THE DARLING SCORPIONS OF THE GAMBIA
THE UNSUNG HEROES
Sitting on my sofa in the valleys of Wales watching Premiership,Champions league,UEFA,World Cup etc matches.Comparing to the 80’s and 90’s of the Gambian Football with a brilliant dribbling force,Goal keeping heroes,Strikers,etc. In the 80’s and 90’s football commentary box you can hear the voice of Peter Gomez,Saul Njie,Lamin Cham,Tijan Masanneh Ceesay,Pape Saine, etc who used to refer to the national team as The Darling Scorpions.
As we gathered by our radio’s listening to the commentary from our brilliant and wonderful commentators bringing the commentary to our door steps in our attaya venues whilst our talented players lock horns with our African counterparts which are today’s African finest in the world football,but in those days when they are playing against The Scorpion’s they’re scared to their teeth.Because of the like’s of school boy international Sheikh Ndure,BIRI and BONU JOHNSON RIP. BAI OMAR SAMBA,EBOU DEBOIR.EBOU SILLA,ABDOULIE BOJANG Aka Bambalie,LAMIN OWENS,JOE TENNIS,ASIS CORR,OUS JALLOW,EDRISSA SONKO,ALIEU BADARA,,BUBA STAR JANNEH ,GORGE LOBBA,WANDEh NJIE, PA DEMBOU,PA JABANG etc.
For some ex national team players like Pa Jabang,some may not know him as one of our unsung heroes seeing him in police uniform controlling the traffic in the highways of Brikama to Banjul. What a smartest and a brilliant striker from Justice Fc of Brikama to the darling scorpions…
It is always about the superstars that are never going to change because they brought joy to the heart of our footballing nation.These Scorpions greatest unsung heroes is an effort from the likes of Peter Gomez and Saul Nije etc ,We used to hear their names on the radio and seeing them playing football at the Independence Stadium in Bakau and Internationally arenas .Those players who may not have made millions in their footballig careers but made a giant contribution to the sport of The Gambia but at one moment in time they step up to the challenge and deliver a crucial play for the National Team when they need to the most, These players often decide the fate of the competition and in many cases the Aminta cabral or zone 2.Yet today most of them are rarely brought up in conversations .
That is what this piece will be about,every generation has had atleast players like RONALDO’S and the MESSI’S and The Gambia definetly had them in The Scorpions before the 80’s and the 90’s today . So I want our nation The Gambia to join me and celebrate our legends in our media houses, newspapers,radio’s as well as the social media,even if for just a short time to bring the Darling Scorpions back to life.This will be an attempt to give these players a stern reminder we still love them for the job well done and not forgetting the commentators in those days( mentioned above).From the Gambia radio to the BBC world service radio cologne international and today West coast ,Thank you Peter Gomez ,Saul Njie etc and the team for bringing in this magnificent Darling Scorpion to our radio’s. I know you having a sack full Peter about our Nations footballing giants,if you can take it away from me here to enlighten the Gambian youth’s of today about our unsung heroes,that will be appreciated as you are one of our best commentators in the country……
By Ndure 91
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