The future of Peebles Rovers in the balance

For several years now, there has been increasing pressure on the Club from The East of Scotland Football League (EOSFL) to upgrade our facilities. Changes to the minimum League criteria a few years ago resulted in home and away dugouts being added to the Alec Lucas stand along with permanent and semi-permanent pitch surrounds.

Since the elevation of the EOSFL to the Scottish Football Pyramid, these minimum ground criteria have become significantly more stringent, to such an extent that the Club has been forced to actively seek an alternative ground to play from. Whitestone Park has been the home of Peebles Rovers for almost 120 years but as it is not possible to make the necessary upgrades to this area, it has been deemed necessary that we find a new home.

Over the last few years, we have engaged with several senior figures at Scottish Borders Council (SBC) in the hope that we could find a workable solution. Multiple promises have been made and broken and leaving the Club in a seriously precarious position.

Last week, we were summoned to an EOSFL meeting to outline our plans but as what appeared to be our last hope of survival, a ground share with Peebles RFC at The Gytes, has met with both opposition and funding issues, we had virtually nothing to appease the league authorities with.

Whilst, from our perspective, it is clearly disappointing that there is opposition to sharing The Gytes, it is perfectly within the rights of Peebles RFC to want to retain sole ownership the lease so we just need to live with the consequences of this no matter how damaging it is to our future and to the local sport community. The only alternative to this would now be to find somewhere to start completely from scratch. Even if this became a possibility, should anyone local have suitable ground they could lease to the club, the timescales involved would not be consistent with our continuous participation in the EOSFL. Clearly, if there was potential to relocate somewhere else, we would then be able to fundraise for a specific project and hopefully be able to re-enter the EOSFL in a compliant facility in the future.

In terms of timescale, if we do not have a compliant ground by March 2026, we would be demoted to the lowest division of the EOSFL and if by Match 2027 we did not have the necessary ground, we would be ejected from the League. Clearly, this scenario severely impacts our ability to sign and motivate players going into next season where all they could be playing for is relegation from the outset.

What a shame this would be to see a 132 year old club potentially go to the wall due to a lack of sporting facilities in the town that are commensurate with the 21st century. Many people over the years, and in fact decades, have worked tirelessly for this club but it’s very existence is now threatened. If the club ceases to exist, it would bring an end to our active support of Peeblesshire Foodbank and the Alec Lucas Memorial Trust. It would also remove the pathway for local kids to play in the town from the age of five right up to senior football.

So, whilst time is very much against us, we are far from giving up and if necessary will continue to work behind the scenes to help ensure the club comes back better, stronger and in a facility that will inspire future generations.

If anyone at all feels they can help the club in any way, whether it be potentially with land which could be leased and developed, financially or just with any advice or help at all, please do get in touch and we will be delighted to speak with you.

Together, we can all save the future of Peebles Rovers!