STEETON have moved to update supporters on the latest situation at Marley Stadium, as the club prepares to make it its home ahead of the 2020/21 football season.

The Chevrons will have to play their home friendly against Avro on Saturday at Summerhill Lane, but chairman Pete Jeffrey says he is quietly confident the new ground will be ready for the start of the North West Counties League season on October 3.

In a statement, Steeton said: "Members of the club recently met with representatives from Bradford Council to view and discuss progress at Marley.

"The Council are funding the £280,000 redevelopment of the site, which includes relaying the playing surface, improving the floodlights and preparing the facility to meet FA guidelines for hosting Step Six football.

"Marley will remain open to the general public and it’s hoped the improvements will help grow the popularity and accessibility of grassroots football in the area."

Jeffrey is confident that the Marley redevelopment will be done soon, saying: "Work has begun on the installation of a new FIFA-accredited 3G playing surface, which will allow league matches to be played at the stadium.

"Extensive groundworks are in progress ahead of the new surface, which is set to be delivered in two weeks."

He added: "With the current situation there is a great deal of work still to do to meet the current requirements but I’m sure we will get there.

"It was great to see the old surface removed and engineers starting on extending the groundworks. Our new stand is also in place along with the refreshment cabin.

"We have booked the FIFA tests for the beginning of October and there is still more work to be completed but things are looking good for the start of the season."

The club expressed their gratitude to local business HA McEwen Ltd for their excellent work in converting two 25ft containers into the new 100-seater stand.

The stand, along with the new ticket booth and refreshments cabin, has now been installed at Marley.

First team manager Roy Mason said: "It was great to see the stand now in place and our committee deserves a great deal of credit for working tirelessly behind the scenes to get things sorted.

"The news that work has finally started on the pitch has given everyone a huge boost and we can now look forward to playing at a fine facility with an excellent playing surface."

Steeton added: "Support from local businesses and the donations to our Marley fundraiser have proved invaluable and we are extremely grateful for the generosity of local people during this difficult period.

"We welcome the decision from the FA to allow fans to attend non-league matches at Step Three and below and are looking forward to welcoming spectators to Marley once the work has been completed.

"The NWCFL has set an October 3 start for the 2020/21 season, when up to 300 fans are to be allowed in stadiums.

"Ahead of the new season, we still have some great opportunities at Marley to promote your company to a large local audience.

"There is a range of sponsorship packages available, including pitch-side advertising and branding options."