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Pierre Gomez confident of Gambia U-20 success

Thu, 25 Sep 2008 03:01:16 GMT

Thursday, September 25, 2008

Hawks defender Pierre Gomez has spoken publicly for the first time about his trials at two clubs in Spain last month.

Pierre spoke exclusively to Gambia Sports Online as the Gambian Under-20 intensified preparations for the September 28 second round first leg match between the Gambia and Ghana in the qualifiers for next year’s African Youth Championship.

“I was in Spain for two weeks.
“I spent one week at Deportivo de la Coruna [first division] and one week at Cadiz [second division].
“I did very well during my training with both teams and I believe one of them will make an offer soon,” Pierre told gambiasports.gm.

Asked for his thoughts about the upcoming Accra encounter, the leggy defender said: “We know it is not going to be an easy game but we are confident that when we go to Ghana, we will get a good result I can promise the Gambian fans.

“Ghana is a bigger footballing nation than the Gambia and they are very good at junior level.

“We played them twice here in the 2005 Under-17 Championship and I am confident we can win this tie,” Pierre said.
(Culled from Gambia Sports Online)

Author: by Nanama Keita

Gambian Duo Sign One Year Loan Deal in Israel

Mon, 01 Sep 2008 09:54:29 GMT

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Monday, September 01, 2008

Two Hawks players, Robert Badjie alias Papis and Ken Malamin Jammeh alias Gambia, who were on trial with newly-promoted Israeli club Maccabi Amidar Ramat, have finally signed a one year loan deal with the Israeli giant Pointsports can reveal.

Sang Ndong, Head Coach of the Red Devils, Hawks confirmed the matter to Pointsports, stating that the duo have signed a one year loan deal. He said, “we have agreed a one year loan deal and after that the team have the option to sign them for a longer period.”

According to Sang, the Head Coach of the team was very impressed with the players’ performances.

Author: By Ebou Manneh

Source: Pictures: Ken Malamin Jammeh (1) & Robert Badjie (2)

Hawks set to export more players

Fri, 29 Aug 2008 03:03:56 GMT

Friday, August 29, 2008

After the recent sale of teenager Omar Koroma to the English Premier League side, Portsmouth, four more Hawks players could be on their way to playing professional football across Europe.

Hawks head coach, Sang Ndong, has told Gambia Sports Online that Ken Malamin Jammeh, Ebrima Jatta, commonly known as E.J, Pierre Gomez and goalkeeper Robert Badjie (Papis) have all been transfer-listed.

The former Scorpions coach said Ken and Robert have attracted the interests of newly-promoted Israeli club Maccabi Amidar Ramat, while Ebrima Jatta is looking forward to joining Gambian loan signee Omar Koroma at Norwich City. He added that defender Pierre Gomez is also awaiting the response of one of two Spanish clubs in Deportivo La Corona and Cadiz, after a two-week trial in Spain.

Author: by Nanama Keita

Analyses of the 2007/8 Season

Thu, 07 Aug 2008 06:59:06 GMT

Thursday, August 07, 2008

The 2007/8 season will be remembered as the tightest season in Gambian football as three teams (Hawks, Wallidan and Samger) all had a chance up to the last matches to be crown champion. At the bottom, (GPA, Bakau United and Seaview) battled it out to avoid relegation together with Interior F C. At the end, Wallidan F C deservedly clinched the title but two institutional teams were relegated, Interior F C and GPA which is bad for Gambian football.

Even though, the 2007/8 league cannot be described as “champagne football” in terms of the quality of football seen, the competitiveness, grit, determination and character of the teams is worth commending. The teams showed skill, endurance, luck and supreme confidence which are all vital ingredients for teams to secure the championship title. All the top three teams manifested these qualities with their coaches’ foresight and vision ensuring that they are the top teams. Championship potential is to be measured by the quality of those who replace the missing first choice and all these teams were affected by the under-20’s who failed to release their players when it mattered. But they continued to play and compete like champions.

Wallidan F C

The club Management should be commended for having patience with Foday Bah, the Head Coach over the past two years allowing him to rebuild the team in his own image. The near disaster that beset the club by almost losing their entire first team players enabled the coach to bring in young players and mould them with the few old heads that stayed. It could be said that Wallidan did throw away the championship as they were the top team until week 20 when they lost against Bakau United which enabled Hawks and Samger to have the chance of still hoping. But they bounced back like true champions by comprehensively defeating Hawks in the ultimate game of the season to clinch the title. They just deserved to win the championship as the team management went the extra mile of camping the team the entire 2nd round when they sensed that they could win the championship. This extra motivation paid dividends at the end.

