Coach Ous Njie as he is fondly called, made the remarks on Saturday following Guaranty Trust Bank’s (GTCO) seventh inter-banks tournament win. They beat the Sahel-Saharan Bank for Investment (BSIC Bank) 5-3 on post-match penalty shootout during this year’s final played at the KG5 Mini Stadium in Banjul.
“I first put a winning mentality in my players. There is no magic in football, because it is all about hard work. Though my players are bankers, I put a tactical discipline approach in them,” he stated.
According to him, watching the BSIC bank’s team since the start of the tournament helped him overcome them during the final. He admitted that despite his team’s win, BSIC were one of the best and favorites of this year’s tournament.
“I feel so happy to be the champion of the tournament again but there is no loser in the final,” he also said.
Mbissine Nana Shyngle, assistant coach of BSIC Bank team expressed disappointment with the final result, noting that they could have won the final should they had taken their chances.
“This was our game, unfortunately, luck was not on our side. I would not say that GTBank was the best team even though they won the final. Our boys definitely fought all the way through.”
Shyngle, who was the only female coach in the tournament, congratulated her players for their wonderful performances throughout the competition.
Yahya Jatta, Vice President of the Inter-Banks tournament organising committee, said the tournament, organised by Central Bank of The Gambia, is meant to honour the memory of their late Governor Nfamara Jatta.
“Central Bank sees the necessity of doing this to bring the banking fraternity together. It is all about knowing each other, interacting and bringing that understanding between the Central Bank and the commercial banks,” he added.
According to him, some of the successes registered in this year’s tournament are the level of discipline shown by teams and players, adding they were able to stage the tournament and witnessed its successful completion with everything being done accordingly.
As winners, Guaranty Trust Bank (GTCO) were awarded a giant trophy and a cash prize of D100, 000, while The Sahel-Saharan Bank for Investment (BSIC Bank) were awarded a consolation prize of D75, 000.
Meanwhile, all eleven (11) Banks that participated in the tournament were awarded certificates of appreciation, among others.
