K-Park Training Academy

K-Park Training Academy is a training ground in the St Leonards area of East Kilbride, South Lanarkshire. It is located within the site of Calderglen Country Park. It is the home ground of Lowland Football League team East Kilbride and Scottish Women's Premier League team Celtic.

History

K-Park was opened in May 2011 by the East Kilbride Community Trust (EKCT), who had previously drawn up plans that would give the large town a top-quality, UEFA-standard sports facility. Former Rangers and Scotland footballer Ally McCoist, who is from East Kilbride, officially opened the first phase of the new facility on 25 September 2011.^[1][2]

K-Park will be used as the home ground for the newly formed football club East Kilbride, who were founded in 2010, one year before the facilities official opening. They will play their first league matches at the venue before relocating to a proposed site near Langlands Golf Course.^[3] The local rugby team East Kilbride RFC also train at the facility. K-Park became the new permanent home of Celtic Women from March 2015.^[4]

Structure and facilities

It is mainly Third Generation synthetic football pitches that are at the facility, used by local clubs and clubs from the Scottish Football League. The parks are also easily convertible for rugby training.

The pitches at K-Park (of which there is one 11-a-side pitch and two 7-a-sides) are unusual, in that they consist of a mixture of quartz sand and rubber granules. This is to reduce the likelihood of an injury sustained or lower the impact of a fall, as well as allowing better ball control for the players that use the facility.

Praise

The K-Park Training Academy has received numerous amounts of praise from many famous names, particularly in Scottish football. Former Rangers goalkeeper Andy Goram has stated that some clubs of the Scottish Premier League lack the facilities of K-Park, and that it is an ideal place to nurture young players.^[5] The football manager Walter Smith has spoken of the need for more facilities like the K-Park to be built around Scotland,^[6] and clubs such as Clyde have used the facility for pre-season training, with manager Jim Duffy saying that it has all the requirements for his team.^[7]

Future

Since the opening of the K-Park in May 2011, it has been a place that many residents of East Kilbride have attended regularly, due to the fact it provides amenities bringing a high level of health and well being to users. Due to K-Park's increasing popularity, the EKCT have decided to press ahead with the next phase, which would include a Gym Area, an indoor multi-use area and public toilets. These are to be attached to the rear end of the changing area building.^[8]

Also, there is a new 400-seater stand under construction on the 11-a-side pitch, that will allow seating for spectators during matches.^[9]

The trust deemed these changes necessary since the average footfall to K-Park is around 3,000 per week, a figure that is set to grow once the next phase of works are completed.^[9]

External links

• Website of the K-Park Training Academy
• East Kilbride Community Trust

References