Neglected ex- Sierra Leonean international Brima George dies as a pauper

By Mohamed Fajah Barrie in Freetown

Sierra Leone U21 &U23 national team Shooting Stars line-up of the early 90s Brima George standing ninth from left.

Former Sierra Leonean international and ex- Diamond Stars striker Brima George who had a mental sickness  died as a pauper  because he was neglected by football authorities who never showed interest in his plight.

George who was believed to be in his late forties or early fifties only got help from Sierra Leonean living footballing legend Mohamed Kallon who  at one point took him to The Gambia for native treatment to try to bring him back to normal life but never succeeded. 

His mental sickness lasted for over a decade and half before he finally gave up last Wednesday when he was pronounced dead at the Lakka hospital outside Freetown.

He was buried the following day at the Fourah Bay Community ‘Aku Muhamadan’ cemetery in the eastern part of Freetown in a poorly attended burial ceremony.

George suffered a lot as he spent quite a good number of years begging people money to survive as it appeared that he was not taken care of.

There has been one way reaction to his death as people have expressed disappointment both on social media and on radio sports programmes over the way and manner the ex-football star was treated when he was alive.

As a footballer George was the most popular Diamond Stars player of his generation because of his ability of scoring goals and also played for East End Lions FC.

He was part of the Diamond Stars’ team that represented Sierra Leone in the 1990 defunct African Cup winners Cup clubs competition when they met Bendel Insurance of Nigeria in the first round but were knocked out.

He made several appearances for Leone Stars and netted some goals including his memorable goal against Cameroon’s Indomitable Lions who were fresh from their remarkable performances at 1990 World Cup in Italy. His goal was a masterpiece header from a right-wing cross from Daniel TOP Sesay described by the late Fode Kande's progress newspaper as 'Majestic header'. The game was a 1992 African Cup of Nations qualifier. George also played for the other categories of the Sierra Leonean national football teams and also accounted for few goals.