orange,” said Francis.

“People are coming all the way from Adelaide, Canberra, Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane — all around Australia. It is just to bring the community together and have people mingle and enjoy what we love to do, which is soccer and music and food.”

The weekend will kick off with a welcome reception at the Botanic Gardens on Good Friday and will be followed by two full days of soccer action.

Francis said they hope to have ten teams competing at the Waratahs Sport Club.

While soccer is the focal point of Zimpride, Francis said the weekend is also about Zimbabwean Australians celebrating their culture and where they came from.

“It is about keeping our culture and mingling with people around our communities,” he said. “Our kids, as they grow, they tend to lose our culture and forget some of our language and our food and music, so at these events they get reminded of who we are.

“And to invite the locals to enjoy our soccer, enjoy our food, enjoy our music as well.”

Sydney-based band Simba Mushete and Echoes of African Music (of which Francis is a vocalist) will be performing throughout the weekend.

"They will be singing right through after playing soccer and we will be having African food with that. We have booked the Botanical Gardens for after the event for the food and entertainment and it is open to everyone. And free to come, there will be a jumping castle for the kids as well to entertain them.”

If anyone is interested in coming along or learning more about Zimpride 2019, Francis urged them to follow their Facebook page.