On the verge of a first Gambian premier league title in five years, Real de Banjul will dedicate theirtriumph to President Jammeh should they secure the win they need against Young Africans in the final game of the season on Sunday.

The capital-based club’s last triumph in the domestic league was back in the 2007 season when Amadou Baresi Sanyang captained a side led in attack by Ebou Bojang to the title. The team came close to repeating the same feat last year, but lost out to Brikama United. But following their top of the table clash 1-0 win over Gambia Armed Forces last week, they replaced the Soldiers at the top of the 12-team standings to open up a single point lead.

Real finished last season in second place with 39 points but having accumulated 36 points already from 21 games this season, a win in the final game of the season at the KG5 mini-stadium in Banjul will definitely see them secure the title with the same number of points as last year.

And speaking to Observer Sports in an interview on Thursday, the vice president of Real de Banjul FC, Bakary Jammeh who remained optimistic of the team’s chances of a first silverware in nearly half a decade said they will dedicate the title to President Jammeh if they win it.

“Five years have passed since we last win the title and the last time we won in 2008, the president [Sheikh Professor Alhaji Dr Yahya Jammeh] received and honoured us when we were preparing for the African Champions League. The president is not only the chief patron of Gambian football but he is also a Real de Banjul fan and because of that and the overwhelming support he continues to render to Gambian sports in general and football in particular, we have decided to dedicate the title to him,” Jammeh told Observer Sports.

The CEO of Elton Oil Gambia Ltd further added that the overwhelming support to Gambian football rendered by President Jammeh has been used as a benchmark at Real de Banjul FC and it helped in inspiring and motivating the players immensely. He said that is another reason why they decided to dedicate the title to the right person which he said is the president.

Real de Banjul and Young Africans played each other in week nine in the first round in a game that finished in a 1-1 stalemate on Sunday 4th March. Young Africans scored in the 2nd minute of the second half but Real’s wonder boy Buba Jallow dribbled past the Young Africans goalkeeper to give a brilliant pass to Ebou Cham who put it straight in the 92nd minute for the equaliser.

But despite struggling to secure a point in their first meeting, Baks remains defiant that Young Africans can’t stop his side from winning the title. He said football is won by preparation and motivation and they have put in a lot of hard work in preparing Real to an extent that even without a financial sponsor like other institutional clubs, the team would not struggle.

“We really motivate our players and we have within our mix one of the best crop of young players and we have during the course of the season a lot of scouting on our players. Currently we have some Spanish scouts looking at our players and we have a very vibrant U-17 team coached by a Spanish national,” he concluded.