A STAG trip to Estonia did not go quite as planned for groom-to-be and former rugby league player Charlie Adie - but it certainly gave his best man a great story for the wedding day speech.

For despite a painful hangover, the 32-year-old ended up playing for the Estonian national side in a rugby union international against Finland.

And although he had not passed a ball for three years, the former York Wasps player was named as man of the match.

Mr Adie, an IT manager from York, who marries his fiance Nicola next month, was in the Estonian capital, Tallin, with 16 friends for the stag weekend.

While downing beers in a local bar, he was approached by one of the Estonia team, who made the offer because they were a man short.

"I thought it was a wind up at first," said Mr Adie, who is originally from Fulford.

"I told the guy that I used to play for York, so he asked if I was available to play the following day for Estonia against Finland. I was quite taken aback."

Mr Adie bought rugby boots from a local sports shop on the morning of the match and secured a game for his brother and best man, Ed.

Estonia was narrowly beaten 32-42 by Finland in the Baltic Rugby Cup, a round robin tournament, that including Latvia and Lithuania.

But the Adie brothers were honoured as two of the best players on the day, with Ed scoring a try, and man of the match Charlie kicking four penalty goals.

They were presented with caps to mark their appearance and made to down glasses of vodka as part of Estonia's end of match tradition.

"My brother was struggling for stories to tell in his best man's speech, so this should be perfect," said Mr Adie.

"It was one of the proudest moments of my rugby career and I've offered my help in the development of their game."