"Love match!" - South Shields husband and Norwegian wife travel 1,000km to watch England game in pub
‘Oh dear how will this turn out. We are going to see the game at the New Crown’
A South Shields man will be on tenterhooks as he watches England’s World Cup quarter final tonight- with his Norwegian wife!
It’s going to be a night of high emotion for most football fans, but doubly so for Derek and Hanne Pinkney as they watch their two nations go head to head for a place in the last four.
South Tynesider Derek has lived in Trondheim since 1998 when he moved there after a holiday romance turned into a fantastic love story.
But both of them flew more than 1,000km to make sure they were back in South Tyneside this weekend when they will be heading to the New Crown Hotel, in South Shields, to take in the atmosphere of a World Cup match in a packed venue.
It’s a real lasting love story and Derek told us how he first met Hanne in Cyprus when they were both on separate vacations in 1994.
He said: “I was on holiday with my friends. After a holiday romance, we became pen friends and I visited Norway for the first time in 1995. I emigrated to Norway in 1998. We married in 2000 and we now have two girls.”
Hanne is a nurse who is now the area manager for heath services in Trondheim. Derek is a sales and product manager for a company called Entrack As, which is an importer of Kobelco construction equipment.
“Hanne is just as keen a football fan as myself,” said Derek who added: “Oh dear how will this turn out. We are going to see the game at the New Crown. May the best team win .... sorry Norway!”
We just had to get the views of both Derek and Hanne on how they think the game will pan out.
Derek said: “England win 3-1. Got to give Haaland a goal.”
Hanne had a different view and predicted a much closer match. She said: “Norway to win on penalties after extra time.”
Excitement is mounting for the FIFA World Cup quarter final game tonight and we would love to hear from more of you who have connections to both the England and Norway camps or indeed any World Cup footballing connections.
Do you have family in Norway or maybe you are South Tyneside-born and now living in Scandinavia. Get in touch and tell us more by emailing [email protected]