MARRYING your childhood sweetheart and winning your first call-up for your country are two dream days for any man.

But for Newport Gwent Dragon Lloyd Burns, they happened just over 24 hours apart.

Yesterday, Mr Burns, 26, walked down the aisle to marry his partner of nine years, Rachael Smith, at a ceremony at Christchurch Coed-y-Paen.

But there was no celebratory champagne as today Mr Burns will step out onto the turf of the Millennium Stadium after winning his first call up for the Wales squad to face the Barbarians.

The former Cross Keys hooker got married in a ceremony surrounded by friends and family on a day off afforded to him by Warren Gatland before a reception at the Greenmeadow Hotel last night.

He joined his team mates at the Vale of Glamorgan Hotel after the wedding party, but was allowed to spend his first night with his wife.

The couple met as teenagers in the pub Mrs Burns' mother ran in Pontypool and while the wedding date was fixed months ago, Mr Burns' first call-up meant he was in for a whirlwind 48 hours.

Mr Burns said: "Today is a day for the rest of my life and playing for Wales is something I've always dreamed of - today is the best day of my life and tomorrow will be the second."

While his new wife will be in the stands hoping her new husband gets to play his first game in a Wales jersey, plans for a honeymoon are on hold until the couple know what Mr Burns' calendar is looking like, with several fixtures in the coming months before the World Cup in New Zealand in September.

Mr Burns said it would be "a dream come true" if he could take his wife to New Zealand after winning a call-up to the World Cup squad.