Fevola has found himself in many headline making situations over the years but his escapades on the 2006 International Rules Tour to Ireland was epic even by his standards.The Carlton great shared the inside word on the trip that went off the rails when speaking as part of a panel at the annual Poker With The Stars Tournament at the Grand Hyatt.He described the International Rules Tour at that time as a “footy trip for two weeks.”The team played and beat Ireland in their first match up and the next day the Australian playing group had a day at the Galway races.At the track Fevola and Barry Hall put $100 each into a pool and backed the winners of the first three races.“Last race of the multi, we are all the way in for Hally and I to win $62,000,” Fevola said.“(We were on) race 4, number 9, 3200 metres over the hurdles to win for us to win a sh-tload of coin.“Number 9 comes screaming down the outside salutes and Hally and I won $62,000. I had the best day ever.”Fevola didn’t bet for the rest of the day and the team returned to the Galway pub and nightclub district.“I went to the pub and I thought to myself I don’t want to get in any f—ing trouble, so I picked two blokes (players) to sit at the bar because I am cashed up and I am going to sit there and drink p-ss in Ireland and have the best night of my life,” he said.“(We’re) sitting at the bar having shots. A couple of hours go by and there is a bit of a ruckus and I look around and (a player) is putting toilet paper in the back of this guy’s pants, rolling it out and (another player) lit it up.“I turned around and (one of the players he was with), because he does not drink, spewed all over the bar and (the other drinking buddy) is sitting there p—ing on it and I went, ‘Oh f—, we are in a bit of trouble.’“The barman said, ‘I am going to ring the police.’ I said ‘Mate, don’t ring the police. We will pay for it. Here is the cash, don’t worry about it.’And he said ‘No’. It was then Fevola manhandled the barman.“I got him in a massive headlock, sconed him, thought it was as funny as f—, ran out, went back to a nightclub, (and) he rang the police,” he said.The police soon found Fevola at the nightclub, took him back to the bar where the incident happened to apologise to the barman and then let him return to the disco.“A couple of hours later we got home and got a knock on the door and it was (Andrew) Demetriou and Adrian Anderson,” he said. “He said, ‘Mate, we have seen the footage. It has been sold to the TVs already. You have been kicked off the tour’.”But the trouble did not end there.“Anyhow the bloke (barman) sued me,” Fevola recalled.“It cost me $250,000.“So I went to Ireland to represent Australia, got paid $10,000 won $32,000, got fined $250,000 and was down $210,000, so, good trip.”fiona.byrne@news.com.au
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