Why Shane Long couldn’t celebrate his Germany goal

Shane Long scored one of the most memorable goals in Irish history, but he missed out on the subsequent celebrations.

The Southampton striker featured on the new season premiere of Living with Lucy this week, and it made for a fascinating watch. On the TV show, Irish presenter Lucy Kennedy stays with a celebrity household each week.

This week, her hosts were Shane and his wife Kayleagh.

The show introduced Long’s daughters Teigan (six) and Erin (two), and tracked his preparation before an international fixture.

Kennedy asked Long about that iconic goal against Germany, and how he celebrated after the game, but his response was surprising;

“It was a disaster… I came in, and I had to do a drugs test. They randomly select players. So I’d done my interview on the pitch, then I kinda randomly got my arm taken.  I was taken into a separate room (for the drugs test).  Then I was in there for about an hour and a half, or two hours, and when I came out, there was no one left. The stadium was empty.”

Despite missing the celebrations, the humble Tipperary native admitted that the goal will be one he’ll always be remembered for.

Living with Lucy aired on TV3, and is available now on 3Player.