“If wishes were horses, beggars would ride,” says Patrick Edomwaddoba, barely audible over the racket of the Tam Tam basketball team warming up for their fourth match of the season. The Pentecostal pastor watches proudly as the players take part in an exercise drill, neatly passing the ball between themselves in a tight lattice before raining a quick succession of shots towards the hoop.

Originally from Nigeria, Edomwaddoba is on the sidelines to watch his two sons, Victor and King, compete against the league leaders in an eagerly anticipated encounter. But the outcome of the game seems of little importance when taking into account the struggles the team has been through in order to participate at all.