Football: Almondsbury Town agree to stay at Oaklands Park (From Gazette Series)

Almondsbury Town to play at Oaklands Park in the Southern League next season

2:42pm Thursday 27th May 2010 in Sport

ALMONDSBURY TOWN will continue to play at Oaklands Park next season after all.

The club had agreed a deal with Clevedon Town to play at The Hand Stadium next season but an FA ruling stated the Hellenic League champions would not be allowed to gain entry into the Southern League by ground sharing.

Almondsbury are due to be evicted from the clubhouse next week as their landlords, the Gloucestershire FA, are turning it into a conference and training centre for referees and physios, the two parties were unable to reach an agreement.

However, the club have now agreed to use North Bristol’s bar facilities next season which will allow them to play in the Southern League, and have finally struck a deal on a one-year lease with the GFA to stay at Oaklands.

“I am very pleased that we have been able to reach an agreement that will give the club an opportunity to play Southern League football next season,” said GFA chief executive, David Neale.

“The club had notified us that they were moving to Clevedon Town and we were already reviewing applications from other clubs to use Oaklands Park.

“However, the FA ruled that as Almondsbury Town were groundsharing in order to meet the requirements of entry to the Southern League, they could not be promoted.

“Consequently, the club asked if it could return to Oaklands Park for one season in order to comply with FA rules.

“The board of directors accepted the club’s apology for the way it handled recent negotiations and its misrepresentation of Gloucestershire FA in statements to the press, and stood by its original offer of a one year lease at a reduced cost.”

Almondsbury Town secretary, David Jones, said: “We are very grateful to the GFA as I have to agree that our club has not, in recent months, conducted themselves in an appropriate manner.

“We were pleased to accept the offer of an additional year at Oaklands Park and as we have reached agreement with North Bristol Rugby Club to use their bar facilities next season, we can now look forward to Southern League football next season.”

Neale added: “The GFA wish the club every success next season and has offered to support them in their search for a permanent home.

“We appreciate that losing access to a clubroom is disappointing for any club, but the building refurbishment programme taking place over the summer will enable Oaklands Park to become a focal point for the training and education of football volunteers.”