Chairman Alhaji Umaru Bah said Real Republicans “belong in the Premier League” after making a dramatic return to the top flight football for the first time in 13 years.

The three times premier league winners defeated Great Scarcies 4-2 in post penalty shootout, after a 1-1 draw in the full time of play, of the SLFA National Play-Off third Place encountered on Thursday September 8 2022 at the Wusum field in Makeni.

After the match, the Real Republicans FC’s Chairman Alhaji Umaru Bah, who is also the Team Manager of the National Home-Based team, Leone Stars B, said everyone connected to the Soccer Ambassadors “deserves” promotion because they belong to the premier league, noting that he was excited to be part of the historical success. “I feel good and I am excited to be part of this historical success, marking the end of the club’s 13 year wait to return back to the Country’s top flight football. Republicans belong in the premier league,” he said.

He added: It’s destined that we are the ones to change the narrative and we are the ones to make the history. I am excited that the history has change today. Honestly I trust my team; I knew that we have a very good team that have done extremely well to ensure our dreams become reality. We are a big football club; we know that it’s full of history and tradition. We stand on that, proudly. I’ve always said ‘let’s try to create a next positive chapter’ and we have managed to do that for everyone connected to this football club this is a day to be proud of. We deserve to be back in the Premier League where we belong,” said Chairman Bah.

He went further to state that he was quite aware that the premier league is far different from division one league, assuring fans that he will restore the glory of Real Republicans.

“We were relegated from the premier league so I think we are quite aware of what to expect in the top flight football. Definitely there will be a different ball game altogether we are going to plan for it because we are not strangers to the premier league. The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Sierraminn Bauxite maintained. “Congratulation to everyone because this is everyone input, all of us tried our level best, the players, the officials and the supporters, you all contributed immensely to achieve this historical success for this great club. As far as this country’s football is concern, Republicans is a club with rich history. We are where this club belongs and we are ready to restore the glory of this great club,” he noted.

“When you are at the very bottom, it is hard to get off the canvas to do what we have done. We deserve to be promoted; there is no doubt about that. It’s been a tough football club at times, and all that has been repaid today, Republicans are back in the Premier League. I can’t believe I’m saying those words, but we’re over the moon,” Alhaji Bah concludes.

Meanwhile, the other two newly promoted teams Luawa FC and Lamboi FC who have been crowned champions of the first division league will be first-timers in the Sierra Leone Premier League.