Steyning set to unveil new 3G surface at the Shooting Field

Work has been completed on the eight-week project of installing the new pitch and refurbished clubhouse.

Having not played at home in the Southern Combination League this season, Town entertain Seaford on Saturday in their first game on the new surface.

A bumper weekend then sees Steyning’s under-18 team welcome a same age-group side from Premier League side Chelsea on Sunday for the official opening.

A number of Football Association and Southern Combination League dignitaries are expected along for the ceremony, which gets under way at 1.30pm.

The FA Cup will also be on show at The Shooting Field, offering up a chance for fans to have their picture taken with the trophy.

Steyning chairman Richard Wood-bridge believes it will be a momentous weekend for all involved with the club and the community with the pitch enhancing sport, activity and socialising within the area.

He said: “We have had so many messages of goodwill from local people in recent weeks. Every time I am at the club, someone new pops their head in to see what is going on and they say how excited they are.

“The facility has been under-utilised for too many years now and it will be great to see faces back in the clubhouse and on the pitch. So many people have played their part for this to happen.”

The Wilson Memorial Trust, a charitable trust based in Steyning, which was set up by the late Ted and Margaret Wilson, has funded a large part of the project.

Along with the trust, HSBC bank and some additional private invest-ment have funded the project.

Current chair of the Wilson Memorial Trust Simon Robinson said: “We are delighted to be supporting this fantastic project and to see the way the community has got behind this project has been amazing.

“The benefits for the local people will be enormous and this is exactly what we had in mind when we agreed our funding proposal.”