 Kaiafas, like other Cypriot stars such as Andreas Stylianou, Panicos Efthymiades, and Leonidas Leonidou, became a cult hero to the fans during a period where there was a close connection between players and fans; during this time, football was played on gravel and footballers were paid only a pittance by clubs.During the Turkish invasion of Cyprus, the Turks captured the northern part of Cyprus, including Kaiafas' home village Mia Milia.He, along with 200,000 other Greek Cypriots, had to leave his house and become a refugee in the rest of Cyprus.