Supporters and community rally around Bonnyrigg Rose pitch project

Bonnyrigg Rose are hoping to level the playing surface at New Dundas Park in time for the start of the 2025/2026 season

A crowdfunding page has been set up by Rose as they aim to bank in excess of £100,000 to fund the project after the club decided against their original aspiration of installing an artificial surface at the Midlothian venue.

The current gradient of the grass pitch does not meet the bronze level requirement for SPFL football - Bonnyrigg has been plying their trade in League Two since gaining promotion to Scottish football's fourth tier in May 2022 - and conversations at boardroom level on how to resolve the issue have been ongoing for some time.

Professional advice was sought on the best way forward and, after some deliberation, the club has elected to progress with levelling the pitch.

A club statement read: "As a fan-owned club our aim is to be as transparent as possible from a finance, governance, business as usual activity, future plans, playing squad and management team ambitions perspective.

"New Dundas Park is a 52-week-a-year-operation, with ongoing costs, including ground maintenance and player salaries during the closed periods. Our hope is that our supporters understand that due to playing in unfunded leagues for over a century at a ground that we own and are completely responsible for, that there continues to be a balancing act between ensuring there is a competitive squad on the pitch whilst having to spend a significant proportion of revenue generated on ground improvements.

"We continue to play catch up with the other clubs in the league within a competitive environment and where the SPFL eligibility criteria has become even stricter. We are proud of our achievements and despite all the odds, we are competing well in the professional league and remain committed to doing so in the future.

"During the AGM we gave an update relating to our pitch and licence. Currently our pitch gradient does not meet the bronze level requirement for the SPFL. Following professional advice and in partnership with the Community Club, our ambition was to replace the grass at New Dundas Park with a synthetic surface. Changing the pitch surface became our focus, rather than levelling the pitch, as levelling was identified as being a wasted investment and unnecessary additional time and effort given the opportunity to obtain funding to change the surface as part of our club and community development ambitions.

"The rationale behind the change of surface was to enable and support local grassroots football, in partnership with The Bonnyrigg Rose Community Club, as well as delivering a positive impact to the local economy and wider community. As an example, and for clarity, the Bonnyrigg Rose Community Club has an extensive waiting list of children keen to play football but who are unable to do so due to lack of space and resources.

"An artificial surface at New Dundas Park would go some way to enable those children to play, provide a new pipeline of potential talent for the future as well as enabling the ground to become a seven-day-a-week operational business, creating jobs within the local community and creating revenue for the club and local economy.

"Unfortunately, due to factors outside of our control both with central DCMS funding delays and following ground surveying works we have been unable to progress as we would have liked with the resurfacing works. As a result the licensing board have downgraded our licence from Bronze to Entry level. As such our focus has changed and we will now be working hard towards levelling the pitch in advance of the 2025/26 season. To achieve this, we need your help.

"Firstly, we need to raise the funds to complete the levelling and drainage requirements. We are expecting a quote and plan of works from contractors imminently, however we expect the costs of this to be in excess of six figures i.e. over £100k. To help us fund this operation, as there is no central fund available for this, we have set up a JustGiving page where we would invite you, where you are able, to donate. You can donate directly here Bonnyrigg Rose Levelling Fund. This will also be shared via social media, and we would ask for your to like and share, far and wide."

If anyone is interested in donating to the fund, please visit https://www.justgiving.com/crowdfunding/stephen-reid-4?utm_term=RZ2KbBrmA or contact the club website for more information.