Rising Stars shine at TTD Super Cup in Dubai

By GILBERT WANDERA

Rising Stars FC captain.

Every year, a good number of Kenyan youth teams take part in various international tournaments only to return home empty handed.

This year, it was different as newly formed side Nairobi Rising Stars Football Club claimed top place in the recently concluded TTD International Super Cup in Dubai.

The team achieved this feat in the Under-16 category despite the fact that they were formed less than one month ago and had only three weeks of training.

The team was in group ‘B’ in the Under-16 category where they finished on top after the preliminary matches as they collected 14 points from six matches.

In the knockout phase, Rising Stars beat Refa Black from Abu Dhabi 4-2 to make it to the final where they stopped Adastra Blue from Dubai 2-0 becoming the first Kenyan youth side to win an international tournament.

Coach Shaban Abdalla attributes the team’s success to hard work and determination.

Showcase talent

“Most of the boys in this team are from the slums but have the determination to succeed and this is what pushed them to do so well,” said Abdalla when the side landed at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport on Tuesday evening.

Abdalla has also thanked various sponsors who made the trip a success.

“Those who contributed so that this boys could travel, gave them an opportunity to showcase their talent and they were not disappointed,” he said.

Abdalla said they will seek to retain the team by holding weekly training sessions.

“We have already talked to various sponsors on how best to keep this team intact. One of the ways we are looking at is to pay school fees for this boys so that they can be able to go on with their education as they pursue a football career,” said the coach.

Nairobi lawyer Mohammed Nyaoga, who was the team’s main sponsor through his company Tintoria, said he took the gamble to expose the existing talent in the country.