Dawda Bah

Dawda Bah (born November 11, 1983 in Banjul, Gambia) is a football (soccer) striker from Gambia who currently plays for HJK Helsinki. HJK first loaned Bah, and then bought him from KPV Kokkola.

Football career

Bah played in the Gambian League, with Banjul Hawks, until in 2005 moved to Finland Ykkönen clun KPV Kokkola. He became a key player for the second thier club and was the best goalscorer in the division. Successful season was spotted by Veikkausliiga clubs, but Bah stayed in Kokkola for the next season. Belarussia club FC MTZ-RIPO had offered 200 000 euros for Bah, but he refused to move to Belarus. He also visited Norway Odd Grenland, but did not get a contract offer. In January 2007, Bah visited Algeria club USM Blida, but the clubs could not agree on the transfer fee. Bah started the season 2007 with KPV Kokkola, but moved to Helsinki when Veikkausliiga club HJK Helsinki loaned him for the season. He debuted in a UEFA Cup match against FC Etzella Ettelbruck of Luxembourg an scored a goal. Later the Helsinki city club bought him from KPV Kokkola and signed a three-year contract with Bah.

International career

Bah is a member of Gambia national football team. He debuted in the Scorpions in 2002 and is still called up for the team. In the season 2008, HJK and the Gambian FA had an arcument, when Bah
did not show up after a trip to African Cup qualifiers. Later it was
released that the FA wanted to economize and did not want to buy flight tickets for the player and Bah missed a league match. When he was called up for a next qualifier match, he could not make the trip because there were no flights to Gambia and back in given deadlines.

Career honours/achievements

KPV

- Runner Up
- - Finnish Cup: 2006

Personal
- Finnish First Division Top Scorer: 2005