Bass, from living through despair to an agent of hope

• With the difficulties that local-based players face to break into the national team due, Bass counted himself lucky to be among the Scorpions and wanted to work his way up to become a starter.

  But this dream came tumbling down like a pack of cards when he was diagnosed with a sudden kidney problem.

  “Few weeks before the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) second leg home qualifier against Benin in November 2018, I realized some changes in my body which were unusual. I decided to go for a medical check-up where I was diagnosed and told both my kidneys had failed,” Bass told Sjag.gm.

  The versatile, left footed defender was one of few local based players called up for the Scorpions 2019 AFCON qualifying campaign, but with the heart-breaking news, the dream quickly evaporated. His chance gone.

  “The news was very shocking looking at how prepared I was for that game. The news just came in and abruptly ended everything,” Bass narrates.

  “I had to go to the hospital to see a Nephrologist to find out how best I could help myself," recalls the 27-year old former Brikama United defender.

  Upon arrival at the hospital, he was advised to start dialysis immediately.

  “That was when I knew everything had crumbled. It was really devastating. Everybody was shocked since it was unexpected and many had hoped for me to move to the highest level because everything was moving very smooth and fast,” Bass says.

  After going through dialysis at Gambia's Edward Francis Small Teaching Hospital, the former Gambia Ports Authority defender had to seek further medical attention in India where he had a successful transplant.

  

  
  

  The national team dream and in the long run his own football career stared at a bleak future. The journey he had started in March 2017 when he was called up to Gambia’s 2018 Total African Nations Championship (CHAN) qualifiers was now seemingly over.

  He was called up by coach Sang Ndong for a 10-day training camp in Morocco where they played two friendly matches and despite sitting out as captain Pa Modou Jagne marshalled the left side of defense, he was patiently waiting for his chance.

  “It was a dream come true. When the call came in I knew it was deserved because I had been working hard for it. It was an amazing moment and those are memories that will forever live with me,” recalls Bass.

  That same year, he would also make Ndong's squad for their opening 2019 AFCON qualifier away to Benin where the Gambia narrowly lost to a Stephane Sessegnon goal.

  “I believed if given the chance I would have given my best because I was called on merit.”

  After only a year into his national team adventure, a new reality dawned and Bass knew he had something more important to deal with - his health.

  “When I was diagnosed and started dialysis, I realized this is a new chapter in my life. I had to put football aside for a while and concentrate on my health because this is the most important thing,” he notes.

  Moving from an active life of football to the treatment table, not for injury but illness was a challenge that the Gambian had to deal with.

  “It was really difficult. Sometimes I will wake up in the morning thinking it is time for training but something reminds me it’s not time for the pitch but the hospital instead. With time, I got used to it," he recollected.

  But, football is still in his heart and Bass remains a huge football enthusiast and follows his former club Brikama very closely in the Gambian league.

  “Football forms a big part of my life. It is my passion and it is bigger than people might think; it is not only about kicking the ball. I will always be part of football because if you can’t play, you can manage, coach or do other things in the game.

  “During my recovery process after my transplant, I used to watched my teammates play in the league because that gives me joy as they were representing me."

  

  
  

  Upon his return from the transplant in India, his experiences battling kidney disease pushed him to start the ‘John Bass Kidney Foundation’ and he has been using it to raise awareness and advocate for better handling of patients in Gambia.

  “We only have one dialysis ward in the Gambia which is ill-equipped so I decided to come up with Foundation to raise awareness among the people so that we would have fewer cases in future. Kidney disease in Gambia is growing rapidly. When I returned from my treatment overseas, the number of patients with kidney problems has doubled,” he notes.

  “It’s better to raise awareness so that people will be able to take care of themselves and know the risks involved,” Bass concluded.