Hariss Harun out of Lions’ Dubai trip after positive Covid-19 test
Skipper, who is fully vaxxed, tests positive for virus, but teammates, staff negative ahead of Dubai camp
The national football team's preparations for next month's AFF Suzuki Cup have been hit after captain Hariss Harun tested positive for Covid-19.
As a result, he will miss out on the team's training camp in Dubai, where they will play friendly matches in preparation for the regional tournament. The Lions leave for the Middle East today and will return next Wednesday.
Hariss, who has been self-isolating since his positive test last Wednesday, told The Straits Times that he was disappointed to be grounded.
But he added: "I hope the team are able to prepare well and return in good shape, and hopefully, I can rejoin them right away when they are back."
He had been training almost daily with the national team since Oct 25, in preparation for the Suzuki Cup, which begins on Dec 5 and will be staged in Singapore.
Hariss, 30, said that he first felt "something was off" when he felt extra fatigued on Tuesday afternoon, but an antigen rapid test (ART) that evening returned a negative result.
The next morning, however, the fatigue was compounded by a blocked nose and body aches. This time, an ART test returned a positive result, and a polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test later that day also showed the same.
Hariss, who is fully vaccinated, said he has not felt any shortness of breath, and added that he has felt "much better" following a difficult first two days after testing positive.
"It gave me the chills on the first night, and it was difficult to fall asleep," he said.
The Football Association of Singapore (FAS) said yesterday that despite Hariss being in close proximity with his teammates for most of the past two weeks, all the other players and backroom staff have been undergoing daily ARTs, which have turned up negative results.
"The contingent has also undertaken the pre-departure PCR test yesterday as part of the requirements before flying to Dubai... (and) they have all been cleared for travel," it said.
In the Gulf, Singapore will play world No. 96 side Kyrgyzstan on Thursday in an official "A" international before playing the Morocco "A" side in an unofficial friendly next Tuesday.
The travelling contingent are fully vaccinated, and therefore are not required to serve a quarantine upon arriving in the United Arab Emirates.
However, as the nation is not currently among the list of those in Singapore's Vaccinated Travel Lane scheme, it is understood the Lions will have to follow a "controlled itinerary" upon their return to Singapore.
It will be similar to their programme after returning from three World Cup qualifiers in Saudi Arabia in June, when they were placed in a bubble with strict restrictions on movement, which allowed them to train while serving quarantine.
Hariss, who plays his club football for the Lion City Sailors in the Singapore Premier League (SPL), has been on the mend from a quadriceps injury he picked up on the final day of the season on Oct 10, and will be one of the Lions' most important players as they look to add to their four Suzuki Cup wins, the last of which came in 2012.
He was due to be cleared to return to full training on the same day he tested positive.
"(The situation) is not ideal... and I would have loved to continue training with the team because I would have been back in full training (in Dubai) and would have played a part in some of our matches.
"I don't know how much this has taken out of me, and it's not going to be easy to get my physical condition back, but hopefully, I will be able to regain it in time," said Hariss, who has played 101 times for the national team.
He is the most high-profile Singaporean player to test positive for Covid-19 and is at least the sixth case involving SPL footballers.
Singapore kick off the Suzuki Cup against Myanmar in a Group A clash on Dec 5. The other teams in the group are record five-time champions Thailand, the Philippines and either Brunei or Timor-Leste.
Group B comprises defending champions Vietnam, Malaysia, Indonesia, Laos and Cambodia. The top two teams from each group progress to the semi-finals.
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