Cyril The Swan: Wales' Most Unhinged Mascot
Posted by Evan Powell June 22nd 2022
“So I showed him that no one comes down our territory and messes with the Swans…” Read that and you’d assume it’s a quote from an 80s casuals book telling tales from the Jack Army’s battles with away fans at the height of crowd disturbances at the match, not from a club’s mascot! Here’s a look at Swansea City’s notorious nine-foot swan, Cyril.
The last decade of the 20th century was bleak from a Welsh perspective to a certain extent. Industrial decline, skyrocketing unemployment and limited opportunities was the norm for working class areas up and down the nation. In a sporting sense, Welsh clubs were a world away from the modernization and professionalism of the present.
Swansea now are an established EFL side. After spending seven consecutive years in the Premier League, winning the League Cup and a stint in Europe via the Europa League, the highs over the last decade would have been unforeseeable back when they were a Division 3 (League 2) outfit in the late 90s.
The club was sold to a windshield replacement company for £100, albeit with £2million worth of debt attached to it. Relegation to the conference and semi-professional status would have certainly put an end to the side that played the beautiful game in SA1 since 1912. Under new ownership, a meeting was called to brainstorm methods to save Swansea from going out of existence. At the end of this, the idea to have a mascot (which was seen as a luxury reserved for big sides) was hatched.
The North Bank faithful were expecting a summer signing to bolster performances at the Vetch Field. Instead, they got a nine-foot swan at the cost of approximately £3,000. With a long neck, eyes like a raver who double dropped some doves during the summer of love as well as a player issued shirt and shorts, Cyril The Swan was here. His debut came against Exeter City for the first home tie of the 1998/99 season, sliding down a rope from one of The Vetch’s floodlights.
Swansea wanted a character of sorts to wear the suit to encourage the home fans and rattle the away fans. This task was given to the groundsman at the time, Eddie Donne. Swapping the lawnmower for the costume, Donne’s debut was a League Cup tie at The Vetch versus Norwich City. It couldn’t have got off to a worse start, with Cyril knocking over Norwich’s assistant manager during the tie and The Canaries going one up shortly after.
Here’s where the legend begins. Swansea equalize and Cyril’s first move is to jump into the North Bank, crowd surfing across the terrace as fans serenade him with shouts of “HOO-LI-GAN! HOO-LI-GAN!” This wound up the opposition so much that he wasn’t allowed to Carrow Road for the replay, but a legend was now certainly in the making.
Donne played up to the shithousery to the biggest extent, becoming a pantomime villain of sorts in the world of football mascots. During half time, he’d save penalties shot by children and even foul them on the pitch. When the crowd would sarcastically boo, Cyril would happily turn around and show the swan’s rear end to the crowd. A wind up merchant of the highest order.
Quickly becoming a local legend, Cyril received roars like a gladiator entering The Colosseum when he’d go pitchside. The Vetch’s phone was active seven days a week with fans wanting him at parties, dinners, events… You could argue that he was more popular than any player on the pitch at the time!
Cyril The Swan Celebrates - Swansea City 3-0 Millwall | 13th November 1998 - FA Cup 1st Round
Friday 13th November 1998, a date that will go down in the history of Welsh football as a whole. A FA Cup first round tie saw 10,000 fans descend on SA1, Swansea City versus Millwall. Do I need to say anything else? Cyril goads the away support as per usual when the ref says to the mascot “Have I got to put up with this all game?” The Swan nodded and ‘accidentally’ headbutted the official. Swansea won 3-0 against the Londoners, Cyril rocketed the ball at a Millwall player making him fall to the ground. Now that’s what I call pêl-droed heritage.
Swansea went on a cup run, beating West Ham United in the third round (Donne and three Swansea players had children arrive nine months after that game!) and were knocked out by Premiership Derby County in the fourth round.
Soon these antics caught up to Cyril. The FAW handed a £1,000 fine and banned from games for a season. The club paid the fine and in Cyril’s absence, Swansea won Division 3 and moved up the EFL pyramid. In his season away from The Vetch, Cyril became a full-blown celebrity. A role in the theatre production of Aladdin, appearances on a late-night karaoke show on TV, his own shop and merchandise line, mental stuff.
On his return to The Vetch, The FAW called the NFL for help in creating a mascot code of conduct and forced Swansea to erect cages at the Vetch to prevent fan invasions. It was a Division 2 fixture in 2001 against familiar opposition that Cyril had his most infamous moment. Millwall’s Zampa The Lion went to The Vetch with violence on his mind. For the halftime penalty shootout between the mascot’s, Zampa was nowhere to be seen. Instead, the lion appeared from the away end, storming to the pitch past a heavy police presence and making his way to Cyril to land blows. Donne knew he had to be on best behavior and didn’t rise, until Zampa tried to behead Cyril, a cardinal sin in the world of mascots. Cyril landed a sweet uppercut on Zampa, taking his head off and a fracas ensued. Cyril legged it down the players tunnel, stripped from the costume with two officers outside and slipped away through a slide door. A moment that has gone down in history.
Donne continued as groundsman and mascot until quitting in 2007. A mixture of missing time with his wife and children, the stress of the role and the move from his beloved Vetch Field to the Liberty (Swansea.com) Stadium saw him give up the role that played a role in Swansea’s fortunes changing for better eventually. Even with the financial turmoil of the late 90s and early 2000s, Cyril’s popularity did bring unforeseen coverage for the club.
As for Cyril, he’s now on the straight and narrow. He has a wife, Cybil, and doesn’t tend to wind up traveling fans and rip heads off their mascots anymore. A story like this could only happen in our weird, wacky and wonderful little country.