Kilwinning Community Football Academy has secured funding for a state-of-the-art football pitch at Almswall Park.

The local community club, which caters for boys and girls of all ages, has been working hard alongside volunteers to make sure the Almswall training pitch is in the best condition it could possibly be.

A North Ayrshire Council community investment fund has supplied more than £45,000 towards the relaying of the 3G pitch, with a further £120,000 coming from the Scottish FA’s Grassroots Pitch and Facilities Fund.

Mick Baird, Kilwinning FA chair, said: “Almswall has been unloved for a while and needed a fresh lease of life.

“The main attraction of the facility is the all weather 3G pitch where all of our member teams have been training since 2019.

“The pitch is 16-years-old and at the end of its productive life. If you go onto Google Maps you would be mistaken for thinking the pitch was a coal mine due to the amount of black rubber crumb.

“One of our main aims was to get the surface renewed into a fantastic and state-of-the-art green 3G pitch where people will enjoy training and playing of all ages where we can welcome more community activity on a purpose built facility.

“We are delighted to announce that we have been successful in our funding applications to secure a brand new state-of-the-art 3G surface at Almswall with the works to commence early April 2022.

“This would not have been possible without the tireless work from our volunteers and support from the various funders so we have quite a few people to thank for making this possible.

“Last but not least, families, friends, supporters, players, coaches, volunteers that give up countless hours to support us in achieving our dreams on a daily and weekly basis.

“No matter how tough things get they are always there to push us on and encourage us to never stop dreaming or achieving.

“We cannot wait until the work commences and we can unveil Kilwinning’s latest state of the art surface that will be a huge benefit to the community and all who wish to engage with us going forward.

“Thank you again to everyone who has supported us in this massive project.”