Published: Friday, 5th September, 2008 9:20am

Bamba deal could net the Pars more than £100,000

by Simon Harris

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Sol Bamba in action in his final game for the Pars, against Livingston
Pic by: Dunfermline Press

SOL BAMBA’S transfer to Hibs could ultimately net the Pars well over £100,000.

As expected, the giant Ivory Coast defender quit East End as the transfer window snapped shut on Monday and signed a three-year contract with the Edinburgh side.

The fee has been reported as £50,000 elsewhere this week but Press Sport can reveal that figure could approach £100,000 depending on the player’s impact at Easter Road.

And the Pars have also inserted a sell-on clause which means Athletic would cash in with a decent percentage if he were to do well with Hibs and then secure a big money move to England.

The Pars enjoyed a £120,000 windfall in a similar way in the summer when former striker Noel Hunt left Dundee United to join Reading in a £600,000 deal.

Ivory Coast international Bamba, who became the first Pars player to appear in the Olympics when he took part in the recent Beijing games, was signed from Paris St Germain by Jim Leishman in summer 2006 and made 46 starts.

Now director of football with the Pars, Leishman revealed he helped Bamba negotiate his move away from East End.

“I think Sol Bamba was a wee bit unlucky that he did not get to go down to the Championship down south,” Leishman told Press Sport on Tuesday.

“But he has got a great club in Hibs and if he fulfils his potential, he will do really, really well for them and that’s why it was necessary for us to add the sell-on clause.

“I’ve always put them on when I’ve been involved in transfers.

"I put one on when Livingston sold Rab Douglas to Dundee and when he then joined Celtic that made Livi an extra £120,000.

"And it was the same with David Fernandez.”

Leishman was quick to spot the potential of the gentle giant, who as a kid trained with Ronaldinho when the Brazilian was at PSG.

“I think he lost his way a bit at the start of last season when all the agents were phoning him and telling him he could get a club here or get a club there,” Leishman said.

“Whereas this time, I went there with him and did the deal for him. He didn’t use an agent, he trusted Dunfermline Athletic to do the best for him and that’s what we’ve done.

“He got the chance to move and I think it was a good move for him.”

A favourite with the fans, Bamba was seen as an unsettling influence in the dressing room in some quarters, so a move away is ideal for both club and player.

Bamba’s exit was the only activity at East End on deadline day with no fresh faces coming in to add to the recent signing of winger Simon Wiles.

Leishman said, “The board have tried really hard to give Jim McIntyre money and did so with Andy Kirk and Simon Wiles.

“I think it’s a big transition for Jim – Sol Bamba was the 17th player to leave since January and now Jim is in the process of building his own team.

“All credit to Jim, he has stuck to his guns. He said he wasn’t going to just jump in and get some of the names bandied about over the summer.

“Andy Kirk has done really well so far and that’s what he wanted. We are trying to support him as a club as much as we can and we have done that.

“The good thing is that he knows he can come to the board and put his side and, hopefully, we can support it.

“Sometimes we won’t be able to, but up to now we have tried as hard as we can and he appreciates that.”