In July, a young Thai soccer team – the Wild Boars – were trapped in a cave for nine days straight. Fortunately for them, their background in playing soccer helped them through the long periods of boredom where nothing ever actually happens.
“I think any other sports team would have really struggled in that situation,” said Panumas Sangdee. “As soccer players though, we have a much higher threshold for inactivity.”
“Standing around, having nothing to do, lacking any form of excitement – this is our bread and butter,” commented Panumas.
Not everyone was as philosophical as Panumas. Somepong Jaiwong admits that he began to fret that he may never get to stay up till 3.00am, sit through 90 minutes – plus overtime – and never see a drawn match again.
“At one point I became worried, thinking, ‘What is happening in the world of soccer right now? Who is drawing with whom? Is it Manchester United 0 and Liverpool 0? Or is it Liverpool 0 and Manchester United 0? What if I never get to see another 0-0 game?’” exclaimed an anxious Somepong.
After their rescue, the boys were eager to take their newly tested inactivity and transfer it to the pitch. Duganpet Promtep thought the experience even allowed them to learn and grow as players. “The time spent watching each other do nothing really gave us an appreciation of our fans and what they go through each match.”
At the time of this article, the Wild Boars are playing their biggest rivals, the Wandering Sloths. It’s three minutes to full-time and the score is 0-0.
