A date has been set to start work on Beccles Town Football Club’s £770,000 3G pitch after a “last-minute technicality” delayed the project.

Contractors will begin work on Monday, October 15 – around a month later than originally planned.

The club received planning permission for the state-of-the-art facility, which will be built at The Nest off Common Lane South, in May and assumed it could start building as soon as possible.

However it did not factor in the period in which nearby residents could lodge objections to the project.

A spokesman said: “Unfortunately, a few weeks were lost as we encountered a last-minute technicality with the planning which resulted in a delay.”

Chairman David Leech added: “We had to see if there were any final objections, which there wasn’t.

“It was nothing too severe; we originally thought we wouldn’t have to wait. It just delayed things a bit.”

Since the project was announced in May last year the club has received an outpouring of support which allowed it to raise the £770,000 in such as short period through fundraising and local business grants.

And with the start dating getting ever closer Mr Leech spoke of his excitement.

He said: “It’s still for me a little unreal. It won’t feel real until we get the diggers in there.

“When we started it was just a pipe dream and now it’s going to happen. It’s great for the club and great for the town.”

The pitch is set to transform grassroots football in Beccles and the surrounding communities by allowing players of all ages to train all year round. Mr Leech added: “I think from our point of view it’s great to get more kids exercising and the ability for them to play all year round is huge.

“To have little kids playing on the same surface as their footballing heroes will help them progress.”

Plans are in place for other local sports clubs, such as cricket and rugby, to also use the facility.

The chairman said: “We are trying to bring a community feel to the clubs.

“As a club we have worked incredibly hard for this, it’s something we are providing for the town. It shows we are not just a football club.”