IT'S all change at Barnoldswick United Football Club, with promotion to a higher division, the pitch looking better than ever before and a new clubhouse taking shape.

The team has started the new season playing in the West Lancs League division one and faces new challenges against top teams from across the region.

Off the pitch, the new clubhouse is starting to take shape after long months of planning and fundraising.

It is being built on a voluntary basis by loyal club supporters, including committee member and local builder David Southern, helped by Steven Naylor and Jack Sharples.

As dedicated supporters of their club, they are giving whatever time they can spare and hope to have the new clubhouse more or less finished by the end of the season.

It will house a bar and other facilities for supporters and visitors, bringing new levels of comfort and hospitality to the Victory Park ground.

And the ground itself is in better shape than ever, thanks to the efforts of groundsman, committee member and ex-player John Beswick, and a special deal with local company Townson Tractors, of Hellifield.

The firm has supplied the club with a new compact tractor after striking the deal, which involved part cash and part sponsorship, including the company advertising on a stand at the ground.

Groundsman John, who puts in over 20 hours of voluntary work at the club each week, said: "The new tractor has certainly made my job a lot easier. Before this I had a petrol hand mower and it used to take me over two hours to mow the pitch.

"Now I can do it in about 40 minutes, and the tractor is more economical because it runs on diesel, so it will be cheaper in the long run.

"We have two fields now, with the training pitch, so it's made a big difference."

John, who still turns out for the club's veteran side, added that he had looked all over for the right machine, before finding one on his doorstep.

And it was all through a chance meeting in a Barnoldswick social club with John Craig, managing director of Townson Tractors.

The two were introduced by Chris Stirk, a keen footballer who lives in Barnoldswick and works in the parts department at the firm.

Mr Craig told the Herald: "We were happy to be able to help out and very glad to be associated with a successful local club like Barnoldswick United, with a bit of publicity for us through advertising at the ground. It's been a good deal all round."

At the end of last season the club's main pitch had 60 tonnes of sand spread on it before being fertilised, and is now draining better than ever.

The training pitch has also been redrained and had floodlighting installed, with the club hoping to make it available to other local sports clubs.

Volunteer groundsman John confessed: "My wife doesn't know which is my full-time job - Silentnight or this!"

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