Warrington Wolves mascot's driving antics 'gave everyone a lift' - BBC News
The six-year-old was supposed to deliver the ball to the referee, but drove straight past twice.
The club said Whizzy was so low to the ground, she did not see "the man in green"

A mascot who drove off with the match ball at a Super League match, instead of delivering it to the centre spot, had her family "crying with laughter".

The six-year-old, known as Whizzy Rascal, was meant to take the ball out in a mini BMW before Warrington Wolves' win against Castleford on Thursday.

However, she drove straight past the referee twice, leading to much laughter around the stadium and on social media.

Her aunt said her appearance "has really given everyone a good lift".

The girl, whose real name is being kept under wraps by the Warrington rugby league club ahead of a reveal later in the season, was supposed to deliver the ball to the referee but stole the show when she carried on driving.

After turning round, she decided it would be more fun to cross the pitch again, much to the delight of the crowd and TV viewers, many of whom took to social media to sing her praises.

Thankfully, the ball was wrestled from her by club mascot Wolfie and kicked out to the waiting teams, both of which saw the funny side of her appearance.

Wolves' new coach Daryl Powell said it brought big smiles all round.

"It created a bit of theatre which everybody enjoyed," he said.

A club spokesman said Whizzy's appearance was inspired by the remote control car which delivered the ball at football's Euro 2020 championship last summer.

"We wanted to do something special for the first home game of the season," he said.

However, he said confusion over where they had told Whizzy to stop caused by her being so low to the ground meant she had missed her mark.

"Whizzy Rascal was supposed to deliver the ball to the man in green, but she said she couldn't find him, so just kept going," he said.

"When she got out of the car, she was waving to the crowds - it was brilliant."

The club said Whizzy would be back for the next home game - after some driving lessons

Whizzy's aunt said her family, who were life-long Wolves fans, were watching in the stands and thought the whole thing was "absolutely brilliant".

She said they were "crying with laughter, thinking 'where's she going?'".

"We are so proud of her, she loved every minute in front of the crowd," she added.

"It has really given everyone a good lift."

Fans reacting to a clip of Wizzy's star turn on social media said it was "absolutely outstanding" and a "fantastic bit of light-hearted humour", while club sponsor Halliwell Jones, who provided Whizzy's car, tweeted that she was "definitely our player of the match".

BBC Radio 1's Greg James said it was "comedy gold".

The Wolves spokesman said Whizzy would now be attending driving classes, but would be back for the next home game against Catalan Dragons on 4 March.

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