BANGKOK: Twelve young footballers and their coach rescued from a Thai cave will be released from hospital on Thursday, health officials said, offering psychological support and urging the group to avoid media interviews despite huge interest in their against-the-odds survival story.

The group, called the 'Wild Boars' after their football academy, went into the Tham Luang cave in northern Thailand on June 23 to celebrate a birthday, but became trapped as floodwaters poured in.