A couple who walked 50 miles between football stadiums in memory of their friend said the trek was a “fitting tribute to a lovely man”.

Dave Devonport died in 2023 after a six-year battle with lung cancer which his family said was “like an axe over their heads”.

Now Tim and Karen Purkis have raised hundreds of pounds for a hospice charity in his memory by trekking along the South Coast between the stadiums of Dave's beloved teams.

They walked from Fratton Park in Portsmouth to the Amex in Falmer.

The Argus: Tim and Karen Purkis at the AmexTim and Karen Purkis at the Amex (Image: Family handout)

Karen, 60, said: “I think the walk helped all of us. It gave Tim and I a lot of time to talk, just the two of us and when everyone joined us for the final few miles it was a fitting tribute to a lovely man.

“That final walk was quite emotional. We were all reflecting on Dave and his life, thinking that he’d be looking down on us saying we're bloody idiots for doing it, but also feeling very proud.

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“We’ve had donations from football fans we have never met. Even from people we met on the way. People have been extremely kind.”

Dave and Tim, both 63, grew up together and were friends since they were two years old. They became brothers-in-law when Tim married Karen and Dave married her sister Lynne.

Train driver Dave was a devoted fan of Portsmouth FC but started following Albion as a season ticket holder when he moved to Southwick.

He was diagnosed with terminal lung cancer in 2017 and was given just six months to live. However, he lived for six more years.

Tim and Karen, from Purbrook in Hampshire, trekked from Portsmouth’s Fratton Park stadium to the Amex, a walk of more than 50 miles.

Family and friends joined the couple on the final stretch of the journey.

They raised over £1,500 for St Barnabas House in Worthing, the hospice which cared for Dave in his final days.