It may be Friday, and it may have been a long week, but in what is a headline we did not expect to be writing this morning, Northern has now started installing sculptures of fake birds at some of its train stations in a bid to ward off pesky pigeons from what it’s dubbed “problematic poo hotspots”.
The rail operator says it wants to “force pigeons to take flight” by trialing a whole host of new deterrents at stations across its network.
To do this, it has decided to position plastic owls around some stations to scare pigeons away, and has also started using a special gel on ledges and roof trusses that’s designed to trick pigeons into thinking the surface is too hot for them to land on.
Not only that, but just to really hammer it home and shoo them off, it’ll also be broadcasting noises that simulate predatory hawks out of massive speakers too.
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Northern installs fake birds at train stations to scare pigeons away from ‘problematic poo hotspots’ / Credit: Northern
Once again, we’re genuinely not making this up.
So, why exactly has Northern decided to do this then? And are pigeons even that much of an issue in the grand scheme of things? Well, according to the company, it has made the decision to trial the obscure new deterrent measures after experiencing particular problems at Driffield (East Yorkshire) and Morpeth (Northumberland) stations – which are the two stations, in particular, that have become the so-called “problematic poo hotspots”.
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This is why, at Driffield station, hawk sounds will now play every 30 minutes between 10am and 4pm every day, as research has apparently shown that this has been effective in removing pigeons from private residences in the past.
Then, over in Morpeth, plastic owls have been placed on the station’s roof to scare pigeons away.
The rail operator says it wants to “force pigeons to take flight” / Credit: Northern
“We want to make sure our stations are a ‘no-go’ area for pigeons and make them fly the coop in a way that is humane and harmless,” said Northern’s Regional Director, Kerry Peters, as she explained why the company’s taken the new measures.
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“We clean all our station regularly, and we take the impact the mess has on our communities and the environment very seriously.”
The unique new trials at Driffield and Morpeth stations will remain in place until the end of November, and if they’re deemed successful, Northern says they could be rolled out across the whole network in the near future.
Wayne Rooney joins the cast of Gary Neville’s The Overlap
Danny Jones
Wayne Rooney has secured a new job just a few months on from departing as Birmingham City head coach, with the Manchester United and England legend being named as the latest member of The Overlap team.
Set to join the cast of the popular Stick to Football online series alongside the likes of former teammates Gary Neville and Roy Keane, as well as the rest of the recurring panel.
Rooney is also set to feature on various other shows across The Overlap channel, including the likes of their regular fan debates and other interviews with athletes and well-known figures.
They announced the signing in true transfer window fashion as well.
As transfer expert Fabrizio Romano quips in the video, Rooney “has signed an agreement with The Overlap” and is expected to make his debut very soon
‘Wazza’ has appeared as a pundit on Sky Sports in recent weeks and has even been spotted playing some FIFA with comedy YouTuber AngryGinge as part of his pro clubs series, but hasn’t been in a steady role since being sacked as the Birmingham manager at the start of the year.
Having already appeared as a guest in one of the most popular episodes of Stick to Football and clearly sharing a strong chemistry with his old friends – as well as the likes of fellow Scouser Jamie Carragher, Jill Scott and Ian Wright – it looks to be a natural fit for the sport-based channel.
The 38-year-old revealed some pretty interesting details about his playing and managerial career last time around, not to mention some of the other offers he’s had since…
Rooney reiterated during his own interview that his primary focus is still on coaching and finding his next managerial role, but for the time being, he’ll be bringing the insight of another ex-pro to the popular YouTube channel.
Speaking on his latest move, the former striker said, “I’m excited to announce that I will be joining my good mate Gary Neville and the team at The Overlap to appear on the channel across some of their brilliant shows on YouTube and the podcast. I can’t wait to get started”.
With an episode from at least one of their series going out most weeks, you can expect to see the footballing legend back on the channel soon.
Featured Images — The Overlap/Wayne Rooney (via Instagram)
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Manchester City star Erling Haaland is now a playable character in Clash of Clans mobile game
Danny Jones
In yet more proof that footballers just live in an entirely different world from us, Manchester City star Erling Haaland has popped up in the popular mobile game, Clash of Clans – and it’s not just a little cameoeither.
Haaland‘s no stranger to the odd brand deal, so when we saw him cutting a promo for Clash of Clans we weren’t too surprised, but it’s safe to say we weren’t expecting to see footballers pop up in video games besides FIFA (sorry, EA FC) at any point this year.
The big number nine is not just a famous face to help push the already hugely popular mobile strategy and city-building game, they don’t need it; it turns out the lethal goalscorer is now going to be an actual playable character in the latest Clash of Clans update.
He even turned his hand to a bit of acting in the trailer:
As you can see, the 23-year-old stars in the new advert which sees troops appear in his home whilst he’s playing the game before being sucked into the game world.
Starring as the Barbarian King, he’s the first real person to ever feature in the game and will be available through a month-long football-themed seasonal event in-game.
When we stop and think about it, the Norwegian striker is pretty much a perfect fit given his Scandinavian heritage and the obvious Viking theme surrounding the franchise – not to mention the fact that he’s apparently been playing the game since he was 10.
He’s also been dropping a hint or two of late, in case you didn’t pick up on them.
Speaking on the collaboration, Haaland said: “I’ve been a huge fan of the game for a long time and know everything about it, so to appear as an in-game character is really cool”.
As for Finnish developer-publishers Supercell, CoC’s general manager Stuart McGaw said in an official announcement: “When we heard Erling Haaland was a fan of our game and that he wanted to partner with us, it was really a dream scenario.”
Haaland will be available to recruit in the game until 31 May, plus, if players raid his village and take down the Barbarian King himself, they can win additional rewards and a place on the leaderboards.
Emily Sergeant -
13th October 2023 
