A rugby ball kicked into the North Sea from a popular British beach has been discovered some 500 miles away in Denmark.
The rugby ball was discovered by a father and son holidaying at a beach in Denmark after someone playing all the way in Whitley Bay leathered the ball into the sea.
Instead of making its way back to the UK beach, strong currents carried the ball 500 miles towards Denmark before it finished up at a seaside resort in Lonstrup.
It was found by a the holidaying father and son who were on holiday at the resort.
The ball had been donated by Rockcliff Rugby Club to a communal toy box in North Tyneside on June 15, giving visitors the opportunity to play on the beach.
Younger club members wrote messages on the ball, telling people to "have fun playing rugby".
However, the club received a rather surprising email from Bernd Terbeek a week later.
Terbeek, who found the ball, wrote: "Dear Ladies and Gentlemen.
The distance from the club to the Danish beach
"We found one of your rugby balls during our summer holiday in Lønstrup in the northern part of Denmark.
"I went for fishing with my son Hauke when we saw it drifting in the water at the beach."
Terbeek added: "Later on, we will give it a try and play with it!"
He ended by wishing "all the best and a good rugby season" for the club.
The ball which was found in Denmark
The German father and his 12-year-old son were on a summer vacation along with other family members when they discovered the ball in the water on July 9.
"My son Hauke saw it drifting in the waves and I picked it up," Terbeek said.
"Later on we checked where the rugby club was and were surprised about the distance the ball managed to drift across the North Sea from the British to the Danish coast."
The father said the family "will keep it as a memento of our travels" and they "are now fans of Rockcliff".
Rockcliff Rugby Club
The team plays in the Counties 1 Durham & Northumberland Division and Terbeek has been invited to watch a home game with his family.
Terbeek said "for sure we will check the activities" of the club.
In a statement, Rockcliff Rugby Club said: "Our little gift to beachgoers in Whitley Bay had gone international."
"Bernd and his son Hauke were holidaying ... Lønstrup, Denmark ... when they discovered a Rockcliff ball that had made its way across the North Sea from Longsands," the statement added.
Lønstrup beach
"It was left for the enjoyment of visitors to the town."
The club also said that "while we don't condone hoofing anything into the sea that doesn't belong there" it was delighted to connect with "our new penpals".
Concluding the statement, the 137-year-old rugby club wrote: "(They promised) to enjoy a bit of beach rugby."