No longer just happy to be there: Bhutan women chase history

Panaji: Known as ‘the kingdom of happiness’ because of its pursuit of balance, it is no coincidence that Bhutan have made it to the semifinals of the SAFF Women’s Championship for three editions in a row.Well, you can argue it’s South Asia, just eight nations -- seven now with Afghanistan’s exit -- so making it to the top four isn’t really an achievement. But look at the past and compare it to the present. While lower-ranked teams like Pakistan, Afghanistan, Sri Lanka, even Maldives made it to the semifinals at least once from 2010 to 2019, Bhutan got a taste of what it feels like to play for a place in the final only in 2022.None of this was accidental. In fact, Bhutan’s qualification to the semifinals four years ago is a result of meticulous planning, increased focus on women’s football and, not to forget, realisation that women are better placed to script sporting history for the tiny, mountainous, landlocked country.“For us at the Bhutan Football Federation, women’s football is the way forward if we really want to get a trophy,” deputy general secretary Phuntsho Wangdi told TOI recently. “We have started investing in women's football.”Quite intriguingly, Bhutan pays a monthly salary to its national team players; some even get scholarships. There is a national academy in place for women, the league is getting bigger, better, and by next year, there will be at least six coaches with AFC Pro-Diploma, the highest level of coaching accreditation in the continent.“Monthly payments help. The girls get motivated, the community gets motivated, the parents are involved. Ours is a very small population; it’s not like we have a big group of players. We have to encourage everyone to come out and play.“We are providing a lot of exposure, increasing the pool of women coaches at the highest level, inviting good players (from South Asia) to feature in the league as domestic players, not foreigners. All this is being done because I don’t think with men we can catch up. Women are our best option to progress in this region and beyond, even the World Cup,” said Wangdi.For now, the focus is firmly on the current SAFF Women’s Championship where Bhutan will take on the might of five-time champions and regional powerhouse India in the semifinal on Wednesday.“Making it to the final will be tough, especially since in both the group-stage games, we didn’t really perform as per our expectation,” said captain Pema Tshering, who scored a hat-trick against Sri Lanka last week. “I am not sure if it’s the weather or players are just fatigued. But, hopefully, after confirming our place in the semifinal, this (five-day) break will help us come back stronger.”Bhutan arrived in Goa before anyone else. They were here five days before the start of the tournament, acclimatising to the hot and humid conditions, quite different to the low temperatures back home. They’ve improved with every game and are now looking to script the biggest upset in history.“The mentality has to be very strong. Maybe get an early goal, cause a disruption (to the game plan),” said Tshering.