Shariff Musa: How pain fueled his rise at Gor Mahia

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He buried his brother in the morning and returned to football the same day.

There was no time for a long farewell, no luxury of retreating from the game to mourn. Shariff Musa Sirengo had a promise to keep — a league winner’s medal to deliver to Salim Musa, the brother who had battled addiction and vowed to change his life.

Months later, Gor Mahia were champions and the medal lay safely in Musa’s hands — a promise fulfilled at last. Around him, teammates celebrated, and supporters roared, but beneath the joy was the painful knowledge that Salim would never see the promise fulfilled.

For the 23-year-old winger, the championship was therefore about far more than football. It was the culmination of a journey that began on the dusty pitches of Bungoma, sustained by his father’s sacrifices and reached its most painful point with the death of his brother, whose final promise became the motivation behind his finest season.

“Before the season started, I had a bet with my brother Salim,” Musa revealed in an emotional tribute. “He said to me, ‘Bring me a league winner’s medal, then I will quit my addiction.’”

It sounded like a simple family pact. For Musa, it would soon become a burden of responsibility, grief and determination. His football journey began in Bungoma County, where his pace and direct dribbling stood out at Chesamisi High School between 2016 and 2019. The school pitches provided the first platform for a talent that would eventually take him into senior football.

In 2019, Musa joined Kimilili United before moving to Soy United, where he played in Division One and the National Super League. Each step exposed him to tougher competition and helped shape the winger who would later make his name at the top level.

“Through his hard work and resilience, he helped shape my character,” Musa said while paying tribute to his father, Musa Sirengo Senior.

His father’s role in the journey can't be separated from the footballer Musa has become. A school bus driver, Musa Senior spent long stretches travelling across Kenya and East Africa, often dealing with broken-down buses, changing tyres in the rain and enduring sleepless nights away from his family.

Even with limited resources, he made sure his son had what he needed to pursue the game.

“He was there, and he made sure I had a pair of soccer boots from the small money he was supposed to be using for lunch during his trips,” Musa recalled.

Those boots carried Musa through the lower divisions and eventually to the FKF Premier League. His move to Kariobangi Sharks in 2022 gave him the chance to test himself regularly against the country's top-flight players.

He then joined Bidco United in August 2023, where his pace, direct running and willingness to take on defenders continued to attract attention. “Just a high school driver, but he made sure we never lacked,” Musa said of his father.

By January 2024, Gor Mahia had secured his signature, reportedly paying Sh1 million to Bidco United. It was a significant move for a player whose career had started in the lower divisions, and placed him at one of Kenya’s biggest clubs.

Musa joined midway through the 2023/24 campaign and ended the season with a league winner’s medal as Gor Mahia lifted the championship. It was his first taste of success at K’Ogalo, but the best was yet to come. The 2025/26 campaign was when Musa truly announced himself.

Under coach Charles Akonnor, he developed into an important attacking outlet, capable of operating on either wing and using his acceleration and direct running to stretch defences.

“I don't know about tomorrow, but the thing I know is that I'm going to make you proud and happy,” Musa told his father after the title triumph.

His numbers told part of the story. Musa finished the league campaign with six goals and seven assists, while creating numerous chances for his teammates. He was selected seven times in the SportPesa League Team of the Week and became the inaugural winner of the revived SportPesa League Player of the Month award for October 2025.

That award followed a productive month in which Gor Mahia defeated KCB, Posta Rangers and Mathare United, with Musa playing a central role in their attacking displays.

But while his football was flourishing, Musa was dealing with a private family struggle that would soon overshadow everything else. His brother Salim had battled addiction and spent seven months in hospital. Musa hoped the promise of a league winner’s medal would help inspire him to change his life.

Then Salim died before the domestic season had properly begun. As Gor Mahia prepared for a pre-season friendly against Simba SC, Musa was confronted with the loss of the brother with whom he had made the pact. “Something funny happened; my brother had already won his bet,” Musa wrote. “He stopped his addiction. He kept his word, right?! But he kept his word in death.”

