Muddy matched couple marry after a welly-owning fiasco

Mud lovers tie the knot in a rural, rustic themed wedding, after meeting on Muddy Matches (even though the groom never owned a pair of wellies!)

When her muddy match Mark cracked open a bottle of wine on a ‘random weekday’ and glasses were handed out, it wasn’t the only surprise equine physiotherapist Liz was about to have whilst chilling on the sofa that evening.

Unbeknown to her, he was about to pop the question.

“We had decided to keep drinking to the weekend, so it earned him a quizzical look from me as it was a Thursday,” Liz recalls. “But then he handed me a glass, got down on one and knee and proposed with a temporary engagement ring. It was completely out of the blue. I had no hesitation in saying ‘yes’ immediately.”

This was in the first lockdown of April 2020; 7 months after the mud loving couple had moved in together having first matched and met whilst country life dating in September 2018.

“Mark came up as a match, my friend Tracey said she thought he looked and sounded nice, so I sent a wink and he messaged me back. I remember that he commented on liking my mention of ‘an irreverent sense of humour’ in my profile!”

They met for a drink in a local pub. The pair bonded immediately, not least over Liz’s horse’s love of slurping Guinness – something Mark could relate to.

“Meeting Mark was my first date, having been out of circulation on the dating scene for over 20 years, so I was a little anxious, but I remember feeling instantly relaxed with him. We managed to chat away happily for nearly 2 hours with no awkward silences and lots in common.”

He complimented her ‘ability to reverse park a van’ then invited her to try his ‘mean moussaka’; she accepted and can “confirm it is very good”. “HIs fantastic cooking skills were definitely a winner with me.”

Things, as you say, escalated from there; and now the pair are happily married after tying the knot in “a relaxed, rural affair with a ‘rustic’ theme” last month (June ’21) in Froyle, near Farnham.  “Our wedding cake featured muddy footprints and us in wellie boots.”

It was the culmination of a 20-month relationship that happily bloomed, despite a global pandemic, and Mark’s lack of owning a pair of wellies.

“It is a bit of an ‘in joke’ we have between us’ Liz laughs. “Mark loves walking and is particularly drawn to the coast, loving cliff top walks and views of the sea. However, he did not own any wellie boots when we met.

“I quickly (and fondly) branded him a ‘muddy fraud’ saying he is actually a ‘pavement polisher’. Rest assured I purchased him some swanky wellies as a first Christmas present; he wears them at every opportunity on his daily walks with our dog, Morris and exploring the countryside together during the warm, sunny days of the first lockdowns”.

Now Liz and Mark can look forward to life opening up a little, but they are not bemoaning the pandemic, far from it in fact.

“It has actually worked in our favour. 6 weeks of enforced time off together during lockdown 1 allowed us to create lots of lovely memories. We decided if we can happily get through the close proximity coupled with concerns about work etc during the pandemic, we can get through anything together.

“Now I have completed my osteopathy degree, which has taken up alternate weekends for the last 5 years, we are looking forward to more time to cycle together (me on my e bike!) and more walking.”

We just hope Mark remembers his wellies!