There are no direct flights to Stavanger in Norway. You either go via Copenhagen or Frankfurt. I chose Frankfurt. I’m always eager to fly over Germany just like my granddad was.
By the time I set off Blues had already thrashed the part time plumbers and shop workers of Egersund 2-0 thanks to goals by Gray and Kuqi. I left for Birmingham airport on Friday at five in the morning and arrived via the Fatherland in a surprisingly bright and sunny Stavanger on the west coast of Norway for midday. The small town is at the heart of the Norwegian oil industry and I managed to visit a customer on Friday afternoon in order to justify my trip and some of the expenses!
The town was vibrant on the night with many visiting Leeds and Birmingham fans enjoying the unusual good weather and the superb hospitality of the locals. Most pubs were packed and despite the normally lethal combination of Blues, Leeds, alcohol and foreigners there was not an ounce of trouble or conflict. And quite frankly that’s how it should be! Perhaps the extortionate cost of alcohol was a contributory factor to the good nature of the marauding hordes!
I was finally persuaded to go to bed by my own body at six the following morning and left my Norwegian hosts playing guitar, singing strange local songs and drinking anything with the remotest amount of alcohol in it! They told me I was a lightweight
Finally it was matchday. All the plans of spending the day pre-match being a tourist disappeared thanks to the state of my host, Trond, who looked like he had only had around two hours sleep. That’s because he had!
On the afternoon we met two Blue Nose mates, Phil Marshall and Dave Hart, at Stavanger airport and dropped them off at their hotel in the city centre. I only became aware of how magnanimous a gesture this was later when another fan informed me that the taxi he had just caught to do the same trip had cost him over fifty pounds!
The Leeds match kicked off at two o’clock which meant that around lunch time the town was full of Stavanger and Blues fans all mingled happily together. Some fans went to the ground via ferry and some used the more traditional tarmac.
The stadium is quite spectacular; bowled like the St Marys, Southampton, and all seating. I went for a coffee just before kick off and was informed that I was the only person all day who had asked for milk. And sugar!
The total attendance was a few thousand spread around the ground and the locals were in good voice as they tried to rouse their heroes. They sang a few English songs as well to make us feel at home ‘Sing when you’re winning, you only sing when you’re winning’, which was nice.
The Blues knocked the ball around well but the friendly nature of the game and the sparse crowd gave the impression of a training kick about. Muzzy looked happy though!
Right on half time Pennant beautifully curled the ball around the Stavanger wall and into the net off the post after Kuqi had won a free kick on the edge of the box. In the second half Forssell came on and looked lively and both he and Anderton struck the post.
On the concourse afterwards we met a very happy Ralph Gold who was more than satisfied with how the tour had gone. I told him to go somewhere cheaper next time and he politely laughed. I don’t think he cared. 
In light of the sad events in the last match though against Bergen the Blues may well have to cross Norway off the tour list for the future. We all wish the young lad a speedy recovery and hope that young Painter can quickly forget the incident and proceed with his promising career.