The Larne Academy of Sport was officially opened this morning in the presence of a number of specially invited guests.
The facility, formerly known as the Cliff, has become the training base for Larne Football Club and will be used by the senior side as well as our full-time Scholarship programme and Academy teams.
Over the last number of months, it has been transformed inside and out, with the laying of a brand new 4G pitch, while the building has been entirely rebranded inside.
Throughout the week the facility is also used extensively by local community and other sporting organisations.
As part of the reopening of the facility this morning, guests heard a number of keynote speeches from those who have played a key role in helping to breath new life into the site. Guests also saw a special community day on the newly-laid pitch to showcase the intended use throughout the week.
A number of sporting icons, who adorn the walls inside the building were also in attendance, as well as BBC Sport NI’s Joel Taggart and Liam Beckett, who officially cut the ribbon.
Kenny Bruce said: “We launched our new vision in September, entitled For The Town and this is at the heart of the new Larne Academy of Sport.
“It is a fabulous environment for Tiernan and his players to work in day-to-day. The new pitch also brings up the standard for them to work on how we want to play.
“Inside the building there has been an exciting rebrand and pays tribute to more than 130 years of history Larne Football Club proudly boasts, as well as a number of local sporting icons from the town, throughout the decades.
“We hope this provides an inspiration for a great number of our community who will also use this in the evenings and at weekends.
“We are very excited to see what further impact our Academy of Sport can have on this town for generations to come.”
