It is early on a chilly winter morning in Kim Boi, a northern mountainous district in Vietnam. The sun is still hidden behind the clouds and the air is filled with thick, grey fog.

A group of local youth are already up and ready, even though it’s Sunday and school is closed. That’s because today they are heading to the district stadium for a competition they had been looking forward to for months – ChildFund Pass It Back’s end of season tag rugby competition.

In 2016, Than was 15 years-old and had never played with a rugby ball in her life. Than lost her mother when she was a baby, and after her father also passed away, she moved in with her relatives. Than was the meek one, who rarely laughed. She grew up shy and reserved, with a small circle of friends and was sometimes teased by other children.

Few people in Than’s community, let alone Vietnam, knew what rugby was. All Than understood about the game was that it used a strange, egg-shaped ball, which could only be passed back. Encouraged by her cousin Phuong, two years her senior and already a particpant in ChildFund Pass It Back, Than thought she’d give it a go. It was a decision that was to change her life.

ChildFund Pass It Back is a sport for development program that uses rugby as a tool to build leadership and life skills in children and young people across disadvantaged communities in Asia. Soon, Than was a member of team ‘Peony’ along with 11 other girls. Her journey with the egg-shaped ball had begun.