Somervale School, in Midsomer Norton, celebrated the official opening of its new AstroTurf on Monday, 3rd November, with special guest, goalkeeper, Steve Phillips.
The new AstroTurf cost £528,000 to install, with the funds coming from money within the Federation of Norton Hill, Somervale and High Littleton Primary Schools. Eventually, the pitch will be hired out to the comminity for local clubs to use for training and matches. After completion, the pitch was rated as one of the highest quality in the area – the nearest pitch of the same calibre can be found in Swindon.
For the opening, the School invited professional goalkeeper, Steve Phillips, who has played for both Bristol Rovers and Bristol City, as well as several other Somerset teams, including Paulton Rovers.
The whole school gathered on the turf to witness the opening, which saw two students, Jordan and Ted, winning the opportunity to score the first goals on the new pitch in a penalty shootout against Steve Phillips. Jordan, who stepped up to the goal first, managed to score against the professional goalie.
Talking about the opening, Steve said: "This is such a great asset, I can't wait to have the opportunity to coach with this new facility. Hopefully, it'll give local teams the chance to improve to be the best that they can possibly be."
Headteacher, Alun Williams, along with the Somervale PE department, thanked Steve for taking part in the opening.