When Thimphu City were slated to travel to The Maldives for the AFC Cup qualifiers, many things had to be considered. The club was considered pulling out of the competition due to traveling being unsafe during the pandemic. However, that would be a step backwards in the development of the beautiful game in our country which has come about in leaps and bounds in recent years. There was also heavy financial penalty if we dropped out of the competition. After much deliberation we took it upon ourselves to embark on the journey not only to fulfill our footballing obligations but also to prove that we can travel responsibly.
Prior to our departure we had a meeting where we decided that it would be the responsibility of every member of the team to monitor each to ensure that each member followed the safety protocols. Adequate masks, face shields, hand sanitizers, etc., were hand out to everyone. Our efforts paid off and Thimphu City FC is extremely proud to announce that we have completed our three-week quarantine and everyone has come out with a clean bill.
We would also like to take this opportunity to sincerely thank our government for approving our travel despite the expected backlash from the public if things went wrong and also for sponsoring our quarantine expenses. Finally, words are not enough to thank the management of Paro Grand Hotel and especially our wonderful Desuups who worked tirelessly to ensure that we were well looked after.