Samger F C

Everybody loves it when a David slays a Goliath. That is why the Samger position is greeted with genuine pleasure by football fans with no direct interest in the team. The team was promoted last season and now they are the jewel in the crown and it has given hope to lesser teams that if Samger can do it, why not them? This is the beauty of their achievement. I don’t think it has surprised most followers of Gambian football as the team had been together for the past four years. Even though the coaches have moved on the players remained, which gave them the cohesiveness and togetherness of a winning team. Jane Joof, the Head Coach, should be commended for creating a positive team spirit and a winning mentality especially during the 2nd round when most pundits predicted that the pressure would get to them. Statistics don’t lie and Samger are where they are because of merit. Winning more games than all the teams (10 games) and drawing 7 and losing 5. If they were able to transform one of their drawn matches to a win they would have been crowned champions by now.

Hawks FC

The injection of young players from their feeder team, created competition and ensured that the complacency that used to beset the team during the past season was no longer present. Each players’ position was threatened and the motivation to perform and be consistent ensured a steady run of results. With only 15 points in the 1st round and in 5th position, they were able to gather 21 points in the 2nd round scoring 14 goals and losing only once. They were the most consistent team in the 2nd round and with luck they could have been the champions.

The relegation battle

The relegation dog-fight was as exciting as the competition to win the championship. Going into the last game of the league, Interior F C had already been relegated but three teams were fighting for survival and any one of them could have been relegated. Seaview and Bakau United were both tied on 22 points and only needing a point to survive whilst GPA were on 19 points and needed to win and hope that either of the other two teams would lose to stand a chance.

Interior FC

They were already relegated after been promoted last season. The writing was on the wall since the pre-season as all indications pointed to a team that would struggle. The team Management failed to give the necessary support when it mattered. Their pre-season was abysmal as they could not have a proper pre-season training which is a very important factor when competing in a league. Their lack of pre-season was reflected in their results with only 2 wins and 10 losses. This was more than any other team in the premier league.

GPA FC

This is the saddest chapter for someone who has the team in his heart. The club had everything but did nothing. two wins, 14 draws and lost draws tell the story of a team too inconsistent to be in the premier league. Ultimately, GPA were not good enough, the players did not have the heart for the fight. They looked like the 11th best team in the league. Hardworking, but without the quality needed to survive. The league table doesn’t lie. The points total shows that they were not good enough. Over 22 matches they didn’t do enough to stay in the 1st division. End of story.

It feels like the end of the world but it isn’t. They have to regroup and get on with life and they should. Football is about character and resilience. It’s how you bounce back. In all honesty, GPA FC cannot have too many complaints. Any team with a record of just two wins in 22 games and more defeats cannot hope for too much in a league where competition is now honed to cut-throat proportions.

It’s just difficult to identify a single major reason for the team poor performance as I believe, analyzing it from outside, that there were a comedy of errors and misjudgments. The club management’s’ failure to monitor and intervene at the right time was a factor. Sacking the Head Coach, Ebou Joof was a big mistake as the intended objective was not achieved. Club management should always analyze when to sack a coach as it is bound to have a ripple effect on the players. Another problem, I think, is Management paying higher allowance to squad players than the so-called ordinary players was a destabilizing factor. As squad players normally play less matches than the ordinary players who are always much more committed to the team. This affected the team spirit and created the lack of courage, motivation and character to grind out results when it mattered.

Seaview FC

The objective was to maintain the team in the premier league, which they have achieved. The club bringing in Alagie Sarr, the most successful club coach in recent years, is justified. With a further injection of quality players and Management support, the team could establish themselves as one of the top dogs in few years time.

Bakau United

The team has escaped relegation again but the fundamental question is can they continue escaping relegation every year. I believe the club management should try and bring more quality players to at least enable them to be a middle table team.

The middle table teams have a mixed season:

Real De Banjul

The defending league champions failed to replicate their championship winning performance. Drawing 12 matches is not good enough. Their strikers’ failure to convert their chances resulted in a team unable to win some of their matches. Sacking the coach who won them the league with the same players and strikers that failed to score is just not the remedy. Maybe the team needed an injection of quality players to create competition rather than relying on the old guard.

