Daily Mirror (Northern Ireland)
Punter fury as bookie ‘voids’ bet
French pay tribute to trenches victims
AN angry punter has hit out after a betting firm refused to pay him out on Linfield winning the Irish Premiership title.
Christopher Rafferty from West Belfast placed a treble which included South Africa clinching the Rugby World Cup and Liverpool the Premier League.
But as Christopher waited for the £530 winnings to hit his account, he discovered bet365 had declared the Linfield bet “void”.
He claimed: “They said they had done this because the remaining games hadn’t been played and they couldn’t pay out on that part of the bet.”
Bet365 were last night contacted for a response.
FRENCH villagers paid a poignant tribute yesterday to the 20,000 British soldiers who died in the first hours of the Battle of the Somme.
They were adamant it must go ahead, despite the coronavirus crisis, 104 years after the men died on the British Army’s bloodiest ever day. Because of social distancing, only a few could honour
who gave their lives on July 1, 1916, as the First World War raged.
At 7.28am, the moment battle began, a French bagpiper walked around the huge Lochnagar crater in pouring rain playing “The Battle of the Somme”.
As he finished, those present, including children, symbolically blew whistles, the signal for soldiers to “go over the top” and advance on the German lines, only to be mown down.
It is the first time in 45 years the crater’s owner Richard Dunning could not attend the annual event in Northern France. He was stranded in the UK by corona travel restrictions.
Local resident Julie Thomson said: “We came here to pay tribute to ordinary men who did extraordinary things. The support of Christian Bernard [mayor of the village of Ovillers-la-boisthose selle] and the local community has been incredible. They help maintain the crater, offer support in a quiet, respectful way.”
War historian Peter Jones said: “The fact people of the Somme are determined to pay their respects in these difficult times is hugely impressive.”