The tragedy transformed the meaning of the promise. Musa buried his brother and returned to football the same day, carrying grief into a season that would demand his best. “I had a choice: to let his death break me, or embrace the pain and make him proud,” he revealed.

There was no easy way to separate the footballer from the grieving brother. Every training session and match became part of a journey through loss, even as Gor Mahia's title ambitions gathered momentum. “I didn’t have the time to mourn my brother because I had a debt to clear,” Musa said. “But I mourned him every time I stepped on that field.”

On the pitch, Musa responded with some of the most consistent football of his young career. He scored important goals, created opportunities and became one of Gor Mahia’s leading attacking players as the club chased another championship. When Gor Mahia finally secured their 22nd league title, Musa had completed the task he had promised his brother. “I got him his medal,” Musa wrote.

For many players, a championship medal is a symbol of achievement. For Musa, it was a personal message delivered to someone who could no longer hear it.

The season also brought recognition from the supporters. Musa was named Gor Mahia Fans’ Player of the Season and received the Most Improved Player award, reflecting his rapid rise within the team. “Our fathers need some love too, and today I choose to celebrate this man,” Musa wrote while honouring his father.

His individual achievements continued to accumulate. He had won the revived SportPesa League Player of the Month award, earned seven Team of the Week selections and was nominated for the SportPesa League Player of the Year award.

Although teammate Enock Morrison ultimately claimed the overall league MVP honour, Musa’s was a notable feature of Gor Mahia’s title-winning campaign.

Yet the biggest reward remained the medal intended for Salim.

Musa later admitted he valued his brother's opinion when it came to judging his performances. That made the triumph even more difficult to celebrate. “I don’t know how my performances this season were, because the only person to tell me honestly lies in the ground,” he said.

Football, however, offered no pause. His performances earned him national team recognition and a place in Benni McCarthy’s Harambee Stars set-up. Musa was included in Kenya’s squad for the 2027 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers against Eritrea and Guinea, another significant step in a career that had risen rapidly from the lower divisions to the national team.

Kenya, co-hosts of the 2027 Afcon, have already secured their place at the tournament, but the qualifiers allow McCarthy to assess his squad ahead of the continental finals. For Musa, the international call-up is another test of how far his game has developed. His ability to operate on either flank gives the coach an additional option in attack.

“God bless you, Top Striker. We will tell our story one day,” Musa said in his message to his father. At club level, the challenges have become more demanding too.

Gor Mahia’s 2026/27 continental campaign began against Egyptian side Pyramids FC in the CAF Champions League preliminary round. The first leg at Nyayo Stadium ended 2-0 in favour of Pyramids, while the return match in Cairo ended 5-1, sending Gor Mahia out 7-1 on aggregate.

The tie offered Musa and his teammates a harsh lesson in the demands of continental football. The domestic campaign has also been affected by the legal dispute surrounding the composition and regulations of the SportPesa Premier League, delaying the start of the season and disrupting preparations for clubs across the country.

Yet Musa remains an important attacking figure for Gor Mahia as the new campaign takes shape. His game is still founded on the qualities that first attracted attention in Bungoma — pace, direct running and the confidence to take on defenders. His breakthrough season also showed an increasing ability to create for teammates rather than relying solely on individual brilliance. The boy, who once caught scouts’ attention at Chesamisi High School, is now a recognised Gor Mahia winger and a Harambee Stars international.

The expectations are different now. Defenders know his strengths, supporters demand more from him, and opponents will be increasingly prepared for the threat he carries. But behind the footballer remains the story of a son, a brother and a promise.

His father sacrificed his own comfort to keep football boots on his son’s feet. His brother’s battle with addiction became a deeply personal challenge. His death left Musa with grief that he carried onto the pitch. And when the championship medal finally arrived, it belonged to both football and family. “The only thing I know is that I kept my word,” Musa wrote. “Salim Musa, goodbye my brother, goodbye my friend, goodbye my fan. Rest, Champ.”

The promise had been kept. The medal had been delivered. For Shariff Musa, the celebrations may have ended, but the journey continues.