Rescue centre says injured seagull in 'flying form' following All-Ireland Football Final appearance

A bird which made an appearance on the pitch at Croke Park during the All-Ireland Football Final on Sunday is on the mend, according to an animal rescue centre.

The gull was a curious sight on the field between Sunday’s final between Armagh and Galway, which was won by the Orchard County.

The herring gull became an instant fan favourite during the first half of the game, as he was seen trotting around the pitch seemingly unable to fly away. It was on the pitch for the majority of the first half and there was some worrying stages as the bird got too close to the action and was having to run off to safety.

The bird was thankfully able to get off the pitch and was carried away to safety, but not without getting an applause from the crowd at the bottom of Hill 16.

Seagulls first half heat map #Allirelandfootballfinal #ArmaghVGalway #MVP #GAA#NothingBeatsBeingThere pic.twitter.com/LRsHZsvOmX

— Bronagh McGreevy (@BrOnaaghMcG) July 28, 2024

The gull was then taken to Kildare Wildlife Rescue, who posted an update on the feathered-full-forward yesterday.

Posting an image of the gull, Kildare Wildlife Rescue said: "You may be thinking you have seen this gull before and you wouldn’t be mistaken!"

"This Herring Gull had caused quite the stir online after been spotted on the pitch of the All Ireland GAA game in Croke Park yesterday evening. We received a large amount of emails from worried viewers at home who were watching Armagh go head to head with Galway to win the title of All Ireland champions."

"He was helped off the pitch by Barry Nolan who then transported the adult bird who just had some minor injuries to us yesterday evening. They are doing well and will only have a short stay with us before returning to the wild."

"Huge thanks to everyone who got in touch with us."

Many viewers of the final had posted about the seagull following the match, with some even saying the 'winger' was man of the match.

Fair play to @TheSundayGame for getting Stephen Seagull into the intro montage there earlier! Super to get him acknowledged - his impact was profound in that first half! pic.twitter.com/hlqqOG4KC1

— Loaf of Bread GAA Podcast (@LoafPod) July 28, 2024

Even RTÉ joined in on the fun, referencing it in a wonderfully subtle way on The Sunday Game.

As the panellists reviewed the game, a CGI seagull could be seen in the corner of the frame in an instance of exquisite framing.

Many viewers spotted the nice little detail while watching, and praised the subtlety of it.

Michael McCarthy posted: "The Sunday Game graphics team wins the night. Outstanding."

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