By Debayan Mukherjee
Kolkata, May 6 (IANS): Real Kashmir head coach David Robertson and five other UK nationals including his wife Kym, son and club defender Mason are finally on their way home.
As reported earlier by IANS, the six stranded UK nationals started their long journey on road from Srinagar to Amritsar via Jammu at 5 a.m. on Wednesday morning.
"They should be reaching Jammu in some time. They will rest at my place in Jammu and from there they will start for Amritsar in a couple of hours after that. It should take them three and half hours roughly to reach Amritsar. The British High Commission has arranged a hotel for the six of them in Amritsar. Tomorrow at 3:30 p.m. they fly back. It is a British Airways direct flight from Amritsar to Heathrow (London)," Real Kashmir co-owner Sandeep Chattoo told IANS.
The six of them started from Srinagar in a bus arranged by Real Kashmir.
Earlier, the British High Commission seeked permission from the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) to ensure their transit to Amritsar. The British government had decided last month to organise special charter flights for airlifting its citizens stranded in India.
But the wait was long for Robertson, Kym, son Mason, along with English midfielder Kallum Higginbotham and members of the support staff, James Lindsay and Jonathan Craig, as they all were stuck in Srinagar due to the nationwide lockdown from March 25.
Robertson has been keen to get back home to his mother Muriel in Aberdeen who is undergoing chemotherapy.
Nigerian skipper Loveday Enyinnaya, Zambian Aaron Katebe, and Ivorians Bazie Armand and Gnohere Krizo are still stuck in Srinagar and there is no update yet on when they can return to their respective countries in Africa.
Under Robertson, Real Kashmir finished fourth this season with 22 points from 15 matches. The I-League was called off with matches remaining due to the COVID-19 pandemic which has brought the world to a standstill. Mohun Bagan, who had won the league with four rounds to spare, were declared champions.