Tullyglass sponsorship boost for Wakehurst

WAKEHURST Football Club has received a major boost on the eve of the new football season.

The club’s shirt sponsor Tullyglass House Hotel has renewed its sponsorship deal with the Ballymena club for another three years.

It’s a huge lift for Wakehurst, who play in Belfast Telegraph Championship Two - the third highest ranked league in Northern Ireland.

“We’re absolutely delighted that Tullyglass has agreed to renew its sponsorship - particularly in the current economic climate,” Wakehurst chairman Billy Erwin told Times Sport.

“We know how difficult it is to secure smaller-scale sponsorship such as match and ball sponsorship so we are thrilled with this deal.

“Tullyglass has shown its faith in Wakehurst, even in the difficult circumstances the club finds itself in, with our well-documented situation of having to play all our matches outside Ballymena,” added Billy.

Tullyglass House Hotel manager Gus McConville said: “We want to try to help grassroots football in Ballymena and we want to see the club achieve its goal of getting back playing in Ballymena.

“The club uses the hotel regularly for team meetings, breakfast mornings, its annual table quiz and its end-of-season dinner so we’re pleased to show our support to Wakehurst in return.

“They are a very dedicated club who have done well in recent years and hopefully they can go on and achieve further success,” added Gus.

Meanwhile, Wakehurst have also signed another three-year deal this week - to continue to play their home matches at Moyola Park’s ground at Castledawson, with no further progress in their search for a ground in Ballymena which meets the criteria needed to play in Championship Two.

“We will always be extremely grateful to Moyola Park, who have been and continue to be terrific landlords, but we remain committed to our long-term target of getting back to playing in Ballymena,” added Erwin.

Wakehurst has also expressed its gratitude to Ballymena Rugby Club for the use of its Eaton Park facilities for pre-season training.