When the ball was bounced to start the annual Easter Monday clash between bitter rivals Geelong and Hawthorn, the centre square contained eight athletes, one umpire, one Sherrin and a rogue pigeon.

As the first quarter rolled on, the courageous rock dove continued to attend centre bounces and was undeterred by the myriad of studded boots that tore up the turf around it.

Although the winged invader was finally shooed to the sidelines, it did get us thinking about the weirdest and wackiest groups, individuals, items and beasts that have crossed the white line in the past.

With the game of Australian Rules Football now over 150-years-old and enjoying sesquicentennial status, we have almost certainly missed some of the game's strangest objects and intruders, so please, let us know your nominations in the comments.

Without further ado, here are the 11 most abnormal field occupants in our game's great history - besides Mark 'Jacko' Jackson.

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11. Plugger's Pig (1993)

You didn't think we could finish this list without a bit of bacon, did you?

Some say it was former Swan Scott Watters that goaded a pig farmer into setting the landrace cross loose onto the SCG, whilst others belief that it was actually a member of St. Kilda's infamous 'Animal Enclosure' that was the mastermind of the deed.

Irrespective of how it got there, the pig at the Randwick end of the SCG is quite easily the strangest item, intruder or beast to ever enter an AFL arena.

The swine was good enough to beat water girl, Danny Frawley, Neil Brunton plus a pair of officials whilst grazing in the forward 50, but not Sydney's Darren Holmes.

The utility ended the clash with three official tackles, but we are quite happy to award him a fourth - even if it was in the back.

Although intended as a joke, as the pig was painted with Tony Lockett's number 4 and a bastardised form of his iconic nickname, the man himself was said to be fuming.

Despite his Saints running out 37-point winners on the day whilst he was at home injured, Plugger swore revenge on the Swans, with Peter Caven's face feeling the big man's wrath a year later.

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