REPAYING an Australian school the compliment of hosting them during a sports tour of the UK threw together two families who had lost contact.

Through an association through Round Table, the Greeff family and the Kerr family were acquanited back in 1993 in South Africa.

While the Kerr moved to England four years later, the Greeff family relocated to Queensland and ties were lost completely between the families in 2009 when the Greeffs ended their association with the Round Table.

However, they were re-established just this month through their sons as Queen Elizabeth High School pupil Adam Kerr, of Edmundbyers, played host to Gordon Greeff when he headed to England to play rugby for Matthew Flinders Anglican College, in Australia.

Year 13 pupil Adam takes up the story.

“Mike Greeff met my dad in 1993 with Perth 200 Round Table in South Africa as part of Richard‘s Bay 200 Round Table Partnership/ Exchange. They came back and visited.

”In June 1997, my dad moved to Shotley Bridge and Mike Moved to Johannesburg, and a new twinning arrangement between New Derwentside and Joburg Round Tables was started.

“Mike visited with his family in Christmas 2005 and that’s when I first met Gordon, who stayed in South Africa until 2009 before emigrating to just outside Brisbane.

”Contact was lost as they were no longer in the Round Table...

”In 2015, Queen Elizabeth went to Brisbane on a tour of Australia and my football teammate, Tom Quibell, was hosted by Mike in their home.

“We didn‘t know this until word got to my mum that a school from Bisbane was coming to QE as part of a sports tour.

”We inquired with PE teacher Steve Mullins and it turned out it was Gordon’s school Matthew Flinders that was coming over. Tom eventually told us he was supposed to be hosting Gordon, however, we spoke to teachers of both schools and arranged for Gordon to stay at the house he had done six years ago.“