Kyles pitch in with £20k in race to hold back the floods

Kyles Athletic have brought in a contractor in a £20,000 bid to tackle their problem pitch.

The Premiership runners-up are in a race against time to have new drains laid and the pitch ready for use when the new season begins on March 3.

The Tighnabruaich club has historically been plagued by a pitch that is prone to flooding and which regularly sees games called off early and late in the season. This autumn, as Kyles chased the title, they were forced to play home games at Oban and Taynuilt.

Club secretary Mick Atkinson said: “We’ve called in professional drainage experts because we’re fed up with being hampered by postponements.

“It will be a rush to have the pitch settled after excavations and we may well have to ask for early home league fixtures to be switched to our opponents’ grounds. The financial commitment is a heavy one and we’re funding it ourselves, although we’ve approached the Camanachd Association to see if there is any help.

“It cleans us out and we’ll be launching a major fundraising effort in the community.”

Atkinson added: ”It’s been a nightmare trying to switch fixtures for our two teams. The burden of funding the work is worth it if we have more assurance about the pitch being playable.”

James Perlich, who stepped up from coach to manager this year, is to continue in charge after steering Kyles to Celtic Society Cup and Macaulay Cup glory plus their title nearmiss by two points on the final day, despite Athletic’s 56 league goals being seven more than the next highest.

Atkinson added: “James Perlich has done extremely well for us and he’s agreed to continue.”