Community groups across the north-east have been enjoying Aberdeen Football Club’s new Cormack Park facility, with more than 2,000 people using the pitches since the start of the year.
The £12 million site has provided much-needed community training facilities for local clubs including Westdyke Community Club, East End FC, Aberdeen West End, Middlefield Wasps, Newmachar United and Highland League side Inverurie Locos.
The community sports centre, training facilities and football academy at Kingsford feature a training pavilion, groundsman’s accommodation, three professional training pitches, two floodlit 3G pitches and two grass pitches.
They have proved invaluable to the Westdyke Community Club, which has 23 different teams and more than 500 players ranging from age five to adults.
The club’s vice secretary, Gillian Robson, said: “We were badly needing something like this in the area where people of all ages can be active and get outside.
“Training at Cormack Park is a brilliant experience. The pitches are spacious and this gives our coaches more flexibility when running their sessions.
“We have a lot of young players who are huge Aberdeen fans so, for them, getting to train at Cormack Park is a dream come true.
“They love sharing a facility with the first team. It’s a really inspirational setting and has given us a huge boost.”
Cormack Park opened in October 2019 and is also home to the Bobby Clark Football Academy and AFC Community Trust.