Gamtel and Armed Forces

Both institutional teams need to improve their positions and start competing for the championship. Gamtel were runners-up last season and it was expected that they would be challenging for the title. Hon. Coach Alagie Sillah needs to bring in more quality players to challenge for title next season.

Armed Forces Management also invested a lot but were not rewarded. The team started extremely well but ran out of steam and ideas when it really mattered. Some players just seemed to lack drive and motivation which I believe indicates that they are to move on. The team collapsing like a ton of bricks is not expected from players who are paid handsomely and guaranteed a career.

Sait Matty/Africel

Mid-table is a modest achievement for the team but the team should start challenging for trophies. An institutional team being financed by one of the top GSM service providers should be among the top dogs of Gambian football. They have the technical staff and support. What is required, I think, is to be able to attract more quality players and be able to keep them. They mostly lose their best players which doesn’t help with the stability of the team. I predicted they would be relegated but Pa Faye, the Head Coach, did a good job in the 1st round by collecting 17 points which ensured their safety. Next season will be a big test for the team as they are expected to challenge for the championship.

Steve Biko

Is the most improved side after escaping relegation last season? Abdoulie Bojang, the Head Coach, should be commended for having the vision to rebuild the team with younger players who are hungry and want to make a name for themselves. They were the most exciting side to watch, playing very good football. But you cannot be a great team without a great striker. Scoring 11 goals in 22 matches is not good enough. Sides can have all the technique and style, but if there is nobody to finish in the final third, what’s the point? Lie Bojang now knows what he needs to improve on and if he does, Biko will definitely be among the top dogs.

Did increasing the teams from 10 to 13 create the exciting nature of the championship? I don’t think so as one of the promoted teams Samger did extremely well whilst Interior F C were relegated. Also, the teams that were supposed to be relegated last season, Seaview and Steve Biko were able to maintain in the premier league. What created the excitement to my reckoning is the injection of young talent by all the top three teams. Samger are a relatively young team but both Hawks and Wallidan have younger players together with their much more experienced players who form the backbone of their teams ensure the competitiveness of the championship.

The only disappointment of this season was the lack of proper planning which has caused the season to overlap and be played in tandem with the Nawetaan. The FA should try to start the season in November as advocated by The Gambia Football Coaches Association over years. As technicians, this will enable them to properly plan their training and tactical adjustments during the season.

Author: By Ebou Faye

Sang Ndong heads new SK West Committee

Mon, 04 Aug 2008 04:03:04 GMT

Monday, August 04, 2008

Hawks head coach Sand Ndong has been elected by the nawettan clubs as chairperson of the new Serrekunda West Sports Committee, Observer Sports can reveal.

The clubs also named former Gambia Under-20 coach, Peter Bonu Johnson, as the vice-chairperson.

Other members of the committee include Richard Jarju (secretary general), Pa Omar Touray (assistant secretary general), Joseph Joe Colley (treasurer), Pa Edi Camara (assistant treasurer), Alagie Amat Cham (public relations officer), Alagie Drammeh (auditor), Alagie Mass Njie (liaison officer), Abdoulie Sallah (ground manager), Kabba Jallow and Hatib Janneh (advisers).

The twelve-member committee replaced Musa Mendy and his team, who earlier tendered their resignations two weeks back after a fall out with nawettan team in the Serrekunda West zone.

Author: by Nanama Keita

“We Didn’t Deserve to Win” - Hawks Coach

Tue, 15 Jul 2008 07:33:27 GMT

Tuesday, July 15, 2008

Following his team’s uninspiring performance against Wallidan, the newly-crowned 2007/08 GFA league champions, the head coach of the Red Devils of Hawks, Sang Ndong, has told reporters that his side didn’t deserve to win in their match against Wallidan on Sunday 13th July 2008.

Coach Ndong told reporters, “ as I said before it would not be an easy game, and we lost to a far better team.” He stated that football is always decided on the day; performance depends on the mood and the advance preparation of your team. He went on, “we were very prepared but unfortunately things didn’t work for our side and everything worked on Wallidan’s; we have to congratulate them for a well-deserved victory. They played extremely well and won.”

