Swords soccer club hits out at vandals as juvenile pitch destroyed again
Vandals damaged the pitch on the Brackenstown Road used by Swords Manor Football Club
Members of a local football club in Swords are “disheartened” after their under-7s pitch was vandalised again this week.
The football pitch on the Brackenstown Road is used by Swords Manor Football Club who found it had been “wrecked” with scrambler bikes overnight on Monday.
The pitch has been repeatedly vandalised at night and was last damaged in November.
“They are basically unplayable now,” said club secretary Eoin Sherlock. “The pitch that was damaged was for our youngest kids, so they can’t play on it in case they turn their ankle.”
The club is now paying to use the National Sports Campus in Abbotstown while the pitch is resown, which could take up to six weeks.
The damage left the pitch on the Brackenstown Road unplayable
“All of our kids games have had to move up to Abbotstown and we’ve had to pay for that,” said Mr Sherlock.
“We’ve been able to keep the games on, but every week that passes we will have to pay for a pitch in Abbotstown.
“It’s just disheartening, we are all volunteers. We were only up there the previous evening in the rain coaching the local kids and you wake up the next morning to that.”
Mr Sherlock said vandalism to the pitch happens “often”, however, the garda presence in the area has improved.
“It only takes 10 minutes of madness and the pitch is wrecked for months,” he said.
Fingal County Council, which owns and manages the pitches, has been contacted for comment.
