Shaka_Bangura
Shaka Bangura
Sierra Leonean footballer
Shaka Bangura (born February 9, 1986, in Kissy[1]) is a Sierra Leonean footballer.
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Shaka Bangura | ||
| Date of birth | (1986-02-09) February 9, 1986 (age 38) | ||
| Place of birth | Kissy, Sierra Leone | ||
| Height | 5 ft 7 in (1.70 m) | ||
| Position(s) | Striker | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 2005–2009 | Montreat College | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2008 | Atlanta FC | 6 | (2) |
| 2009 | Fredericksburg Gunners | 18 | (12) |
| 2010 | Puerto Rico Islanders | 14 | (0) |
| 2011 | Richmond Kickers | 19 | (4) |
| 2012 | Anagennisi Dherynia | 10 | (1) |
| 2013 | Samut Songkhram | 2 | (0) |
| 2014 | Barito Putera | 3 | (0) |
| 2014–2015 | Atlanta Silverbacks | 32 | (4) |
| 2018 | Northern Virginia United | 9 | (3) |
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 22 February 2016 | |||
Youth and College
Bangura moved to the United States from Sierra Leone when he was a small child, settling in College Park, Georgia. He attended North Clayton High School, where he scored a total of 58 goals and was named to the All Region Team every year.[2] He then earned a sports scholarship to attend Montreat College in North Carolina. At Montreat he consistently made All Conference first team in the Appalachian Athletic Conference (AAC). His first year at Montreat he was named freshman of the year and was also named the conference player of the year in his sophomore and junior year and during his senior year he won the golden boot award [3] He finished his college career having scored a total of 58 goals in four years.
During his college years Bangura also played with Atlanta FC in the National Premier Soccer League in 2008, and with Fredericksburg Gunners in the USL Premier Development League in 2009.[4]
Professional
During the 2010 pre-season Bangura joined the Puerto Rico Islanders of the USSF D2 Pro League.[5] He made his professional debut on April 21, 2010, in a game against NSC Minnesota Stars.[6]
Bangura signed with Richmond Kickers of the USL Pro league on March 15, 2011,[7] and scored the winning goal on his Kickers debut, a 2–1 win over Charleston Battery on April 23.[8] After the 2011 season, Bangura signed with Anagennisi Dherynia in the Cypriot First Division.[9] In 2013 Bangura signed with Samut Songkhram in the Thai Premier League, where he helped the team survive relegation. One of his brightest moments came against Chainat, whom he single-handedly defeated. Later the week he made the Thai premier League all team. In 2014 Bangura was invited for a tryout with Persija Jakarta. Bangura impressed with two goals in two games but was not awarded a contract. After the two games many teams in the Indonesia Super League were interested. Bangura decided to sign with Barito Putera, where he played 6 games with 4 goals and 2 assists in the Inter Island Cup.
Puerto Rico Islanders
- CFU Club Championship Winner (1): 2010
- USSF Division 2 Pro League Champion (1) 2010
He is the cousin of Abdul Bangura, his teammate at Atlanta Silverbacks.[10]
- Vanguard, The Patriotic (2007-11-25). "Sierra Leonean soccer gems in the diaspora". The Patriotic Vanguard. Retrieved 2018-05-16.
- "Shaka Bangura 2008 Men's Soccer Roster". Montreat College Athletics. Retrieved 2018-05-16.
- "USSF Division-2 Pro League". ussf.demosphere.com. Retrieved 2018-05-16.
- PR Islanders FC (2010-04-14). "Lista de jugadores de los Puerto Rico Islanders" (in Spanish). PR Islanders FC. Retrieved 2010-04-14.
- "USSF Division-2 Pro League". ussf.demosphere.com. Retrieved 2018-05-16.
- "Kickers Shake Things up with New Signing". OurSports Central. 2011-03-15. Retrieved 2018-05-16.
- "United Soccer Leagues (USL)". Archived from the original on 2011-05-06. Retrieved 2011-04-25.
- "Δεύτερη μετεγγραφική περίοδος / ενημέρωση". sigmalive.com/. Retrieved 18 February 2013.
- Scavuzzo, Diane (3 July 2015). "Silverbacks promote Abdul Bangura to first team". Soccer Today. Retrieved 26 March 2021.