Francis ‘Thaish’ Thairu with his fans.
NAIROBI, Kenya, Oct 31 – Kawangware United veteran striker Francis ‘Thaish’ Thairu hopes to uplift aspiring young stars in the Dagoretti based club through full time coaching.
Thairu, who has a wealth of experience after featuring for Nairobi City Stars when they were in the Kenyan Premier League for a decade, has urged his charges not to downplay themselves by playing in the grass root but instead to believe in their dreams.
“It is time for the upcoming players at the grass root to claim their place in football. There is raw talent at the community level and with proper guidance these young players could play in some of the biggest leagues abroad. They just have to push themselves more and focus on improving their skills,” the 39-year-old lanky dreaded star advised.
Thairu, who played a role of player-coach to guide Kawangware United to a historic feat following their triumph in the 2017 Sportpesa Super 8 Premier League where they defied all odds to win the prestigious grass root championship taking home Sh1m, hanged his boots after an illustrious career spanning 20 years.
Thairu (R) in action during their SportPesa grass root Premier League Games.
Having started playing football at a tender age in the dusty grounds of Ndararua Primary School, Thairu believes that footballers in that area that has produced some of the Kenyan internationals like former Kenya Breweries (Tusker FC) captain Edward ‘Desh’ Karanja, have what it takes to represent the country at the world stage only if they focus more on developing their inborn talent.
The veteran center forward says his determination and self-drive despite his humble beginning is what steered him to play in the Kenyan Premier League while turning out for Kawangware United before it was transformed to World Hope FC and later Nairobi City Stars FC.
“My time in competitive football has elapsed and it time to let others enjoy fruits of the good game. I am now focusing on transferring what I have learned all those years to others through coaching,” Thairu, who was part of the 60 local coaches who underwent the through the first edition of the Arsenal Training Clinic said.
Thairu’s wealth of experience played out once more as he scored 21 goals to tie with Sam Lemashon of NYSA on top of the scoring ranks in the just concluded Super 8 League.
