Scotland V Norway

This August, Scottish and Norwegian teams will battle it out for a place in 2010 World Cup. The World Cup Qualifier will take place on 19 August in Oslo.

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Both teams are in a group which includes the Netherlands, Macedonia and Iceland. Within the group Scotland are in joint second place and Norway are in fourth place. So how do our chances look? The sides have met nine times over the last 20 years, with Scotland winning four times, Norway winning once and four draws in a row between 1989 and 2003.

Beyond the game

The links between Scotland and Norway go back centuries. Shetland was part of Norway until 1469 and there are many words similar to Norwegian in the Shetland dialect. During the second world war a naval detachment known as 'the Shetland Bus' allowed hundreds of Norwegian refugees to flee to the Shetland Islands from occupied Norway.

Trade

Trade links have always been strong between the two countries. Today, Norway and the UK have strong common interests in the development of offshore oil and gas resources.

Tartan

Because of the closeness between the two countries there are many Norwegian Tartans including Pride of Norway below:

Other tartans are Norwegian Centennial, Bergen Scottish Modern, Gudbrandsdalen Mannsdrakt, Gudbrandsdalen Rondastakken, Hallingdal, Romsdal of Norway, Romsdal Tresfjord Valdres, Valdres Kvam Vang and Sea dog Bamse - Bamse was a Norwegian St Bernard dog that accompanied his master, the captain of the Norwegian minesweeper KNM Thorodd in battle. Bamse became an International Symbol of Freedom for Norwegian Troops

Sea Dog Bamse