By Stephen Topping

Copyright manchestereveningnews

If Ricky Hatton’s career had gone according to plan in 2004, Ryan and Sarah Goldsmith may never have met. The Lancashire pair were both in Manchester city centre on Saturday, June 12 that year for entirely different reasons. Sarah was with around half a dozen mates on a hen do, while Ryan was watching ‘The Hitman’ take on Carlos Vilches at the then-Manchester Evening News Arena . But Ricky hadn’t wanted that fight, that night. Earlier in 2004, his team had been in negotiations to set up a fight with American boxer Sharmba Mitchell, which would have taken place on June 5. Never miss a story with the MEN’s daily Catch Up newsletter – get it in your inbox by signing up here Those talks fell through, and the clash with Carlos was eventually lined up for the following Saturday night. For Sarah and Ryan, ‘fate’ brought them to the same city, sparking a whirlwind romance that saw them become engaged four weeks later. Ryan and his mate went out for a drink following the fight, and while ordering at the bar, he turned around and noticed his future wife. “He sent his mate over to ask if he could buy me a drink,” said Sarah, 48. “I said ‘it depends who your mate is, if he’s anything like you then no’.” Ryan was then pointed out for Sarah, who decided a drink from him ‘would be really nice’, before the pair started chatting. They left the bar at 2am with Sarah and the rest of the hen do returning home to Parbold, West Lancashire, in a minibus – while Ryan, from Cleveleys, near Blackpool, headed to McDonald’s with his pal. As she was on her way back home, Sarah received a text message that was ‘just a kiss’ from a mystery number, after one of her friends passed on her number to Ryan’s mate – before they went on to chat on the phone ‘for about 40 minutes’. Having left the bar thinking they would ‘never see each other again’, Ryan and Sarah carried on texting through Sunday and Monday, began dating later in the week – and their relationship ‘spiralled from there’. Get news, views and analysis of the biggest stories with the daily Mancunian Way newsletter – sign up here The couple became ‘official’ on June 22, 2004, before Ryan proposed just 18 days later as they attended the hen’s wedding – the day before Sarah met his parents for the first time. “I just nudged him and said ‘all you would ever have to do is ask’,” Sarah said. “We’d already said ‘I love you’.” She added: “When you know, you know.” The romance may have been swift, but it has proved to be long-lasting, with the couple set to celebrate their 20th wedding anniversary on October 7. Among the wedding cards they received was one from Ricky, inside a signed envelope they later framed, in which he told the couple: “Nice to know one of my fights brought you both together.” Sarah said: “We were floored by it. We didn’t have the foggiest idea.” It turned out Ryan’s mum had arranged for the card to be sent, having spoken to her manager at work, whose son trained with Ricky. The couple still have the card, kept at their home in Poulton-le-Fylde, near Blackpool. Sarah went on to become a huge fan of ‘The Hitman’, before following the careers of other British boxers like Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua with husband Ryan. “We would stay up at all hours [to follow Ricky’s fights],” said Sarah. “We said we would do one of his Vegas fights or something – but we were a young couple, we were buying our first home, we had a daughter and it was one of those things that we unfortunately never managed to do.” Sarah and Ryan were devastated to hear of Ricky’s passing last Sunday (September 14), with the couple both left in tears by the news. Join the Manchester Evening News WhatsApp group HERE “We just couldn’t believe it,” said Sarah. “It still feels quite surreal. I think most of Manchester has been bowled over by it, and anyone that ever followed his career. “We used to see him in Blackpool and he was just a really, really nice guy, It’s just so sad and I feel for his kids and his family.” Ryan, 44, added: “Ricky often held charity meet and greet nights, and it was always my intention to take Sarah to one of those nights and try to introduce ourselves to Ricky and let him know our story and the role he played. “Sadly we wont get that opportunity now and I regret not doing it earlier, but I guess life just gets in the way.”