Mousehole AFC officially switched on their new floodlights at Trungle Parc before beating Porthleven AFC 2-0 in the South West Peninsula Football League Cup recently (Friday 25 October). This has been made possible by investment from the Premier League, which has been delivered by the Football Stadia Improvement Fund (FSIF).

The investment has allowed Mousehole AFC, who were promoted to the Kitchen Kit South West Peninsula Premier Division West, at Step 6, at the end of the 2018/19 season, to install new floodlights and expand the training and match availability for their senior and youth teams.

Mousehole AFC currently runs three senior teams, two male and one female, along with a thriving youth section with over 200 participants. The new floodlights ensure that the club now meets Grade G of the FA National Ground Grading Criteria applicable to its Step 6 status.

The floodlights are a superb addition to the ever-developing facilities at Mousehole AFC’s Trungle Parc. Recent improvements at the ground have included clubhouse refurbishments, major ground reconstruction and pitch improvement, all maintained by volunteers, including the Cornwall County FA Groundsman of the Year for 2019, Billy Jacka.

The project was made possible by an £80,000 grant from the Premier League, which is delivered through the Football Stadia Improvement Fund – the sister organisation of the Football Foundation.

In 2014 Mousehole AFC were awarded an £8,064 grant from the Football Stadia Improvement Fund to purchase new grounds maintenance equipment, followed by a £7,245 grant towards new pitch perimeter barriers. A year later the club also received a £4,961 grant towards hardstanding around the pitch. This brings the total FSIF investment at Mousehole AFC in the last five years to £100,000.

Tim Richardson, who has been Chairman of Mousehole AFC for the last six years, said: “For all those people involved with the club, whether as players past and present, supporters or administrators, the floodlights switch-on is a truly momentous event in the club’s history. Who would ever have thought that our once tiny village club would now be staging floodlit football at the highest playing level in nearly 100 years and be on the threshold of progressing further up the leagues.

“We are so grateful to the Football Stadia Improvement Fund and the Premier League for supporting this project and for the helpful guidance they gave us in applying for the grant, and likewise to the consultants and planners, and our own committee member Ben Gibson, who put in the hard work to bring it to fruition."

Peter McCormick OBE, Chairman of the Football Stadia Improvement Fund, said: “It’s wonderful to hear that Mousehole AFC now have state-of-the-art new floodlights, which will create a safer and more effective training environment for its senior and youth teams.

“Through the FSIF, the Premier League invests in improving infrastructure at lower levels of the game. This is helping to improve the experiences of players, coaches and fans across England. Mousehole AFC’s new lighting system is just one example of what the Premier League’s funding is achieving all over the country.”