Brikama United consolidated their grip on second place following a thrilling 4-2 defeat of The Gambia Armed Forces (GAF) in a pulsating encounter played under the floodlights at Bakau’s Independence Stadium on Thursday night.
The ‘Sateyba’ Boys took a 2-0 lead into the break and added a third shortly after the restart but the Soldiers fought back with two quick-fire goals before Brix dashed any hopes of a remarkable comeback with a fourth goal late into the match.
Former Gambia youth international Domingo Manneh scored to give coach-of-the-month Modou Lamin Nayssi’s side the lead after just four minutes on the clock and Buba Bojang’s curling free-kick beat the GAF keeper at the far post in the 14th minute as Brikama took charge of proceedings, much to the delight of the thousands of their travelling fans.
Brikama picked from where they left after the restart as Papis Nyassi scored his 10th goal of the season with a beautiful finish after 53 minutes to give his side a commanding 3-0 lead. However, the Army retreated to base and reloaded their guns to begin a spirited fightback that produced two goals.
First Lansana Jarju pulled a goal back in what many had thought would be a mere consolation but Kabiro Joof’s belter from a freekick in the 62nd minute gave them a lifeline and from that moment, the Soldiers dared to dream of an epic comeback that would’ve delighted the hearts of the neutrals but would’ve felt like a dagger in the heart of the Brikama supporters.
However, any hopes of an unlikely comeback were dashed by Ebou Kanteh who smashed home a low shot for his second goal in as many matches to secure Brikama a fourth-straight win. With the win, Brix has closed the goal on runaway leaders Fortune to six points with 26 points from 15 matches, while GAF is three points adrift of them in third.
Elsewhere, on Thursday, Elite United came from behind to beat 10-man Real de Banjul with almost the last kick of the game. Real had taken an early lead before Elite pulled levelled as the two sides went into the break levelled one apiece. Elite scored a heartbreaking last-gasp winner to push Real down the table to seventh as they moved to fourth with 22 points.
Meanwhile, matches continue tonight with sixth place Waa Banjul taking on bottom of the table Tallinding United at 8:30pm. A win for Waa Banjul will take them above GAF in third while a victory for Tallinding will see them temporarily move out of the base of the 16-team log.
In the late kickoff of today, Bakau Katchikally Milan will take on Gamtel at 10:30pm with both sides badly in need of a win. BK Milan is 12th with as many points while Gamtel is just languishing above the relegation zone with 15 points. That match will be streamed live on The Gambia Football Federation Facebook page.
