Vandals wreck Warriston football club's dugout causing hundreds of pounds damage

BOOZE-FUELLED yobs have trashed a football club’s dug-out for the second time in six months.
Police are investigating the damagePolice are investigating the damage
Police are investigating the damage

The gang of teens also smashed vodka bottles on the pitch of Craigroyston FC’s pitch at St Mark’s Park, Warriston, last Friday night.

Club caretaker Bob Currie questioned the police response while senior officers vowed to investigate and increase patrols in the area.

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“They were jumping up and down on the flat roof of the dugout and it collapsed - it’s the same dugout as before,” said Mr Currie.

“Then on Saturday there was about a dozen of them drinking and one or two decided to make it worse.

“They were smashing vodka bottle together on the pitch which is a nightmare for us - someone could lose their leg.

“I called the police on two occasions but received no information from them, I waited for two hours but no contact was made with me.”

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“The police say they’ll try to have someone pass tonight just to ward them off. They can’t promise as it depends what else is happening in the area. I suppose it’s way down their list of priorities, which I can understand.

“It’ll cost about £300 to repair again and I’ve just ordered some steel plates to reinforce it and the other dugout as well.

“It’s a lot of money to a club like this - it’s difficult to attract sponsors so we’ll have to find the money from somewhere.”

The Evening News reported in February how a similar attack on the same dugout led to hundreds of pounds of damage.

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Chief Inspector Gill Geany, Local Area Commander for North East Edinburgh, said: "We can confirm that a report was received at around 11.25am on Saturday 31st August, which related to damage caused to the dug-out area at St Marks Park.

"This vandalism is believed to have happened sometime overnight and inquiries are ongoing to identify those responsible.

"It is not accurate to claim that officers did not respond to reports of this incident taking place at the time. The matter was not reported to us until the damage was discovered and anyone with information should contact police immediately.

"Later in the evening of Saturday 31st August a call was received claiming a group of youths were gathered within St Marks Park committing an offence, however, the informant was unable to provide any details of any crimes being carried out by these individuals.

"Local officers will give the area increased attention as part of their daily patrols."