Midland Warriors' new pitches set to open for coming season

Moate-based Midland Warriors RFC will have two new pitches up and running when the new season begins next month, the club has confirmed.

With planning permission granted for new club facilities and a community walking track last April, work is underway at the site located within the townland of Bawnoges on the outskirts of Moate, close to exit 6 off the M6 motorway.

Planning permission was granted for two grass sport pitches, and an Astro sports pitch with associated sports fencing. Also included in plans are associated floodlighting, four changing rooms and both ladies’ and gents’ toilets, car parking facilities, a new road entrance, a perimeter walking track with associated external fitness equipment, pitch-side sports ball stop netting, and a new effluent treatment system and polishing filter.

The club's director of rugby, Graham Ross, said they are flat-out working on the project at the moment.

"The pitches are going to be ready to go, and we are making a start on the clubhouse," he said, adding that they will have temporary dressing rooms for 2025, with the new clubhouse to be ready for next year.

"The grass was sown for the pitches last year so they will be ready to go. We still have the use of the one in front of the Carmelite nursing home, which they kindly let us use, so we will have three pitches from September. One will have floodlights and be used for training and then we'll have two playing pitches."

Graham added that the club has seen a huge increase in the number of players registered, with player numbers almost quadrupling in four years.

"We have over 400 players now and four years ago it was just over 100. We also have a lot of girls playing, four years ago we had ten girls, now we have 150 or so," he said, adding that once numbers started to pick up they then grew very quickly.

He explained that the club has a huge catchment area and also has a great relationship with the GAA, with a lot of players interchanging between the two codes, with rugby played over the winter months and GAA in the summer.

Graham praised the local community for its support of the project, and said the club wanted to put in a community walking track to ensure there was something in place to benefit the entire community.

"We have had massive support from the local area. Everything so far has come from the community, with no grants to date. We're working on grants. We're trying to make it as community-based as possible, we want it to be a community facility. It takes a village," he said.

He added that, at the moment, the club is working on installing the carpark and lights and by next year they will have the new clubhouse in place.

"We're happy enough the ground work is done to cover us for this year," said Graham.

The club is also leaving space for an Astroturf pitch, which was also included in the planning permission, but Graham said this is more likely to be in two to three years' time.

"Moate, sports-wise, needs more playing surfaces. There is a need for a second full-size astro pitch," he added.