Banjul United Basketball team under the stewardship of Ndongo Camara, has returned to the top division after only spending one season in League Two.
Coach Sheriff Jagne’s boys were unbeaten before unfortunately losing to Letitfly 51-59 on the last day of the season.
Hoopers president Ndongo Camara and key player Malick Manga spoke to the Alkamba Times desk following their promotion.
*We are thrilled to return to the Elite League. Banjul has always been at the forefront of Gambia’s sports, especially basketball; however, that status has declined lately. The Banjul basketball team has always been represented by established and national team players. We were lucky that we have a council of elders within the sports fraternity that saw the need for a revival of basketball in the capital. They groomed and trained us until we were able to stand on our feet once more. We are grateful and calling on more to join hands.” Manga told Alkamba Times
“When we went down in the second division, we learned our lesson and tested our character. We rectified the mistakes we made in the first division and improved ourselves. Banjul United is a learning process right now, and a lot of grass-roots projects have been put into place. We will only get better.”
On his part, club president Ndongo Camara called for support from all sectors and urged the government to invest in sports.
“I congratulate the players, the head coach, and the entire management for a job well done; it was not easy. It was very hectic, but at the end of the day, we realised our objectives. The players got relaxed a bit, lacked commitment, and were not serious, and they went on to believe that the team was invincible and that they would maintain their status in the first division. That’s how we got to the second division, but I am happy to return to the first division.”
“As the president, I’m the only one funding the team. As far as this is my responsibility, I have to step up and make sure all that I have I put in the team to make sure the team is comfortable financially. It’s difficult, and it wasn’t easy. I wrote to so many entities to forge partnership, and we were ready to give them publicity for the whole season. We ended up only getting promises and promises. This county does not take sports seriously, especially our authorities. I think they don’t understand the value of sports; even the central government; you don’t see any sports-oriented personnel even in the cabinet. That’s why our sports are lacking behind, and sports can change the majority of the lives of ordinary Gambian people, but they don’t have the understanding and they are not sports-oriented personnel’s. This is my view.”
On the sports levy, Camara hinted that it should be made available to all the sporting disciplines.
“The sports levy is a levy collected by the government, and I think the levy should go to the sports associations by supporting and subventing clubs, just like FIFA and CAF help their member associations. The Gambia Basketball Association itself is struggling.
Basketball in Banjul is blooming once again. For the first time, there is a junior basketball academy in Banjul with different categories and lots of kids in those academies. In the last two editions of the inter-region academy competition, Banjul has won it. We have plans to get to the school’s next season.”
“Another constraint that we are having is that the facilities of the schools are deteriorating. To engage and involve these kids in basketball, we must have these facilities rehabilitated. There is already a program with the schools. We want to bring back the schoolboy international during the days of Father Gough, when the schools were producing lots of players.
The All-Star’s game will be held in Banjul; it’s an opportunity to revamp basketball in Banjul. Mr. Camara hopes the council will take ownership and furnish the Manneh Sillah memorial court.
Westside, Serekunda West beat rivals SK East to finish the regular season as champions for 2023-2024, going the whole campaign without a defeat.
Manga will be rubbing shoulders with Serekunda West, YMCA. It was one of the best games against Letitfly because both teams played a magnificent game. The defeat motivated us a lot; we have to train harder now.”
Manga also stressed that the target of his team now is to win the first division following their promotion.
“The next phase of our development will be how to play at the at the first division level and try hard to win the championship,” he added.
