Football strip is the way to win a match

Table football enthusiasts are being offered a cheeky way of time-wasting or putting off an opponent during matches - throwing on a miniature streaker.

The one-inch high figures, being marketed by Staffordshire shopowner Tom Taylor and thought to be the world's first, are being sold with an accompanying table-top policeman.

Mr Taylor, who sells soccer souvenirs, table football teams and other accessories from his store in Lichfield, describes the wooden exhibitionists as the ultimate tactical weapon.

The 48-year-old says: "If your opponent is about to take a shot and you think he can't miss, then all you have to do is throw on the streaker and the referee is obliged to stop the game.

"With the streaker also comes a policeman who your opponent must then try and flick from his own half and hit the streaker."

The hand-made streaker sets cost £7.99 each and include a police officer and either a male or a female figure in the nude.

"They are very fiddly to make but, if they prove popular, we will have them mass-produced and the price will come down," Mr Taylor adds.

The storekeeper, an Aston Villa fan, admits that the streakers - which can be deployed only once during a match - are unlikely to be sanctioned by Subbuteo's governing body.