Football has finally returned to Faraday Road five years after Newbury FC’s eviction

Football has finally returned to Faraday Road five years after Newbury FC was evicted from its former home.

The grand re-opening of the football ground took place on Sunday morning and local dignitaries along with players and representatives from both Newbury FC and Newbury Women FC were in attendance.

The opening ceremony kicked off at 11.30am with welcoming speeches from West Berkshire Council leader Lee Dillon and Newbury Community Football Group’s Lee McDougall.

Speaking before the opening, Mr Dillon said: “Faraday Road is widely recognised as the home of football in the district.

“We were committed to bringing this community facility back into action and it’s wonderful to see the hard work of all those involved pay off.”

At noon the under-8 teams from two Newbury clubs – AFC Newbury Boys and Girls FC – played CSA 07 FC in the first matches at the Faraday Road site in over half a decade.

This was followed by a penalty shoot-out which saw members of the public testing out their shooting skills against the Newbury FC goalkeepers.

For the full story, pick up this week’s edition of the Newbury Weekly News on Thursday.