Cash windfall for pitches

Cash windfall for pitches

16 March 2016

DOWNPATRICK Football Club and a Ballyhornan community group are celebrating a £1.6m cash bonanza to develop much-needed sporting facilities.

Downpatrick FC have been awarded a £1m grant to push ahead with its plan to build a new state-of-the art home beside Downpatrick Racecourse.

Meanwhile, Ballyhornan Family Centre have been given £600,000 to build a flood-lit pitch.

The release of the money, which has come from the Office of the First Minister and Deputy First Minister’s Special Investment Fund, was announced this week.

For Downpatrick it means the long-held dream of finding a permanent home will soon become a reality.

The project will provide a 3G football pitch with changing facilities which will be available for use by other local sports organisations, clubs and schools.

The club believes the project will make a major contribution to increasing community sports participation, particularly by offering more opportunities for football coaching and training.

The club is also grateful for the help and support which Newry Mourne and Down Council, Downpatrick Race Club and local politicians have given to help bring the project to this stage.

Club chairman Michael Bohill said: “The new facilities will provide a much-needed local permanent home for the club which has been using a council-owned pitch at Annacloy since losing its previous facilities within the Downshire Estate some years ago.

“We are confident that the new 3G pitch will provide a vital platform for long term sustainability and for continued membership growth and development over many years to come”.

The club’s youth development officer, Paul Moore, said he was excited by the announcement.

“It will be great to have our own pitch within walking distance of the town centre,” he remarked.

“We will have the opportunity to bring all the teams together and become more of a football club.

“At present the youth section don’t really have a connection with the senior teams but by having our own pitch we will be able to do more to encourage a link between both. It’s exciting times for the club and something that’s long overdue.”

Ballyhornan Family Centre chairwoman Patricia Curran said she was delighted that funding has been secured.

“I hope that the new pitch will help to revitalise the Ballyhornan area and raise the profile of the family centre,” she remarked.

“The centre is used by a number of local groups. Hopefully the new pitch will make the centre even more popular. Even more importantly, this project will mean the creation of two jobs, one full-time and one part-time.”

Also celebrating are Celtic Bhoys Football Club, who will make Ballyhornan their new home.

Celtic chairman Peter Madine said it was “massive news” for the club.

“We have been working behind the scenes for several years and we have finally got a home.

“We have over 300 players involved in the club, from U-6 to senior, boys and girls, and they will all be using this much-needed facility.

“We have been paying big money for sub-standard facilities for years now and the Ballyhornan facility is the answer to our prayers.

“We have a vibrant youth policy and they will really thrive on the new facility.

“It also means that we now can expand our ladies section which is still in its infancy.”

The grants have been welcomed by local MLA Chris Hazzard MLA.

“OFMDFM have confirmed to me that approval is in place and letters of offer will be sent as soon as possible,” he said. “This brings SIF funding in the South Eastern area to nearly £7million.

“The application process has been long and difficult but after much discussion, I’m delighted that we have got to this point.

“This is great news for local families and sports organisations in the Down area who have been using sub-standard sports facilities for far too long.”