WESTHOUGHTON Football Club said they are fast becoming the “laughing stock of the league” because Bolton Council will not maintain their pitch.

The club, which plays in Mill Street, Westhoughton, is in danger of being unable to play due to the condition of the playing field which they claim is overgrown and covered in dog mess.

The Lancashire Sunday League team, established in 2012, pays more than £600 for the field but claim the council have said if they want to improve the pitches facilities they are to do so at their own expense.

Michael Chappell, chairman of Westhoughton FC said: “For this price the council have stated that they will not improve the changing cabin with a coat of paint but we can at our own expense.

“They have let this pitch to three separate teams which in itself will tear up the turf and more than likely will be unplayable surface come winter.

“Without fixtures in Lancashire Sunday league we only play 11 home games a season.

“The fences around the pitch are inadequate and often people are spotted on bikes — it is also overgrown and covered in dog mess.

“As you can imagine when some of the teams we play are at UCLAN arena and other such facilities we are slowly becoming the laughing stock of the league.

“We now face attempting to pick up all the dog mess and filling in as many divots as possible in the vague hope the referee will let us play our fixture.

“My lads are not pleased and our hopes for a kids team and a ladies team developing from the club are nowhere near when we can’t even have a suitable surface for our first team.”

Bolton North East MP David Crausby, who has been leading a campaign calling for more cash from lucrative TV deals be ploughed into grassroots football said teams like Westhoughton FC need support.

He said: "I urge people to support my cause for the Premier League to invest 7.5 per cent of the money into grassroots football.

"The problem is that the Premier League clubs are in competition with each other that they don't want to part with their money so that is why the government should make them.

"It is in their interests because it will develop home grown, top class English footballers so it would benefit the teams but also help other kids that are not as good as football but just love to play the game.

"With the austerity cuts it is things like grass roots football that suffers.

"Teams like Westhoughton FC need better support."