The saga of a missing football plaque's return home after crossing Europe

A plaque of the Coventry City Football Club crest is back in the team's home city, after a shadowy tale involving Manchester City supporters, a tie clip, a Norwegian pub and a 22-year absence.

It all started when Manchester City lost 4-3 at Highfield Road in 2001 and four visiting supporters swiped the emblem from a restaurant and took it north with them.

But not for long, because three years later, it somehow surfaced in an expat bar in Norway, where Coventry fan Steve Walker saved it from being thrown out.

Now, two decades after the Mancunians "liberated" the plaque from Coventry - and a journey of more than 1,200 miles - the sign is back in its home city.

So, let's go back to 2001.

The location: Highfield Road.

Coventry City beat Manchester City 4-3 - and then the idea of the "prank" starts.

In his book Once in a Blue Moon: Life, Love and Manchester City, supporter Steve Worthington tells the tale of how he and three friends were escorted to a restaurant after "exchanges" between themselves and Coventry supporters.

One of the quartet, Charlie, used his tie clip to unscrew the plaque from the restaurant wall, before nabbing the emblem, putting it in the back of their minibus and heading back up the M6.

Somehow, three years later, it was in the possession of a Norwegian Manchester fan called Ole.

He took it to a pub in Bergen where lifelong Coventry fan Walker was for the night and he takes up this cross-Europe saga.

"I met these two guys playing pool and they were chatting about this thing they had, with one saying: 'Please take it, if you don't I'm going to chuck it'," Walker told BBC CWR.

"The plaque has been sitting here in my house since then."

Walker promised his wife he would return it to Coventry once the Sky Blues were back in the Premier League, but the club's return took more than two decades.

Now, with Coventry back in the top-flight, Walker has driven more than 1,000 miles to visit lifelong friend Graham Brooks in Coventry and finally bring the plaque home.

Brooks and Walker hope that the plaque will soon be in the possession of the club or the Sky Blue Archive, who have plans to open a museum of memorabilia.

Coventry City Football Club described the story as fascinating and are exploring whether it can feature in The Story, a permanent exhibition at the club's arena celebrating its history and revival.

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