To be forewarned is to be forearmed
Thursday 6th December 2007

For the unruly behaviour our football fans during the Gambia/Algeria match earlier this year, the Gambia Football Association (GFA) will have to cough up a whopping US$10,000 to settle a fine that the Confederation of African Football (CAF) has imposed on it. In addition, CAF has suspended three of our players, namely Lamin Conateh, Abdoulie Carr and Assan Jatta.

In the spirit of the game, GFA has taken the fine and the suspension of the players in its stride, but has warned the fans to be on their best behaviour as the qualifiers for the 2010 World Cup are about to get underway. Crowd trouble goes with football because it is a highly emotional game. When the fans are anxious for their team to win, and the win is not just forthcoming, a little misunderstanding could spark trouble.

But we must not allow crowd trouble to prevent us from making it to the 2010 Nations Cup and World Cup. We are long overdue for both tournaments. So the GFA’s warning is timely and appropriate. The fans will have to realize that their misconduct could cost the team’s qualification for both tournaments, as CAF could ban the team from taking part in any of its competitions. If this happens, Gambian football will suffer untold setback. Despite the fact that we are not going to Ghana 2008, we should not worsen the situation by ruining our chances for 2010. For both the team and the fans, qualifying for Angola 2010 and South Africa 2010 should be seen as a task that must be done. If it happens that team is doing well on the pitch while the fans are misbehaving on the stands, we could be slammed with a ban lasting several years. God forbid!

Apart from the press release, the GFA should meet with the Scorpions’ fan club or clubs and drum the importance of self-comportment into their ears. They should be made to understand that their role is to cheer and cheer the team to victory. They should also be made to understand that they are not asked to foment trouble, even when they are provoked. And that even when the team loses, they should accept the loss in good faith and wait for another day. Nobody owns football; teams win and lose every day. Even the best teams in the world sometimes suffer humiliating defeats. But what makes them stand out is their ability to recover from their defeats and redeem themselves through sparkling performances in subsequent matches.

CRIME WATCH

The police are asking the general public to call any of the following telephone numbers: 

112 / 99 66 967 / 99 60 109 / 99 76 012 / 99 76 008 / 99 76 010 to report anyone suspected or caught engaged in criminal activities.