In football's most unlikely transfer, Milton Keynes Parks Trust has loaned out its concrete cows to bring luck to MK Dons.
On the day Milton Keynes hosts its first ever League Cup match, the cows have taken up residence at the National Hockey Stadium in a paddock alongside the new 'Cowshed' stand.
The five-strong herd is a spare set;their more familiar relatives can still be seen grazing alongside the H3 Monks Way as they have always done.
But the cows' loan does give a much wider audience the chance to enjoy a taste of the city's major collection of public art. The concrete cows were made in 1978 by US artist Liz Leyh with the help of local schoolchildren.
Their 'transfer' also gives a new opportunity to challenge those who believe the 'concrete' label applies to the new city.
Parks Trust Chief Executive David Foster: "Love them or hate them we know that the first thing many people think of when they hear 'Milton Keynes' is the concrete cows. Yet with some 4,500 acres of parkland, the city they are vastly outnumbered by real wildlife.
Milton Keynes is home to 20 million trees, one of the region's best birdwatching sites and many rare species. And how many cities can boast they have a flock of sheep grazing within sight of their city centre?
Like the Trust, Pete Winkleman's team is working for the success of the whole city and we are very happy to loan the cows to bring them luck in their first season as MK Dons."
Said Dons Chairman Pete Winkleman
:"Derided by those from afar, loved by the many at home, the Concrete Cows are a piece of public art which has captured international attention and put our vibrant new city on the map.
Mindless Morons Attack our Cows.
On a mindless night in June 2007 the original concrete cows that were installed at MK Dons football ground in 2004 were attacked by a mindless bunch of morons who scaled the 3.5metre wall to enter the ground, and using a forklift truck uprooted the 1 ton cows and dumped them on the pitch inflicting serious damage to them, But the good news is they will be restored by MK Parks Trust and moved to Central Milton Keynes Shopping Centre under the Great Oak Tree.
