NPL goalkeeper guides team to grand final just hours after getting married

Luke Borean had a Saturday to remember after the Lions FC goalkeeper took to the pitch just hours removed from tying the knot.

Luke Borean and his wife Ellen with the rest of the Lions FC squad Source: @simon_smale (Twitter)

Borean arrived for the Lions’ NPL Queensland semi-final still in his wedding suit and was able to play after reaching an agreement with his new wife and Souths United goalkeeper, Ellen.

The two events took place on the same day after the coronavirus pandemic pushed the fixture into what would normally be the off-season.

Nevertheless, the 30-year-old put in an impressive display during his side’s 4-1 victory over Peninsula Power – one coach Darren Sime remains “really thankful for”.

“I had to ask him a couple of times to confirm (that he’d play)”, Sime said, as quoted by ABC News.

“He turned up, fairly nonchalantly, at training on the Tuesday and I said I’d need him to help prepare [reserve keeper] Ryan Murphy for the match.

“He just said: ‘Ah don’t worry about that Simsey, it’s under control’.

“Obviously the club would never, ever stand in the way of a player’s wedding, you have to celebrate those moments.

“But they chose to celebrate that moment with us, which we’re really thankful for.”

The Lions will now face either Brisbane Olympic or Gold Coast Knights in next week’s Grand Final, in what is bound to be the final hurdle before the Boreans' honeymoon.