Honeymoon put on hold for decider

Longwood substitute Bernard Reilly landed a gamble at Pairc Tailteann on Saturday in the IHC final against Blackhall Gaels which might even prompt the Co Committee to launch a betting probe! Reilly had a hectic weekend with the build-up to the IHC final interrupted by the small matter of his wedding on Friday. "I approached this in the proper manner, I got permission to play today, it didn't matter what the selectors said, if I hadn't received permission from my wife of one day, then I suppose I might have had a few problems on the honeymoon," he told the Meath Chronicle on Saturday evening as he watched team captain Karl Ennis hoist the IHC cup to huge acclaim from the club's supporters. The fact that the bride, Aisling McNevin, is a Clonard woman may have helped, but apparently, according to her husband, she is a soccer enthusiast and a supporter of Longwood FC. "Aisling is a great follower of sport and she follows the local soccer team, but she will have to start following the hurlers now, especially after I scored that great goal," said the husband of one day. "It was worthwhile getting that goal, apart from the fact that it helped us to win the title, but I also had a bet at the wedding on Friday. "Earl Gannon gave me odds of 10/1, he's a very generous type of guy, that I wouldn't come on as a substitute and score a goal with my first touch. "I took the bet and that's why I didn't want to touch the sliotar until I was absolutely sure that I would score a goal," he suggested with a wry smile. "I was on the pitch for at least a minute when I got the goal, so you can see it was real incentive," he added. The happy couple jetted off to New York on Monday morning for a slightly delayed start to their honeymoon with everyone in Longwood still celebrating the magnificent achievement and looking forward to bidding for Jubilee Cup honours in the 2010 SHC.