JUDGING by the longing I had for a decent home-cooked meal, you’d think I was Ranulph Fiennes coming back from a six-month trek than a nine-day football tour.

Coming a very close second to my wife and kids, of course, I was dreaming about a reunion with British food, a something that did not revolve around some kind of sausage, and being able to switch on the television without any risk of having to watch Pointless.

I have spent more time with Alexander Armstrong than anyone else on this trip. The game show is on a loop, shown 24/7, and is invariably the only English show I could pick up.

On the plus side, I can now name some pretty obscure French cheeses.

On the footballing side, I think the trip has been a success. I know the Mjallby result put a slight dampener on things, but seeing youngsters like Josh Vela, Joe Riley, Georg Iliev and Oscar Threlkeld pushing on over the course of the three games has been a massive plus point.

Rob Hall looks lively, Liam Feeney has started well and Dougie Freedman seems to be urging his side to push on a little more than they did last season.

There are things about Sweden and Denmark I will miss, too.

Being able to walk into a newsagents and buy a bar of Plopp can only be a good thing.

Both countries had some stunning scenery. Copenhagen is well worth a long weekend, and Wanderers’ final game in Hallevik was set against a beautiful backdrop on the Baltic Sea.

Above all, Scandinavia is clean and does exactly what it says on the tin – assuming the tin says “kackerlacka” or some other weird collection of syllables.

In that respect it was the perfect place for Freedman to take his side back to basics, get them bonding, and preparing them for the nine-month haul ahead.

As I queued for the plane I discussed plans for Brighton away on a Bank Holiday and the potential train issues on the opening weekend against Watford. It was back to the real world.

But as I sat down to a nice meal with the family last night – I must admit, the real world ain’t that bad.