After over eighteen months of numerous meetings with Flintshire County Council, Connah’s Quay High School and other relevant parties, overcoming obstacles as well as putting business plan etc together, last week our official application was received by the Football Association of Wales.

Planning application has been complete and a Transfer of Control Agreement being agreed between Flintshire County Council and the football club.

Our application is a venture which will see 25% of the project funded by gap Personnel which highlights their continued commitment to the football club in particular the academy with the remaining 75% if the bid is successful coming from the FAW.

We hope to hear of the FAWs decision in January and if successful work will start around Easter time 2015.

The plan will see a brand new state of the art FIFA 1 star 3G pitch laid down on the current astro turf at Connah’s Quay High School. As well as a new pitch their will be new fencing and floodlights. The pitch dimensions will be identical to the first team stadium pitch with three 7 a side pitches running across and 2 9 a side pitches also.

The bid will include 8 brand new state of the art goals including 2 11 a side goals and 6 junior goals which can be used for 7v7, 8v8 and 9v9 fixtures and all rolling and moveable which will aid in game set up and for all trainings.

For the football club the 3G would see all academy sides train at the facility twice a week and see all games take place on the pitch from U8 to U19 ensuing the highest standard of football both in training and games for the development of our players.

With this facility their will also be the opportunity to increase our games programme with mid week games for all age groups also.

Our aim is for the facility to become the biggest football hub in Wales. As well as the Nomads academy, Connah’s Quay High School will be able to use the facility from 9:00 till 17:00 every day enabling not just football but other sports to be played in the PE curriculum for the school with nearly 1000 students boys and girls.

The aim is for the facility to be the most used 3G in Wales and a real hub of Deeside with our partner clubs gap Northop Hall girls using the facility along with gap Deeside Dragons and other Deeside junior and senior clubs including Connah’s Quay Tigers, Deeside Phoenix, Aston Park Rangers and other interested local junior and senior league clubs across Flintshire.

If successful the second phase of the project will see Nomads also maintain and look after the four grass pitches which will be maintained by a full time groundsman and ensure as well as 3G pitch their will be four top class grass pitches maintained to the highest standards for our academy and local junior games. Cut, rolled and marked every week.

As well as this we will be looking to make a futsal court in the indoor hall and take over the running of the community centre where refreshments will be available for all parents etc and for the club to have an official base for the academy and football club.

To have all this within a few hundred metres of the Deeside Stadium where our first team play along with Coleg Cambria Deeside with our scholarship programme including indoor hall and state of the art gym in Lifestyle Fitness and conference centre, this training facility on top would make our club the envy of professional clubs and allow the club to really go to the next level.

With all first team, scholars and goalkeeper sessions moved to the 3G it will also allow our already impressive stadium grass pitch to improve even more with fewer games and will allow it to still be used for Welsh internationals as it is a grass surface at U16, 17 or 21 age groups.

The vision is to have a fully accessible 3G facility for local sides to train and play on as well as four top class pitches to ensure games of the highest standard and at a single venue potentially have five games running at any single time and to be the biggest football facility in Wales.

A massive project which if successful will be not only huge for gap Connah’s Quay Nomads but also for all local Deeside clubs and the community.

The club and owners have fully pushed this over the last eighteen months and it is a massive step for our application and all necessary documentation to be with the FAW.

Ourselves along with a number of other clubs who have applied will find out whether we have been successful or not by mid January.

A massively exciting time for everyone involved in gap Connah’s Quay Nomads and we look forward to a successful bid and the work to begin on our very own 3G facility in 2015.