THE DONEGAL LEAGUE is to proceed with a €78,000 refurbishment of the pitch at the League headquarters, The Diamond Park in Ballyare.
Delegates heard last night at the League’s AGM that work on the resurfacing of the pitch is to begin as early as next week.
The development work is being spearheaded by the League’s Vice Chairman Nigel Ferry and comes after the League was turned down for funding from the Sports Capital programme for the third year running.
“When we got the third knock, we decided to plough on with the development anyway,” Mr Ferry said.
[adrotate group=”37″]“There was a lot of effort and a lot of time put into this project.”
In the first instance, the Donegal League was turned down for funding as they had ‘too much money in the bank’; their second rejection was down to ‘not being high enough up the scale of priorities; and this time around, they fell on a technicality.
“There was one digit, a zero, left out of the application and it was turned down because of that,” Mr Ferry said.
“But we’re going ahead with the work anyway and we hope that contractors will be on site next week and it’s full steam ahead for the work on the playing surface.
[adrotate group=”46″]“We hope that we will nearly ready to go and play this time next year.”
In time, the Donegal League hopes to install floodlights and a new fence at the Ballyare venue.
The work on the resurfacing of the pitch will be carried out by William Coyle’s Pitch Dimensions in Buncrana and there is expected to be a sod-turning ceremony performed the weekend after next.
Mr Ferry said: “I’d like to thank the clubs for their assistance over the years with the Ballyare levy and also with the clubs who helped out in giving their facilities this season for the Oscar Traynor team – they were a massive help, but we do need our own pitch.”
The Donegal League is in a sound financial footing with a €23,873 profit made by the end of March 2016 giving the League cash reserves of €136,846.
[adrotate group=”70″]The Donegal League comprised 49 teams from 38 clubs across five divisions in the 2015/16 season.
Six of the League’s 38 clubs weren’t represented at the meeting with Curragh Athletic, Erne Wanderers, Fintown Harps, Glencar Celtic, Kildrum Tigers and Mulroy Celtic marked absent.
The League’s Executive committee members were all re-elected without any opposition again: Chairman – John Joe McCaferty; Vice Chairman – Nigel Ferry; Secretary – Jimmy Haughey; Assistant Secretary – Terry Leyden; Fixtures Secretary – Christina O’Donnell; Treasurer – Declan Sherlock; Assistant Treasurer – John Lafferty; Lifford Area Rep – Martin Duffy; Donegal Area Rep – Gerry Rodgers; Letterkenny Area Rep – Michael Purtill; Milford Area Rep – Hughie Walsh; General Rep – Gary Foy.
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