A YOUTH football team's new £350,000 ground will be declared officially open on Sunday.

Ripon City Panthers will kick-off the season at Hell Wath Playing Fields in the town.

The facility includes a pavilion with four changing rooms, a social area and five improved playing pitches.

The project received almost £250,000 from the Football Foundation, as well as £20,000 from Harrogate Borough Council and £30,000 from Communities Against Drugs.

Club members had to raise the £50,000 needed to finish off the facility. Chairman Ken Rowe said: "The club has been working with Harrogate Borough Council for over ten years to develop this scheme.

"The facilities available to our members and visiting teams are among the best for junior football in the country and we cannot wait to start using them." Councillor Pat Jones, the borough council's cabinet member for cultural services, added: "When I took over the reins of the leisure portfolio, one of the first things I did was to take a tour of all our leisure facilities.

"It was obvious these young footballers were desperate for a good ground. They have been going for over 20 years with over 300 playing members aged between eight and 16, as well as a number of qualified coaches.

"They deserve the best and I am glad that, by all our efforts, we have been able to achieve it for them."

The Mayor of Harrogate, Councillor Caroline Bayliss, and Panthers' president Phil Adams will conduct the official opening.

The launch will be followed by a fun day including games, training, a bouncy castle and a visit by soldiers from the Green Howards.