They’re loud. They have strength in numbers. And when they have a beer in their hands, all bets are off. They’re called Scots, and among them is Niall ‘firaldo’ Farrell, #8 in the PocketFives Rankings for the UK and #2 on Scotland’s all-time money list.

“Scottish guys are awesome, especially my close-knit community,” Farrell said. “Everyone rails each other and I’m pretty sure each of us has borrowed money from the other people in the group at some point in the last five years. We all travel together a good amount and go out together. Even when we’re back home, we hang out as well.”

Farrell is fresh off finishing second in the France Poker Series Monte Carlo Main Event in Monaco for $144,000. His rail was, needless to say, loud and supportive, and they were there every step of the way. And when you spot him in the halls of Le Sporting at the Monte Carlo Bay Resort, he’s surrounded by compatriots and fanboys, all with Heinekens in their hands.

This isn’t the group’s first trip abroad. In fact, their travels approach legendary status.

“Recently, I was with Dean Hutchison, who won a UKIPT event, in Australia for a few weeks in Melbourne and Sydney,” Farrell said. “We got an Airbnb. It was an absurd Airbnb, like a $3 million place. We had a bunch of English guys like Billy Chattaway with us too. We started off with two of the biggest parties I’ve ever been involved in. It was ridiculous.”

Farrell and his merry band of Scots received a message from the owner of the condo on a Saturday night. The owner had received a noise complaint and was concerned that there were more than six people in the apartment – the agreed upon number of guests. The owner was coming over to check. Fortunately for Farrell, the owner never showed. There were over 200 people in the apartment at the time.

“It’s great to have a group. It really helps keep me sane when you’re traveling about so much. It’s cool to hang out with your friends at all of these places,” Farrell said. Guys like Ross ‘RLOG’ Loggie (#53 on Scotland’s all-time money list) and David ‘davidv1213’ Vamplew (#1) regularly travel with him. They’ve helped him retain a sense of normalcy amid a sea of airplane flights, meals out, Uber rides, and power converters.

“We don’t really talk poker that much,” Farrell said of his group’s time away from the tables. “We all have different styles and we all play at different levels, so there’s not big strategy talks. There is some poker talk, but not as much as most groups. We mostly talk about football, drinking, partying, and stuff like that. We are all big fans of Davey Weir, who is a legendary Scottish footballer, so we talk about him a lot.”

“I’m in Monaco with Jake Cody, who is obviously not Scottish, but we have an apartment here,” Farrell said. “There are five of us Scottish guys here. There are usually a few more, but Monaco is one of those EPTs where it’s very expensive. Barcelona, you can just go and party. You can party here, but it’s not one that a lot of the boys are going to come over for. A lot of the boys come over and play side events, but it’s too expensive to do that here.”

A Coke and a cheeseburger will set you back well over $30 in Monaco. You’ll find similar pricing almost 10,000 kilometers west in Las Vegas, where Farrell and his merry band of Scots are headed in a few short weeks for the World Series of Poker. Look out, world.

“The whole UK rail is pretty legendary in Las Vegas,” said Farrell. “It’s not just Scotland. There have been a lot of pictures and controversy over the years at the rail. When one of your mates gets to the final table, it’s like a football match, so it’s kind of mental. We go over the top, but I think it’s good. I think they should let us do our thing. No one’s getting hurt. They should just chill. There will definitely be a good UK rail in Vegas this year.”

One of those players who has received a red card on the rail over the years is Chris ‘moorman1’ Moorman, who also calls the UK home.

“I know Moorman has been removed from the tournament area before and people have been thrown out,” Farrell said of the most accomplished online poker player in history. Again, they’re pretty loud.

Farrell won last year’s EPT Malta Main Event for almost $600,000. His crew was on-hand for the libations and celebrations that ensued. Shortly after, they headed to Prague and will be back in Malta in October when the EPT returns.

“The one EPT win I was really going for was Prague, which was right after Malta, because if you win two EPTs in a row, you’re set,” Farrell said. “I got 40th, so I went really deep. With 50 left, I thought I was going to win and would be living the dream. I’ll definitely be back in Malta this year. I very rarely miss an EPT. They’re extremely well run. The tournament staff and the dealers are the best in the world by far. They’re great tournaments and great value. As a poker pro, you should never miss one.”

You know who else never misses a big live tournament stop? The merry band of Scots.