Bijilo Young Stars Football Club

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In 2004 a family from Northampton, England emigrated to The Gambia and settled in the village of Bijilo, near to the Atlantic Coast in West Africa.

Rowland and Sally Jordan together with their son Thomas (then 12 years old) purchased a compound and began making their new life there.

Rowland Jordan - Bijilo Young Stars Football Club

Sports facilities in Bijilo were non-existent and Thomas and a few other local boys formed Bijilo Young Stars. They found an empty compound and cleared it of scrub, levelled it out and marked out their pitch. They built their own goal posts out of wood and made a crossbar out of rope. On more occaisions than they found it funny, they would turn up to find that the goalposts had been taken and presumably used for firewood!

Since those early days, the club has gone from strength to strength and under their coach Yaya Camara they have won both the Junior League and Cup and have been finalists in other knockout competitions.

The club have been donated many kits and pieces of equipment from friends across the world and frequently have to lend their kit to opponents who don't have the support that BYS have.

In 2007 the club went on a tour of three villages on the North bank of the river Gambia, lasting over four days playing a total of 3 games - winning one, drawing one and losing one. The Gambia is divided into two by a river that runs the full length of the country. For many of the squad, it was the first time they had ever crossed the river onto the North side. Two of the games were actually played on the island of Jinnack which lies just off the west coast of Africa.

In 2008 the landowner of the compound where BYS play decreed that they will no longer be able to use the land as he has plans to develop it.

Rowland is now trying to raise funds to build a new community sports arena in which BYS will be able to play. Please click here for more information on this project that is critical to the future survival of the club.

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