Martyrs Memorial A-Division League champions Church Boys United failed to progress to the group stage of the AFC Challenge League after they lost to Bhutan’s Paro FC 2-1 in the qualification playoff at the Dasharath Stadium in Kathmandu on Tuesday.

The country’s only international-standard stadium was hosting an international match only days after the Asian Football Confederation deemed it fit for tournaments. Nepal’s national team were forced to move their home matches of the 2026 FIFA World Cup and 2027 AFC Asian Cup Qualifications second round to away and neutral venues in March after AFC called the stadium substandard.

The build up to Tuesday's playoff clash was also marred by Japanese football icon Keisuke Honda’s comments “this is like a joke?” when he and his team witnessed ground staff mowing the grass on the Bhadrakali football ground, where they were supposed to practice.

The 38-year-old Honda played for Japan’s national team at the 2010, 2014 and 2018 World Cups. He also played for Serie A team AC Milan during the 2014-2017 seasons.

But the poor management of the stadium was clearly exposed to the outside world when the day’s rainfall turned the stadium into a muddy and slippery pitch, where players of both sides struggled to get the ball rolling.

Honda and almost all the players in the ground were covered in mud only minutes into the first half.

Despite the poorly maintained ground, Paro came from behind to outsmart Church Boys, thanks to Kinga Wangchu’s first-half equaliser and William Opoku Asiedu’s winner after the break.

It was Paro’s first ever victory in the continental competition in three attempts (in 2020, 2022, 2023/24). They were defeated by Machhindra Club in the preliminary round of the AFC Cup in Kathmandu last year.

Church Boys were also competing in the AFC’s tournament for the first time after winning the A-Division League title in their debut season in 2023.

Coach Bal Gopal Maharjan started seven national team regulars against the Bhutanese side, who had recruited 11 foreign players for Tuesday’s battle.

Honda, who joined Paro on a one match contract, was playing his first competitive match since 2021 and made his presence felt after the hour-mark when his deftly taken low freekick pierced the Church Boys defence and rattled the upright.

But, roared by a jam-packed stadium, Church Boys took the lead in the 39th minute when Moses Gyabaah Twum perfectly laid a cross from Arik Bista for Laken Limbu to tap home.

The celebrations of the hosts were short-lived as Wangchu, who was surprisingly left unmarked, took advantage of poor goalkeeping from Deep Karki and slotted the ball into the empty net.

Church Boys looked more aggressive after the restart and kept flirting with Paro goalkeeper Milos Cupic, with Anjan Bista testing the netkeeper in the 47th minute and Sanish Shrestha’s lofted shot from outside the box almost beating him ten minutes later.

But Paro silenced the crowd when Ghanian Opoku, who has also featured for Nepal Super League club Birgunj United and A-Division club Satdobato Youth Club, pounced on a dreadful defending from Omolaja Kareem and completed a remarkable comeback by slamming the bottom corner.

Church Boys desperately searched for an equaliser in the final moments and Twum was able to break into a tight Paro defence but could not revive the hopes of Church Boys to reach the main event of the third-tier Asian competition in their debut season.