A FAMOUS old stadium which saw some of amateur football's greatest games has been turned into a building site.

A £4m sheltered housing complex is springing up on part of Bishop Auckland FC's 117-year-old Kingsway pitch, which the club quit nearly three years ago to build a new ground.

The development is the second for the Province of Durham Freemasons, which opened 46 flats at Peter Stracey House, in Sunderland, in 1992.

Charles Marshall, chairman of the benevolent committee, laid the foundation stone.

He said: "There are 10,000 members in the Province of Durham, and it is tribute to their generosity that this has come about.

"Peter Stracey House has been a huge success. About five or six years after it opened, we realised there was a demand for more accommodation for elderly freemasons and their dependants.

"It has been a frustrating time trying to find a site but we have had huge support.

"When it is finished, it will be a wonderful building and a lovely place to live."

Alan Davison, Durham's provincial grand master, said: "This project is much-admired by the United Grand Lodge of England.

"I don't think there is another province with this sort of scheme going on."

Bishop Auckland FC, who won the FA Amateur Cup a record ten times, is sharing Spennymoor United's Brewery Field ground while working towards building a £700,000 new stadium at Tindale Crescent.

It shared Kingsway with Bishop Auckland Cricket Club, which is planning to spend money from the sale developing facilities and coaching young players.