[OFF THE POST] Referee Gary Bailey ejected Me-Tu, a parrot, from the Hertfordshire Senior Centenary Trophy quarterfinal because his whistling kept bringing players to a standstill.

Me-Tu attends Hertford Heath games and entertains fans by repeating what they say. But he also started doing an excellent imitation of the referee's whistle, which caused interruptions at the Hertford Heath-Hatfield clash.

"It was a very tense game as we were 0-0 at the time," Hatfield FC chairman Ted Collie said. "When Gary Bailey realized it was this parrot, he started towards it, pointing to the entrance and said 'would you mind leaving?' He said he should have red carded the parrot."

Bailey told Me-Tu and owner Irene Kerrigan to leave the stadium.

"It's the first time it's been whistling," Hertford Heath manager Clive Adlington said. "Suddenly in the second half the whistling started and the players kept stopping."

It happened four times. But the ball was in midfield, prompting both sides to agree it didn't affect the result, a 5-2 overtime win by Hatfield.