Resident Hawthorns falcon behind bizarre bird-gate stoppage as John Eustace quips at gratitude as West Brom beaten
There was an unexpected turn of events during The Hawthorns' 125th anniversary celebration against Derby on Saturday as a bloodied carcass stopped play.
Referee Ruebyn Ricardo - a relatively newly-promoted Championship official - halted Albion's Championship fixture midway through the second half after spotting what appeared to be a ravaged pigeon on the edge of the centre circle.
Both sets of supporters united in bemusement upon the reason for the delay. Some eagle-eyed fans had spotted a sizeable bird of prey swooping clear of the area of concern having dropped its feast.
Derby boss John Eustace even remarked that the delay in retrieving the pigeon had helped him plot changes with staff ahead of Andi Weimann's late winner - and said he had the bird to thank for "dropping out of the sky."
Eustace said: “The stoppage probably helped me work out what I was doing, yes.
“You know, I’ve got that bird to thank for dropping out of the sky.
“I was just discussing what to do with my assistant Keith Downing (former Albion caretaker and Wolves midfielder) - he was telling me he had just been given a bit of abuse by an Albion fan.
“We were talking about whether we were going to play it safe or bring Patrick Agyemang and Andi on.
“Luckily, we introduced both of them - and it paid off.”
There was a delay of several minutes before an Albion doctor ventured on to the pitch to collect the lifeless body with nearby players intrigued. The medic responded to huge cheers from the away end when he collected the pigeon's remains.
It is believed the culprit behind the slaughter is one of two peregrine falcons who call The Hawthorns their home. The pair are said to nestle high up in the rafters of the East Stand.
A club official admitted the sight of slaughtered birds is not an uncommon one during the week at the famous old ground, which marked a milestone birthday with the late Derby defeat.
The peregrine is the largest of all falcons and one of the fastest animals in the world, reaching speeds of more than 200 miles-per-hour when diving for prey.
Albion boss Ryan Mason was less impressed by the matter and admitted his bemusement at the delay of a few minutes, in which time both head coaches were mulling over substitutions.
"Strange," Mason said. "I've never seen it take so long to take a bird off the pitch. But, listen, that happens and it was sort of down to us to try and create that momentum again.
“The situation with the bird may have helped John. I’ve never been involved in anything like that before. I may have seen something similar on television.
“But from our side it was frustrating. We’ve conceded one shot on target in the 85th minute and lost a game of football."