In his reaction to the team’s victory the head coach of Wallidan, Foday Bah, said that he was very happy because for the past 2 years they have not been able to take the league despite all efforts and high expectations. He added, “ we were well prepared for the game against Hawks because we know how they play and how they think, so we worked very hard for the past weeks for our game against Hawks, and the players applied everything that I told them, and that’s why we achieved this victory. “ The Hawks defence are very confident and I told my players about it that we have to put pressure on them and that’s what brought our two goals,” he said.

Coach Foday said that the team would be well prepared for the championship, emphasizing, “ football now is a business and we have very young talented players who want to attain professional status and are willing to deliver,” he stated.

Author: By Ebou Manneh

Source: Picture: Hawks FC

Sang Ndong pays brave Wallidan tribute

Tue, 15 Jul 2008 05:07:50 GMT

Tuesday, July 15, 2008

The head coach of Hawks United, Sang Ndong, has heaped praises on Wallidan for their resounding 3-1 victory over his side on Sunday to land them their first league title since 2005 season.

Wallidan were pushed to the wire by both Hawks and Samger, in a nail-biting finale to the most thrilling Gambian league title battle in years, but the Blues Boy beat their local rivals Hawks to claim their seventeenth league title by two points after the close contenders, Samger, were held to a 1-1 draw by Steve Biko on the same day.

Hawks manager paid a warm tribute to Wallidan's extension of an extraordinary record of success in the Gambian club football.

“I have to congratulate Wallidan for their good display. We were just chasing shadows and we didn’t deserve winning.”

“The referee also had a good game and we just have ourselves to blame because we did not perform.”

“We were very much prepared for the game but unfortunately things did not work on our side. We lost to a far better team and we accepted the defeat,” he concluded.

It was thought that Wallidan would have a difficult tie against Hawks, and Samger who were at the other end, had been given a huge pre-match boost by the fact that the two big guns (Wallidan and Hawks) could play out a draw result, while Samger could easily down Steve Biko who were only playing for pride.

But right from the kick-off at the Independence Stadium, the Blue Buys looked set to carry all the three points.

Yunusa Jallow fired in the opener as early as 3 minutes, forward maestro, George Cole, doubled the advantage in the 39th minute and Ebrima Sonko’s 59th minute strike ended any doubt about how the afternoon would end.

Author: by Nanama Keita

Wallidan FC 2008 Champions

Mon, 14 Jul 2008 09:19:16 GMT

Monday, July 14, 2008

A victory over Hawks last evening has earned Wallidananother title and crowned champions of the 2007/8 GFA first Division league, finishing first with 39 points.

They trashedfellow contenders Hawks FC 3-1 at the IndependenceStadium in Bakau.

The Blue boys of Wallidan, Hawks and Samger were all at 36 points with Wallidan and Hawks having a greater advantage over Samger on a goal difference of two.

A determined Wallidan side was poised to claim this year’s title andhave done it amicably by putting pressure on Hawks right to the end.

Wallidan utilized the few chances they had and scoredtwo solid goals in the first half through Unusa Jallow in the4thminute and George Cole 40th.

Ebrima Sonko in the 59thminute of the second half netted in Wallidan’s third to seal a 3-1 win over the Red Devils of Hawks.

Hawks, who fed on crumbs of possessions tried coming back into the game to revive their hopes of winning the league after many years, as Musa Manneh in the 82ndminute scored the only goal for Hawks.

The game was also marred by interesting and dramatic actions by players and officials of both teams .Mansour Jeng , Wallidan’sAssistant Coachand player Saikou Tunkarawere sent off in the 65 and 85 minute respectively for misconduct during the game.

Potential winners, Samger, were also locking horns with Stevebiko at the SerrekundaWest mini Stadium.

Where in the 33rd minute, Lamin Samateh put Samger ahead, raising their hopes of winning their firstleague title.

However, Steve Biko ended Samger’s hope in the 89 minute through an equalizer fromKawsu Jatta.

Samger now finishes second with 37 points followed by Hawks with 36. Wallidan last won the first division leaguein 2004/5GFA Season.

Author: By Ebou Manneh & Pa Modou Faal

Source: Picture: Wallidan FC

Will Biko Stop Samger?

Mon, 14 Jul 2008 08:49:08 GMT

Monday, July 14, 2008

As Wallidan And Hawks Eye League Title

The Gambia Football Association 2007/08 domestic league has become another interesting season in the history of Gambian football as the three top teams are vying for the league tile this year. Wallidan, Samger and Hawks are all level on 36 points, but will Biko stop Samger? Pointsports when around to get the views of the first division coaches about this years league and their observations on Gambian football.

