'The joy has been taken out of Farsley'

For more than 70 years fans of Farsley Celtic have witnessed the club's highs and lows from the stands of their home ground, seven miles west of Leeds city centre.

But, after the club was forced to play fixtures 70 miles away in Buxton, even the die-hard supporters have had enough.

Earlier this month Farsley Celtic Supporters Club passed a vote of no confidence in the chair and last week moved to boycott home matches.

Now, as the rift between supporters and the board grows, fans say the loss of football at The Citadel is impacting the sense of community in Farsley.

Roger Wade is a firm fixture at Farsley Celtic, having spent 16 years watching from the sidelines.

No longer able to work due to his health, the 60-year-old said the connection he feels during matches is "a lifeline".

"It is a massive part of my life," he said. "I think it is fair to say I live for this club."

However, with the club now playing in Buxton and Mr Wade boycotting travel he said he was "at an absolute a loss".

"It is like a bereavement in the family" he said.

"You get used to going there on a Saturday, win, lose whatever, I still see the community.

"That has now been taken away.

"It has affected my mental health, and I know, I am not the only one."

In a statement, Farsley Celtic board members said "mental health and wellbeing" were always areas of importance.

The club added it had its own welfare officers and fully qualified mental health first aiders.

They added: "The current situation at the club is as a result of a set of circumstances that are out of the control of any of us, and are being managed on a daily basis."

For Andrew Rowney, being a Farsley Celtic fan is somewhat of an inheritance.

"My dad pushed me around this ground in a pram," the 42-year-old said.

"I remember being at school, standing behind the goal, then I came as a teenager with my friends."

That connection to the club is something Mr Rowney has passed down to his own son, pushing him around the ground in a pram "in the same way".

But he said the difficulties at the club had left him worried "how we can continue".

Unable to attend games at home since April, he said the "connection to the community is being stripped away".

He said: "It is not even about the football, it is about the friendships you make that would not be here without the football."

The board said it was important to realise they were not a one team club and pointed to their women's and deaf team, who play locally, and the 500 children and juniors who do the same.

"There is still a lot of football to be watched locally from our club so there is still a huge active connection with our local community," they added.

Key to the move to Buxton, and before that a groundshare with Bradford Park Avenue, are the delays in installing a new 4G pitch, which the club previously said were "unforeseen and unavoidable".

Farsley Celtic said the board had been "working through" what it called "a major but short-term issue".

Supporter George Fearnley, 24, did not mince his words when asked how he felt about the current situation.

"I feel robbed, completely robbed," he said.

The many friendships Mr Fearnley has made through the club are what make it so special to him, however, he was also concerned about the wider impacts.

"On home games, the fans stay over, we drink in the local pubs," he said.

"We will start to see the economic impact."

With school sports classes being held here, birthday parties and an annual firework display, the club has been a constant in this community.

Parents in Farsley also worry the loss of that constant will impact children.

Caroline Harriman said her son played for the junior team 15 years ago and she used to spend 20 hours a week as a volunteer here.

"It gave him discipline, it gave him friendship, it gave him confidence," she said.

"The joy has been taken out of Farsley."

Neil Johnson, 42, moved to the historic weaving village from Harrogate in 2017.

He said: "I have a family, we cannot go to Buxton, it is a full day event, there are added costs.

"It is sad people cannot bring their kids here and inspire them to play football."

David Pearce, who sits on the Farsley Celtic Supporters Club committee, is among those who has travelled the "length and breadth" of the country on the club bus as a self-titled "bus buddy".

But, he said playing home games at Buxton was a step too far and had left a "social deficit" for people living locally.

"It is a social entity as much as a business or a footballing identity," he said.

"Paid members of supporters' clubs and season ticket holders have been denied what really should be a guaranteed social provision.

"People feel isolated.

"They see us as customers, they don't see us as people that have any other value other than revenue."

In its statement the club said it had "zero footballing debt" and was "bringing in a new commercial director and have signed a new front of shirt sponsor".

It said the chairman was investing large sums of money for the additional pitch works, surveys, running costs and player wages.

"Claims of mis-management are a discredit to those volunteers who are working hard on a daily basis to keep the club moving forwards," the statement added.

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