Wild Boars get Man Utd invite
> ‘Hooyah’ for rescued footballers who missed an earlier offer to attend World Cup final in Moscow
LONDON: English Premier League side Manchester United has invited the Wild Boars football team, like the Chilean miners rescued in 2010, to visit Old Trafford following their dramatic rescue yesterday.
The final five members of the young football team – four youngsters and their 25-year-old coach – were rescued from a flooded Thai cave after spending 18 harrowing days trapped deep inside, completing an astonishing against-the-odds rescue mission that captivated the world.
The dozen players – aged 11 to 16 – and the coach had already received an invitation from FIFA chief Gianni Infantino last week to attend the World Cup final on Sunday in Moscow – although after their traumatic experience, they may not be up to the trip physically or mentally.
Manchester United, though, tweeted an invitation just after the news that all had been rescued and with the Premier League season lasting from August through to May, there will be plenty of time for them to recuperate and take up the offer.
“#MUFC is relieved to learn that the 12 footballers and their coach trapped in a cave in Thailand are now safe.
“Our thoughts and prayers are with those affected. We would love to welcome the team from Wild Boars Football Club and their rescuers to Old Trafford this coming season,” the club tweeted on its official account.
In the northern Thai city of Chiang Rai, the people celebrated by honking car horns and taking live “selfie” videos last night after all the boys and their football coach were rescued from the labyrinthine cave complex.
Their celebrations were, however, tinged with sadness over the loss of former Thai navy diver Saman Kunan, who died on Friday while on a re-supply mission inside the flooded cave.
The dramatic rescue marks the end of a more than two-week ordeal that began when the “Wild Boars” and their coach became trapped inside the flooded Tham Luang Cave on the border with Myanmar on June 23.
Two British divers found the 13 last Monday but the search and rescue operation has largely been driven by Thailand’s elite navy SEAL unit.
“This is an important event in my life. It is something I will remember,” said a visibly emotional Rachapol Ngamgrabuan, an official at Chiang Rai’s provincial press office.
“There were times when I cried,” he added. “Happy. Very happy to see all Thai people love each other.”
Thais have been glued to their televisions, mobile phones and computer screens following every twist and turn of the boys’ story, as have many people overseas.
Thais turned to social media yesterday to show their elation using the hashtag #Hooyah, a word used by the navy to build morale.
Other hashtags included #Heroes and #Thankyou.
“You are our heroes!” wrote some, captioning cartoons showing the boys and their coach with dozens of rescue workers, volunteers and military personnel.
“We are not sure if this is a miracle, a science, or what.
“All the thirteen Wild Boars are now out of the cave,” the navy SEAL unit wrote on its official Facebook page moments after the rescue. – AFP/Reuters