Speaking to Pointsports in an interview Hon Alhagie Sillah, Head Coach of Gamtel Football Club, said that Gambia has a better league than some African countries. He said, “ this years league is a very competitive league.” He said that in previous years the league was decided by goals like when Wallidan had +8 and Gamtel had + 7 that was why Wallidan were crowned champions.

He said, “ this is showing that there is an improvement in some teams and the increase in the number of the teams to 12 has made the league very comparative. The only problem that affected the league were the fixtures during the first round where players had to play within 48 or 72 hours. This was a little bit too demanding for the players so players played below their initial capacity. The upcoming games are very interesting as both teams stand a chance to win the league. Samger have an easy opponent but don’t try to write off Biko I have seen them come with a very young and talented team and it will not be an easy game for Samger as Biko will not just come and relax,” he stated.

In his remarks, the Head Coach of Hawks FC, Sangdong, told Pointsports, “ we are well prepared for the game against Wallidan. It is always a big game between the two teams when they meet even if it is not a game where the league will be decided. Come Sunday anybody that comes to the Independent Stadium will not be disappointed. If you watched our game against Biko at the Independence Stadium on Monday, it was not and easy game for us and the game shows that Biko are not a team that will come and lie down. They will come and fight up to the last minute of the game. Presently they have a very young team and they play good football. We are all suffering from our players not been available for these games and this is a problem that we the teams are facing. It is not a right it is a privilege for players to play for their national teams and it is also a privilege for teams to release there players to play for national teams. But, the players belong to their teams. You cannot hold any player more than 48 hours before the game and after the game. With due respect to the FA and the coaches let them understand that the players belong to teams and should be given the chance to play for their teams,” he stated.

Alhagie Sarr, Head Coach of Sea View, said that this year’s league shows that there are no underdog teams. He said, “ the league is very tough now as we have to play up to the last matches where the title will be decided. I believe that all games are going to be very tough for both teams because Biko will come all out to play against Samger. The last games are not only involving Wallidan, Samger and Hawks but the teams that are fighting to avoid relegation GPA, Sea View, and Bakau United. All teams need to win their games to avoid relegation,” he said.

Week 22 Fixtures

Sat 12/07/08Bakau Vs Africell/S/MattyS/k West

Sat12/07/08InteriorVsSea viewS/kEast

Sat12/07/08Gamtel Vs GPA

Sun13/07/08Armed Forces Vs Real S/kunda East

Sun13/07/08Steve Biko Vs SamgerS/kunda West

Sun13/07/08WallidanHawksStadium

Gambia Coaches to Undergo Training inC& B License [if supportFields]>tc "Gambia Coaches to Undergo Training in C& B License "

A handful of Gambian coaches will join their colleagues in the rest of the continent in taking part in a training program for coaches in both the C and B license grades.

The training is part of the Education and Football Development Department of CAF’s drive to promote and develop football in Africa.

Elite football coaches will be trained in The Gambia on a date yet to be disclosed and depending on the outcome of a meeting to be held on Thursday July 17, 2008 at the offices of The Gambia Football Association.

Author: By Sainabou Kujabi

Source: (Friday, July 11, 2008 Issue)

Wallidan clinch the crown

Mon, 14 Jul 2008 05:16:08 GMT

Monday, July 14, 2008

Wallidan FC clinched their 15th GFA Division One league title last evening by beating Hawks 3-1 in a nail-biting finale to the most thrilling Gambian league title battle in years at the Independence Stadium.

Pushed to the wire by both Samger and Hawks , Wallidan claimed their first title since 2005 by two points after their close contenders, Samger, were held to a 1-1 draw by Steve Biko in their final match at the Serrekunda West Mini-stadium.

Goals by Yunusa Jallow, George Cole and Ebrima Sonko were enough to consign the Serrekunda East side to a runners-up berth.

As admitted by Hawks coach Sang Ndong, Wallidan, who also have 15 FA Cup titles to their name, were the better side and they deserved the victory.

“We were just chasing shadows and we didn’t deserve to win today. We just have to congratulate Wallidan for the victory because they played extremely well,” half-happy coach Sang Ndong told Observer Sports shortly after the final whistle.

Author: by Nanama Keita