Goose on the loose disrupts football match
Phil DennettA football match in West Sussex was disrupted by a goose which caused mayhem after flying on to the pitch.
Burgess Hill Town Football Club were leading 3-0 against visitors Whyteleafe when the befuddled bird crash landed in the middle of the field on Tuesday evening.
The football club posted on X there was a "goose on the loose" 37 minutes into the match at the Medical Travel Compared Stadium.
Fan Phil Dennett said it took "several minutes" to capture the elusive feathered friend, adding it appeared after a large flock had flown over while the game was in progress.
"It looked like it was unable to fly but it could run," he said. "It might have been injured or just tired during its flight."
Dennett told BBC Radio Sussex more than 700 fans were at the match and were thoroughly entertained by the "humorous incident".
"It caused a lot of laughter amongst the crowd and players," he added.
The football club confirmed everything was "honky dory" as the goose was "safely returned to the nature surrounding the pitch".
They reassured concerned fans that the incident did indeed happen and the club's social media account "had not been hacked".
Despite the drama Burgess Hill Town FC triumphed 3-0.
In August 2025, the match between Spelthorne Sports and Wembley had to be cancelled after the pitch was deemed unsafe due to a "large amount of goose droppings".
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