A historic £1 million stadium transformation is taking shape as Caernarfon Town FC prepares to host Under 19 European Championship games next summer.
The club is currently playing at Llandudno’s Go Goodwin Stadium while The Oval is being overhauled to meet Uefa standards for the tournament – a moment chairman Paul Evans says marks a “new era” for the Cofis.
Support from long-term backers Harlech Foodservice is proving crucial during the temporary move, helping offset lost matchday revenue and keeping the club on steady ground throughout the redevelopment.
According to Paul, the opportunity to stage European championship fixtures has given fresh momentum to the club during their enforced exile.
Paul, who has been chairman for six years, explained: “The FAW is hosting the Under 19s European Championships next summer and they asked us if we would like to be a part of it.
“Obviously we did, but the problem was that the field was not up to the standard required.
“The main problem was that there was a nine-foot slope in the field, and that would not have passed Uefa standards while the away dressing room was not big enough.
“So they are levelling the pitch for us, extending the away dressing rooms and also giving us a new match officials room, new doping and physio rooms.
“I have been supporting the club since about 1983 and nothing comes near this, this was a pipe dream, we would never have been able to do this in the past.
“We are also investing ourselves as a club in a new dugout, which costs more than £30,000, and investing in new fences and surrounds.
“But the loss of revenue and the loss of some sponsorship because we’re not playing at home, along with the investment we are doing, has cost us about £180,000.”
Paul paid tribute to Harlech Foodservice for its long-standing support of the club as it enters a new era.
He said: “Harlech over the years have been one of our main sponsors and in that time have sponsored different things such as the back of our shirts or the television gantry.
“It’s always been a substantial sponsorship from the company for the last seven or eight years, it’s been a long-term thing, and that is continuing this season.
“They have become part of the club really with their sponsorship.
“As a club we want to be associated with good, professional companies who deliver quality such as Harlech. We would certainly not be where we are without Harlech.”
Harlech Foodservice Financial Director Mike Clishem said it was important for the company to invest in and support the local community and its sports clubs.
He said one of the key reasons the firm supported the club was the work it does in the community, including the running of its successful football academy.
The academy has 200 boys on its books and the club also has a girls’ junior club with 120 youngsters.
He said: “The football club is a key part of our community here and it has a huge academy behind it as well.
“Harlech sponsoring the club helps to support the academy.
“The amount of kids involved in the academy is massive and in fact my boys, Hari and Dyfan, have been through the academy so I know how valuable it is to grassroots football.
“Having the academy is massive for us here if you think about the opportunity they are getting.
“The coaching is very good, all the coaches are accredited, and it’s all about playing the game that they all love.
“We are delighted to have continued to support the club for so many years and make that commitment on an ongoing basis.
“We do a lot in the community because it is the right thing to do.”
Paul Evans added that the regeneration of The Oval signalled fresh impetus to improve the club off and on the pitch.
He said: “The academy, for example, is really important to a club like ours.
“We rely on the academy to bring players through to the first team.
“And if we have local players coming through, that brings in more local support too.
“The investment from sponsors such as Harlech feeds into what we are doing with the academy, we need that investment to continue to invest in the kids.
“We want to continue to flourish and continue to give children in the area an opportunity to play at the highest level.
“Our aim is to be the best semi-professional team in Wales by 2030, that is our goal.
“Another goal is to play a European tie here at The Oval, for that we need another 400 seats.
“And we want to be the flag-bearers for the Welsh language in Welsh football – about 95 per cent of the people at the club speak Welsh.
“The history of the town is important to us, and the Welshness of the town is probably the most important thing to us.”
