Five funniest animal pitch invaders of all time

A cat found its way into the playing surface as Liverpool was about to play Manchester United in a Premier League clash on February 10, 2017 [Courtesy]

The Champions League final in Madrid last Saturday witnessed the latest pitch invasion when a scantily clad blonde sprinted across the Wanda Metropolitan Stadium disrupting the clash between Liverpool and Tottenham.

But beside human intruders, animals have similarly had a taste of the game as some found their way into the pitch interrupting matches occasionally and bringing up fascinating moments.

Fans enjoy pitch invasions as they bring a comical experience, however, at times, some fans find it disrespectful.

Game Yetu takes a look at the memorable animal pitch invasions and here are five of them.

Cat

The Anfield had an unusual visitor as Liverpool were about to play Manchester United in a Premier League clash on February 10, 2017.

A cat found its way into the playing surface before wandering away under the bright floodlights.

Manchester United official Twitter account later tweeted the video of the cat with a caption: "Pre-match pitch invasion at Anfield..."

Pre-match pitch invasion at Anfield... ???? #LIVMUN https://t.co/B5WENopYJc — Manchester United (@ManUtd) October 17, 2016

The Goodison Park has similarly had past frequent cat visits the latest being a black cat that interrupted the match between Everton and Wolves on February 2, 2019, causing a lengthy delay.

A cat at Goodison Park [Courtesy]

The cat made its way from one penalty to another but the animal eventually found its way off through a crowd of police officers and stewards.

Chicken

On March 17, 2013, Blackburn Rovers’ tie against Burnley had a random visitor in the 1-1 draw at Ewood Park.

A Blackburn supporter released a chicken on to the pitch as they took on rivals Burnley and although the visitors took the lead, Burnley rescued a point with a late leveller.

A chicken was let onto the pitch by a Blackburn fan [Courtesy]

It was not the first time the incident to happen at Ewood Park as the same happened in 2012 when Blackburn were relegated from the Premier League.

A chicken was let onto the pitch by a Blackburn fan as they played Wigan Athletic.

Dog

Sometimes you just have a strong urge to do something and you can’t help but doing it.

Well, this was the case with a dog that sprinted on to a pitch during a National Football League match in Gori, Georgia in October 2018.

The dog provided surplus entertainment to spectators as police officers tried to drag it forcefully from the pitch.

The dog stayed on the pitch for around three minutes [Courtesy]

Players tried to chase away the dog but it seemed it was ready to play as it stayed on the pitch for around three minutes before some players managed to direct it away.

Naughty!

Cow

In an amateur football match in November 2011, players and the referee were charged away by a cow which found its way to the playground.

The cow invaded a North Bucks Division match at the Potterspury home pitch startling the players before it relieved itself 25 yards from the goal.

The cow was given marching orders by the referee before being ushered off by the players.

The cow was given marching orders by the referee [Courtesy]

Player Adam Johnson, 28, said: “I've been playing for Potterspury for 16 years and never had anything like this happen before,”

“We couldn't believe it when the ref blew the whistle to say there was a cow on the pitch,”

“It charged at all 22 players and the referee and even our only sub, Dan Ferguson, who was sitting on the sideline. It's the quickest he has moved all season.”

Paul Hancock, Potterspury reserve team manager, said: “It was a very memorable match. We always play our home games on the same pitch and we've never been interrupted by a cow before.”

Squirrel

On October 24, 2017, an unexpected intruder gave Manchester City staff a tough moment just moments before a Carabao Cup match kick against Wolves.

One of the Manchester City staff got hold of the squirrel before it slipped away [Courtesy]

A squirrel found its way on to the playing surface at the Etihad Stadium before the staff chased it around for a couple of minutes.

One of the staff got hold of it before it slipped away from his hands and ran free.

The animal made dramatical scenes on the pitch before being escorted off after a long struggle.

Fans took it to Twitter joking about the rare intruder at the Etihad.

Never seen anything as funny as a squirrel being chased round the pitch before kick off ???????????????????? #cityvwolves #MCFC — ? H (@hollsweeen) October 24, 2017

Someone caught the squirrel - and it bit him and escaped again! High drama at the Etihad. #niceonesquirrel — Stuart Brennan (@StuBrennanMEN) October 24, 2017