AT LAST .. BACK IN THE GAME
Blackburn United playing it safe
New Murrayfield Park in Blackburn is now packed with youngsters playing football.
It’s a far cry from a few months ago when the gates were shut and it’s been a long road back to something resembling normality for Blackburn United Community Sports Club. With football teams ranging through all age groups up to senior men and women, it’s been a challenge getting everything back up and running.
It’s all been worth it, though, says the community club’s secretary and Covid compliance officer Davy Jones.
He, along with a small but dedicated number of people, has been responsible for putting all the measures in place and he told the Courier about all the trials and tribulations of life at the club since lockdown.
He commented: “A lot of work has gone into getting the facility up and running again in a safe manner and ensuring all the guidelines are followed.
“We were really worried about how the kids would react to the lockdown and if they would come back.
“Football is vital for some kids and gives them that fitness and social interaction so being deprived of that was a big worry for us.
“We started a mental health group because that was a real concern. We wanted to get them back as soon as the government guidelines allowed and it’s now great to see them with smiles on their faces playing football.”
Strict guidelines are in place with the park split into sections, hand sanitisers at the side of the pitch and separate entrance and exits to ensure no group comes into contact with any other.
Jones added: “It was a massive undertaking and it’s a small but really hardworking group. To reach the point where we could get the kids back in and following the guidelines, it’s worked really well.
“We have to allocate areas and days for all of the groups and there’s always changes to the guidelines but we’ve got each team with a quarter of the park and all the coaches have done the Covid courses from the Scottish Youth Football Association.”
He continued: “Some of the parents are wanting to come in and watch their kid training but we have to say they’re not allowed.
“Everything in the guidelines is geared towards keeping the kids safe. We’ve got hand sanitisers, a one-way system all around the park and all the equipment gets cleaned.
“There’s track and trace and everyone is registered when they come so if anything was to happen, we know who was on the park on any given day.
“It’s been really difficult and I feel for clubs who haven’t been able to get back up and running.
“We’ve managed to get to this stage but we now need to be extra careful because the virus is picking up again.”