UK Sports Minister visits Wellington Rec and Carrick Rangers on Northern Ireland ‘debut’

The UK minister, who was hosted by Stormont Communities Minister Gordon Lyons, also toured the home of Carrick Rangers FC.

Joined by NIO Minister Fleur Anderson, they met some of the recipients of the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) Grassroots Facilities Investment Fund.

Wellington Recreation FC received funding to install a new artificial grass pitch, floodlights, fencing, gates and to improve accessibility at their ground at Brookvale Park.

Before travelling to Larne, the ministers met Carrick Rangers officials to hear about the club’s plans for the future as well as viewing the new synthetic pitch also funded by DCMS.

Mr Lyons said: “This is a good opportunity to showcase a range of sporting facilities, including those which have received investment through the DCMS Grassroots Investment Fund.

"I recently opened the Northern Ireland Football Fund for applications from performance clubs and can see that the demand for investment far outweighs the £36.2million my Department has allocated.

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"It is a similar situation for grassroots venues, used to train and support thousands of young people every week, but in dire need of modernisation.”

Earlier the party called in at Newforge Community Development Trust, a multi-sports facility in Belfast funded through Peace IV Programme, Department for Communities, Sport NI and the Department of Rural and Community Development (Ireland). This facility is home to the Northern Ireland Women’s football team and the Ulster Rugby Academy.

Mr Lyons, who is also a DUP MLA for East Antrim, added: “My vision is to upgrade football grounds at every level across Northern Ireland, as well as supporting the creation of a National Football Centre for our elite teams.

"The recent DCMS announcement of £3million for grassroots sports facilities in Northern Ireland is welcome and will go some way towards raising the standard of these grounds.

"I look forward to continued collaboration with DCMS to ensure that, through ongoing investment, our sports grounds can be developed to offer accessible, high-quality facilities which are welcoming to all and inspiring for generations of players.”