Barely 24 hours after the Gambia Under 17 team bowed out of the FIFA U-17 World Cup in Nigeria, the Gambia Football Association has stepped up to dispel rumours revolving around the team's dismal display in the Nigeria showpiece.

The two-time African champions, who lost their opening two matches 2-0 and 2-1 against Holland and Iran respectively, squandered a 2-0 lead to settle for a 2-2 draw against Colombia in their final Group C match in Calabar on Saturday. The result means the African flag bears will head home with only one point from their three group matches. With the poor display came with all sort of rumours revolving around team, with some analysts even claiming that bias selection by coaches and GFA's unprofessional handling of matters had caused the damage.

However, the Seedy Kinteh-led executive committee has quickly decided to own up and dispel these frivolous talks through a two-page press release, which was signed by the secretary general of the Gambia Football Association, Jammeh EK Bojang. "Firstly, it should be recalled that in the past four (4) years, The Gambia qualified and played in three (3) FIFA World Cups and was crowned Champions of Africa twice; the most recent was in April 2009 in Algeria. These achievements were hugely celebrated by all and sundry. It took many years of delicate planning and hard- work," the statement revealed.

It continued: "Ultimately, a lot of phony factors have been forwarded by some sceptics that are claimed to have hampered the performance of our National team in the on-going FIFA U -17 World Cup, Nigeria 2009. We honestly disqualify these reasons thematically hereunder."

MRI test. The controversial FIFA mandated Magnetic Resonance Test meant to determine the age of players during the competition was the main subject of public debate ahead of the Nigeria event. With the fear that some of his players might be above age range after a voluntary test conducted in Dakar a few months before the championship, the Gambia U-17 coach travelled to Nigeria with all but five of the former team members that won the African Championship in Algeria.

His revamped squad failed to gel into a team in Nigeria despite enjoying a three-week training camp in London as they failed to win a single group match. However, the national football governing body has defended the decision to conduct the MRI test, saying this was not the first time such tests were conducted on players in the youth-category competition. "Not the first time was this test conducted on players in this category but the emphasis that FIFA laid out to all Participating Member Associations compelled The GFA to screen all fifty one players in a recommended reputable Clinic under the supervision of a recognised Specialist," the statement from GFA said.

It added: "These tests indicated that eleven (11) players from our Championship-winning team were not qualified for Nigeria 2009. As a bona fide member of FIFA, The GFA Executive Committee had to adhere to FIFA's warning not to register these over-aged players. What could have been more catastrophic than presenting these over-aged players and be expelled from the FIFA World cup?."

Selection of players

The Dakar test was followed by a massive screening exercise, where numerous key players including the former skipper and goalkeeper Musa Camara and influential midfielder Saihou Gassama were axed from the team. This hard decision leave to out the key players made rumour mongers believe that some of the players were deliberately dropped under the influence of the controversial assistant coach Lamin Sambou in order to create room for some new faces. However, the GFA has strongly refuted this allegation, saying the coaches selected the best from the lot. "Upon our team's return from African U-17 Championship, Algeria 2009 and upon receipt of the results of the MRI tests conducted, the Executive Committee recommended the setting up of a surrogate U-17 team in preparation for any eventuality that may surface as a result of these tests," the GFA said.

"Our Technicians selected younger players who started training immediately. The one all - draw game between these two teams confirmed our belief that our scheme was workable. After losing eleven (11) players from our Championship-winning team to the MRI Test, our Coaches and Technicians collectively selected the best out of our surrogate team and blended them with the few that survived the age test for the International training camp in the United Kingdom. Thus, for anybody to think that the Assistant Coach Lamin Sambou was bribed in selecting players was far from the truth. The final selection was done collectively by all the four (4) coaches / technicians," the statement said.

International Training Camp

The Gambia Football Association was widely criticised for their decision to send the team to United Kingdom for a three-week training camp when the proper tournament was scheduled to take place in Africa. Some analysts claimed that taking the team to an African country would not have only been cost effective, but would have also helped the team acclimatise themselves well before tournament.

However, the GFA said these allegations hold no water, hinting that it was cheaper to travel to United Kingdom than flying to an African country where standards and facilities are not comparable. "In the recent past, we have heard some cynics blame the management of the GFA for not arranging International training camps for our National teams in preparations for competitions. These sceptics believed that we could not improve our game because we were not exposing our players to international standards and facilities. What a paradox to hear them say now that it is a waste of resources!" the GFA queried.

It continued: "In 2007, The Gambia U -17 National team had a three-week camping in the United Kingdom in the midst of winter during our preparations for the FIFA World Cup in Peru. We proceeded to Florida, Costa Rica and finally into Peru with entirely different weather conditions. Was it that we had excellent results against Brazil and Qatar that was why the criticisms were withdrawn? The recent camping in the UK was at a time when summer was just phasing away and the climate was mild." "Looking at the cost component, it was cheaper to travel to United Kingdom than fly to an African country where standards and facilities are not comparable. Again, we must remember that we have a lot of Gambians in the Diaspora specifically in England who were also chanced to see and enjoy our gallant team. The kit sponsorship package was acquired as a result of this camp being held in the UK. This camp also gave us the candid opportunity to expose our players to some of the best Academies in the world."

Sponsorship funds

On funds raised to ensure the team's effective participation in the Nigeria event, the GFA said: "It is really disheartening to learn that some unscrupulous people are spreading some misguided statements in public and on some print and electronic media that the GFA has mismanaged the sponsorship funds allocated for our participation in the FIFA U-17 World Cup, Nigeria 2009."

"Such statements are even expounded upon by so-called football pundits with the sole intention of tarnishing the image of the Executive Committee of The Gambia Football Association. These statements are not only imaginary but are really an affront to the prestige and dignity of very decent persons who have great vision for our game and National Association."

Appreciation

In conclusion, the Executive Committee of the national football body extended sincere appreciation and thanks to His Excellency Sheikh Professor Dr Alhagi Yahya Jammeh, President of The Republic of The Gambia and Chief Patron of the GFA for his unflinching support and invaluable contributions to our football development initiatives.

The football body also sent appreciation to their main sponsors Gamtel and Gamcel for their enormous contributions which serve as a source of great consolation to the Gambia Football Association. The country's football body also offered their sincere apologies for the poor performance of the U-17 team in Nigeria event. They attributed the dismal showing to the MRI test that disqualified the more experienced badge of players. The football association finally assured Gambians that the team will come of age and garner experience for greater success in the near future.

"For every day that goes by we achieve, we smile, we regret and sometimes we even cry. But the most important thing is, we learn," the statement concluded.