PEEL Football Club hope to return to their Douglas Road ground a week on Saturday after building work on the Tommy Clucas Community Sports Hall forced recent games to be played at St John’s Mullen-e-Cloie ground.
Main contractors for the build, JCK Limited, have been installing a septic tank this week behind the golf course-end goalmouth and there had been worries that wet sand in the area dug up may cause problems.
Fund chairman Kelvin Dawson said: ‘Everything is going well. The builders have been brilliant. They did encounter some wet sand so far down in the hole dug for the tank, but it was nothing major or out of the ordinary for this type of job. It certainly won’t hold up the project. It probably looks worse than it is. The tank should be laid in the ground today (Wednesday) and the hole filled in by the end of the week, so we’re still on schedule.
‘We’re delighted with the progress and the way things are going.
‘We took up the turf from the pitch before the work around the goalmouth started, so that is just waiting to be relaid once the work is finished, and will then need to be levelled.
‘It shouldn’t take that long, the boys are playing at St John’s on Friday night again, but hopefully, if all goes to plan, they could be back playing in Peel after this weekend. We’re still optimistic we will finish the entire project by April or May as originally planned so that would be brilliant.’
The steel frame of the building has now been erected by Wilson and Collins Ltd and Kelvin says that the cladding should be going up next week.
Referring to the colouring of the late Manx Grand Prix star and Peel footballer, Kelvin joked: ‘We asked for a ginger roof, but planning said no!’
The project has recently had to use some of its contingency fund and use cash which had been initially set aside for fittings and sports equipment on the building work.
‘There are always stumbling blocks with these projects, it won’t delay the building work, but any further donations would, of course, be welcomed,’ said Kelvin.
The new sports hall will have an enclosed 40 metre by 25m third generation artificial grass surface with LED lighting, equipped to host various sports, with associated facilities and a viewing area.
It is hoped that it will be used by local sports clubs, recreational youth/community organisations and the general community for sport and recreation purposes.
The Tommy Clucas Memorial Fund was set up following the death of popular Peel sportsman Tommy Clucas, who died while leading on the last lap of the Junior Manx Grand Prix in 2004.
Anyone who would like to make a donation to the fund or is interested in further information on the project can contact fund chairman, Kelvin Dawson, on 494894.
