ST BREWARD Football Club’s season preparations have taken a massive blow after their pitch was heavily damaged by a vehicle last week, writes David Sillifant.

The club who play in Division Three of the Duchy League were due to hold the Masters Cup Final between Boscastle and Delabole last week, however they were left with no alternative but to call the game off as a vehicle had been onto the pitch leaving marks and pits on one side of the 18-yard box.

Not only that, there was damage to the entrance as the perpetrator who is unknown at this stage, hit one of the sides.

Ex-Chairman Christopher Greenaway who has been involved with the club for more than half a century was left fuming, especially as nothing had ever happened like this before at the village club.

Christopher said: “I’ve been involved with St Breward Football Club for over 50 years and we’ve never had anything like this.

“We’ve had to cancel the Masters Cup Final, and the first home league game of the season and I doubt we’ll be able to play here for at least two or three weeks.

I couldn’t believe how deep the tracks that have been left, they’re about six inches deep which has required us to obtain the help of some local farmers to give us some turf and some of their time to fill up the hole’s so it can be rolled and re-seeded. All we can do is wait and it’s so annoying for everyone involved with the club, so close to the start of the season.”

The delay will not only cause the club potential fixture congestion later in the season, especially if last winter’s horrible weather is repeated, but it will also mean the club miss out on lots of potential revenue from bar takings, and crowds.

Christopher continued: “We’ve had to notify the relevant authorities as to our situation and thankfully they’ve been quite understanding.

“But all we can do is hope for some rain and sunshine to quicken the process and allow us to get back to doing what we want to do, which is to play football.”