Ben Ibrahim Camara (born 20 August 1984 in

Bonn Bonn () is a federal city in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia, located on the banks of the Rhine. With a population exceeding 300,000, it lies about south-southeast of Cologne, in the southernmost part of the Rhine-Ruhr region. This ...

) is an English former professional

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby lea ...

who played in

the Football League The English Football League (EFL) is a league of professional football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888 as the Football League, it is the oldest football league in the world, and was the top-level football league in England from ...

for

Torquay United Torquay United Football Club is a professional association football club based in Torquay, Devon, England. The team currently compete in the National League South, the sixth level of the English football league system. They have played their ho ...

Biography

Camara was born in the West German city of

and grew up in

Plymouth Plymouth ( ) is a port city status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority in Devon, South West England. It is located on Devon's south coast between the rivers River Plym, Plym and River Tamar, Tamar, about southwest of Exeter and ...

. He joined

's Centre of Excellence whilst at school in Tavistock and continued to play for Tavistock Town. He signed as a trainee on 1 July 2001 and made his league debut on 15 March 2003, coming on a substitute in a 1–1 draw at home to

Scunthorpe United Scunthorpe United Football Club is a professional association football club based in Scunthorpe, North Lincolnshire, England. The team competes in the National League, the fifth tier of the English football league system. The club was formed in ...

. He made a further substitute appearance on 3 May 2003, in a 1–1 away to Lincoln City and was awarded young player of the year and a professional contract that summer (along with fellow trainees Kain Bond, Lucas Burgess,

Graham Killoughery Graham Anthony Killoughery (born 22 July 1984 in London) is an Irish former professional association football, footballer and is currently a professional dancer. Football career Killoughery, a left winger, joined Torquay United F.C., Torquay Unit ...

and Steven Orchard). However, he was released by Torquay manager

Leroy Rosenior Leroy De Graft Rosenior (born 24 August 1964) is a football coach and pundit. He is a former footballer whose clubs included Fulham, Queens Park Rangers (for whom he appeared as a substitute in the 1986 League Cup Final), Bristol City and Wes ...

in January 2004 without adding to his first team appearances and joined

Stevenage Borough Stevenage Football Club (known as Stevenage Borough Football Club until 2010) is a professional association football club based in the town of Stevenage, Hertfordshire, England. The club competes in EFL League One, the third level of the Engli ...

. He made just one appearance, as a substitute, for Boro (on 14 February 2004 away to

Leigh RMI Leigh Genesis Football Club, formerly known as Horwich RMI (Railway Mechanics Institute) and Leigh RMI, is an English amateur association football club that currently plays in the South Lancashire Counties Football League. The semi-professional ...

). Camara joined Taunton Town in the summer of 2004, moving to

Clevedon Town Clevedon Town Football Club is a semi-professional football club representing Clevedon, Somerset, England. Affiliated to the Somerset County FA, they are currently members of the and play at the Hand Stadium in Kenn. The club's motto 'vigila ...

in January 2005. He returned to Taunton in July 2005, but moved to Torrington in December 2005, playing under former Torquay defender Robbie Herrera and alongside former Torquay colleagues Dean Stevens and Nick Skinner. In August 2007 Camara signed with RRFC Montegnée and retired there in June 2008. Camara resumed his football career in 2010 with

Guildford City Guildford City Football Club (formerly Guildford United and AFC Guildford) is a football club based in Guildford, Surrey, England. The club was established in 1921, folded in 1974 and was reformed in 1996. Guildford City play in the . History ...

, who played at that time in the Combined Counties Premier League. He made his debut on 8 September 2010 in a 3–1 victory over

Camberley Town Camberley Town Football Club is a semi-professional football based in Camberley, Surrey, England. They are currently members of the and play at Krooner Park. History The club was established in 1895 after a discussion at St Michael's church, ...

and scored his first goal 6 days later in City's 5–1 defeat of

Epsom and Ewell Epsom and Ewell () is a local government district with borough status in Surrey, England, covering the towns of Epsom and Ewell. The borough lies just outside the administrative boundary of Greater London, but it is entirely within the M25 moto ...

. Winning goal of the season two seasons running his goals contributed to Guildford City's successive first-place finishes in 2010/11 and 2011/12 and the club's subsequent promotion to

Southern League Division One Central The Southern League is a Association football, football competition featuring semi-professional clubs from East Anglia, the Southern England, South and The Midlands, Midlands of England, and South Wales. Together with the Isthmian League and t ...

. Camara's final appearance for Guildford came in a 4–3 victory over

Hayes Hayes may refer to: * Hayes (surname), including a list of people with the name ** Rutherford B. Hayes, 19th president of the United States * Hayes (given name) Businesses * Hayes Brake, an American designer and manufacturer of disc brakes * Hay ...

on 4 September 2012. Since 2008 Camara has gone onto become a serial entrepreneur in London co-founding The No1 Fitness Group, AWOL Media and now sitting as a director for Edufit. No1 Fitness studio centres.No1 Fitness
/ref> He is also the youngest founding member of the newest City Guild, The Guild of Entrepreneurs.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Camara, Ben 1984 births Living people Footballers from Plymouth, Devon English men's footballers Men's association football forwards Torquay United F.C. players Stevenage F.C. players Taunton Town F.C. players Clevedon Town F.C. players Torrington F.C. players R.R.F.C. Montegnée players Tavistock A.F.C. players Guildford City F.C. players English Football League players English expatriate men's footballers Footballers from Bonn Black British sportsmen 21st-century Black British people Expatriate men's footballers in Belgium English expatriate sportspeople in Belgium 21st-century English sportsmen