By: Omar Jatta
The Gambia’s U-20 team lifted the melancholic and sombre mood that had engulfed the fans of the small West African nation in the wake of the nil-nil draw by senior national team, the Scorpions against the Mourabitones of Mauritania last weekend.
The result which casted a dark shadow over the nation’s faltering football, with more questions than answers and very little hope if any for the future prospect of nation’s football teams on the international stages.
But a week on, the gloomy scenery has somehow been lifted by the surprise 2 – 0 victory by the Young Scorpions over their counterparts in the Sierra Leonean U-20 team on Saturday afternoon in Makeni, Freetown, in the first leg of the first round of the CAF U-20 African Cup of Nations qualifiers.
The game started with a more subdued feel as the early exchanges between the two youthful prodigies failed to produce any meaningful outcome in the first half, as half ended in a stalemate. Although the visitors were denied by the post early on in the game from an Omar Jobe shot.
However, The Gambian team under the tutelage of the former national team player and assistant coach, Omar Sise took advantage of their intermittent chances in the second period, scoring 2 vital goals in the process to set them up on front foot ahead of the return leg in Banjul in three weeks time on the 23rd April.
The Gambia’s goals came from the Senegal based duo, Bun Sanneh and Abdoulie Jallow of the Senegalese second tier side Generation Foot.
The ecstatic players who are expected to return in Banjul on Tuesday will meet Morocco in the next phase of the qualifiers in a two-legged tie later in May this year, provided they can maintain their advantage over the Sierra Leoneans by the end of the second.
The victory will offer a real upliftment for the under pressure Football Federation and revive the fast fading hopes of the disgruntled Gambian fans.
In all fairness the result will do a great deal for the morale in both the Secretariat and the households all around the country as the debate to withdraw all national teams from all International competitions rumbled on. With some arguing the targets for the teams must be realistic and in order for The Gambia to make any meaningful surge on the football platforms there must be proper reforms with better and well meant structures in place. Others even called for the focus to be shifted on using players in the national football league rather than the foreign based players whom some argued are not enjoying regular first team football at their respective clubs. This performancewill no doubt add weight to that call and will give more impetus to those banging the drum for remaining local.
However, regardless of this result or what the next plan might be, the reality still remains there are more misses than hits when it comes to The Gambia on the International stage. Having said that the result will strengthen the belief that all hope must not be lost to the back-burner, and that may be there’s light at the end of the tunnel, we just have to get there, which leaves us with the how and when questions, but if anything we must not despair and must remain patient and supportive of the course we all share as our collective goal.
AFRICAN U-20 CUP OF NATIONS:
The Africa U-20 Cup of Nations (previously known as the African Youth Championship or the African U-20 Championship) is the main international youth football competition for CAF nations, and is competed for by under 20 year olds. It is held every two years with the top 4 teams qualifying for the FIFA U-20 World Cup.
The tournament in 2017 will be held in Zambia.
