A PONTYPOOL football club has spoken of its hope that the decision to green light 31 new gipsy traveller pitches in Race will end its 15 year wait for a home ground.

Residents and councillors have spoken of their concern at the plan to extend the current council-run Shepherds Hill site onto the former playing fields in Lower Race.

But Race AFC have said they hope it will bring some good news for them in turn.

The site being advanced is the former Race AFC football pitch, which was closed in 1995 for health and safety reasons due to shallow mining subsidence.

But land is allocated at the Eastern Fields, Cwmynyscoy for a new playing field within the Local Development Plan.

The club now plays at Pontypool College. But this week its senior secretary, Scott Jenkins spoke out to say that now a decision has been made, there is fresh hopes a pitch in Lower Race can become a reality - allocated in an original application by the council to convert the former football pitch site.

He said: "We are still waiting but there has been meetings and we hope that the council will work with us to develop a home ground for the club.

"We would hope to get a 3G pitch so we can use it in all weathers and get suitable changing room facilities."

He explained that the club, which runs six junior sides and two senior sides, has lost players who move to clubs offering better facilities, and he hopes that a new home pitch would stop this.

A Torfaen council spokesman confirmed that discussions with the club are ongoing.

The application agreed last week is to construct 31 new permanent pitches in three phases, with associated public open space, a children’s play area and landscaping.

It will cost £3.7m with around £800,000 in remediation costs to reduce the risks of subsidence and the rest to construct it.

Plans include vehicular access from Lower Race Road and the upgrading of the existing public footpath from the site to Blaendare Road and a new footpath to the adjacent Shepherds Hill site.

The plans were given the go ahead as well as a condition added to look into the feasibility of low level lighting being placed on the footpath.

The council has a duty under the Housing (Wales) Act 2014 to undertake an accommodation needs assessment for Gipsies and Travellers in the borough and allocate sufficient sites in its LDP.