A FOOTBALL ground has been left with thousands of pounds worth of damage after heavy winds wreaked havoc.

Violent gusts from Storm Eunice caused fencing to blow over at the Taydal Stadium, home of Brightlingsea Regent FC, on Friday night.

It meant the side which sits 20th in the Isthmian Premier Division had to cancel its fixture on Saturday as debris was left scattered across the ground prompting fears for safety.

Two garden fences at the Seaview Road End and the back of the Taydal Stand were blown down while snapped posts are having to be replaced and perimeter fencing realigned following the destruction.

The venue’s brand new tannoy system which came at a cost of £6,000 last year was also damaged during the violent winds.

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Club chairman Terry Doherty says he is now in a race against time to get the facilities prepared for tonight’s match at the ground in North Road, Brightlingsea.

“We are having to temporarily block off the areas which have blown down and then it’s going to take some time to get materials and do the work properly going forward. It’s not going to be a quick fix,” he said.

“There are some big gaps at the minute and we’ve got to make sure it’s safe as we don’t want people coming and something falling on their head.

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“Luckily the floodlights were ok and the stands themselves too, just the back of one has been blown out, but the tannoy system has broken in several places.

“I would imagine the tannoy will cost about £600 to repair but we’re looking at a couple thousand pounds in total.”

Mr Doherty added he was “distraught” when he saw the damage and admitted the extent of it was “a bit strange”.

He said: “The wind was bad on Thursday and it seemed to survive that fine but on Friday it had really tore everything apart.

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“We had fans gutted ringing up saying they will come up first thing on Saturday morning to get it fixed, it was brilliant and it makes me proud to have this kind of support.”

You can support a fundraiser launched by the club here.