Work on new soccer clubhouse is expected to start at long last

A LOCAL sports club is holding a 24-hour football marathon later this month to fundraise for the development of a clubhouse, as costs for the project have spiralled.

Kilnamanagh AFC’s plans for a clubhouse on Treepark Road have been several years in the making, as it was first mooted back in 2020.

The club then secured planning permission, but South Dublin County Council’s decision to grant permission was appealed in 2022.

After the appeal was withdrawn last March, the club was finally able to go ahead with the project – but construction costs had significantly increased since they first announced the plans.

The clubhouse is to be developed in two phases, with the first phase consisting of developing a ‘shell’ of the overall structure.

When the club first lodged its planning application in 2021, the expected cost for the first phase was €220k, but it has now risen to €350k.

John Murphy from Kilnamanagh AFC told The Echo: “Work is due to commence on phase one on June 20.

“Phase one is building the shell, and phase two is fitting it out, but now we don’t have enough money to do the full thing.”

The club previously fundraised for the clubhouse, raising €110k and securing a €150k National Sports Capital Grant, and thought they would have enough to bring the project to completion.

However, the increased construction costs have left the club with a shortfall which they’re aiming to address with a series of fundraisers, so they can ensure there’s enough money for the project to progress to the second phase.

The club will be holding a 24-hour football marathon from June 23 through to June 24 at their all-weather pitch, and a white-collar boxing match will be held in the community centre in September.

Kilnamanagh AFC needs the clubhouse, according to Mr Murphy, as it currently has over 600 members but doesn’t have its own toilet facilities, changing rooms or indoor training facilities.

“The clubhouse will give us toilet facilities, changing rooms, and indoor training facilities, because in bad weather training gets called off, but this means we could train indoors during the winter months,” he said.

Donations to the club’s fundraiser can be made online at www.tinyurl.com/ KAFCFunds, and further information is available on the Kilnamanagh AFC Facebook page.

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