Youths engaging in football activities in Malindi have claimed that they have been neglected when it comes to scouting for fresh talents in the country by top football clubs and their respective bodies.
Led by Malindi United head coach Tobby Hussein, the youths said on Thursday that the area has the raw talent that is yet to be tapped, hence challenged top sporting clubs and the ministry of sports to initiate the process of recruiting local talents for meaningful economic sporting nationally.
Speaking at the Alsakan football ground in Malindi, the coach, who has steered the team for the last four years, said that his ultimate goal is to ensure that youths from the region, like other areas, are also recruited and given a chance to feature in the national and international leagues.
“It’s five years now since I started steering Malindi United. When I joined the club, there was no inspiration at all for the youths. Since we emerged top of the Kilifi County league, we are now targeting the forthcoming Coast regional league,” said Hussein.
According to Hussein, lack of sponsors and reluctance of the sports department to invest in local sporting has led many football clubs coast region to fail to make it to the Kenya Premier League, Bandari Football Club is the only club from the region participating in the national league.
Hussein added, “before we go for the international leagues, we need to accept and promote these young talents locally.”
Maxwell Ochieng, the team's goalkeeper said that scouts from Nairobi do not reach Malindi to shop for talent, hence challenging them to visit the area in large numbers and see how talented the local youths are.
“We accept the fact that we are from the interior, but that should not be a reason for the scouts to skip the coast region. We have very many talented youths in Mombasa, Malindi, and Lamu,” said Ochieng.
#hivisasaoriginal