There’s Norway I was missing City’s big day!
SKY Blues fan Jorgen Eide is realising a childhood dream when he travels from his native Norway to see his beloved club at Wembley this weekend.
The 35-year-old will be joined by 24 of his friends and fellow Coventry City followers from the club’s Norwegian Supporters’ Club who will be making up over 40,000 who will be backing Mark Robins’s men as they battle against Oxford United for the Checkatrade Trophy on Sunday.
Jorgen has supported City from afar since he was a boy and has visited Highfield Road and the Ricoh Arena over the years.
So how did a boy from Bergen, the second largest city in Norway, end up supporting the Sky Blues?
“It all started at Christmas 1991 when I was ten years old and all I wanted was a Liverpool shirt and my two older brothers decided for some reason to get me a shirt from Coventry City,” said the photographer and video journalist
“And from that day Coventry was all that matt e r e d and even though it has been a bumpy ride I’ve never regretted my choice.
“I went to visit Highfield Road the summer of ‘98, although there weren’t any matches at that time but I got a personal guided tour of the stadium.
“That was a great experience and not something you would ever get to experience if you supported one of the Jorgen with Sky Blues legend Steve Ogrizovic bigger teams. In September 2012 I went with a friend of mine who supports Tranmere Rovers to watch Coventry at Prenton Park and then in Easter 2013 I went to Coventry with my girlfriend to introduce her to this important .part of my life. We went to the Ricoh where we saw a match against Doncaster.” But Sunday will be a special day for Jorgen, who said: “It will be a childhood dream come true! “There is a Norwegian supporters club on Facebook with about 50 members and we have organised a Norwegian delegation of 25 going to Wembley after we got tickets with the help of the London Supporters’ Club.” Asked what he loves about the Sky Blues, he said: “I like the fact that it’s an authentic football club, with strong roots in the local community. And I love the club logo.
“But it has been a difficult relationship, with some rough times.”
As for what his friends think about his choice of football team, he said: “When I was younger it was sometimes hard when all my friends followed the bigger teams, but now I think they find it fascinating.
“Some even seem a bit jealous that I have been more independent when choosing my team.”
Asked what he thinks about the turmoil the club is in with the protests against the owners, he said: “I think it’s sad that the club has ended up in this situation but I think the protests are very important to make the club move forward.
“I hope the owners soon realise that they need to solve this and end this tragedy.
“But hopefully the final at Wembley might help turn the negative spiral.”