KELTY HEARTS have slammed damage caused to their stadium that has received £665,000 of investment as "absolutely shocking".

The football club have vowed to boot out teenagers who they say are trashing New Central Park while boozing and taking drugs in their stands.

They hit out at the "constant vandalism – which has included burn marks being left on their artificial pitch, which was installed as part of the £7.3 million Kelty Community Centre project two years ago – and trespassing amid concerns that it could lead to them losing their SFA licence.

They issued a statement on their Facebook page that said: “The police are aware of the situation and they will be visiting regularly during the day and at nights. We can’t go on like this any longer. There will be zero tolerance policy on trespassers and people in the ground who shouldn’t be.

“There has been major investment in terms of finances and time to create a place Kelty can be proud of. This can quickly be nullified by the abuse and vandalising of the pitch and surrounds.

“The only people who should be inside the ground is people who pay to use the pitch or anyone officially connected to Kelty Hearts FC.”

It continued: “This week there have been teenagers hanging around the two stands drinking and taking drugs, the evidence of this has been photographed and witnessed.

“It’s a disgrace and we will not stand for this type of behaviour. We will pull out all the stops to find these people and bring them to some sort of justice and punishment. There is a lot of anger and frustration amongst our committee and fans.”

Kelty Hearts' committee treasurer George McTrusty told the Press that they have worked hard to improve their facilities and said the recent actions were destroying these efforts.

“Seats were just starting to get installed and they have damaged some of them already,” he said. “It is getting beyond a joke. It is probably about six or seven youngsters.

“We are having to get CCTV put up which could cost thousands of pounds and then monitoring it so there is the labour of that as well.

“We are planning a lot of investment – over £250,000 worth – and it is all for the community. We have got 160 kids, women’s football, under 17s, under 20s, walking football, over 35s – around 300 participants playing football. There is nothing more pleasurable than going and seeing 100 kids playing football on the park and this is spoiling it for everyone.

“They have been going on the park and burning wee holes on the surface. It is absolutely shocking. We just want the vandalism to stop so we can enjoy the football.”

Inspector Gavin Cameron said it was “hugely disappointing” and commented: “We are carrying out patrols in this area and I would urge people to please report any anti-social behaviour or damage being caused whilst it is happening so we can respond quickly and appropriately.

“Parents and guardians have a vital role to play by ensuring they know where their children are and reminding them that such behaviour as we have seen here is not acceptable.”

Fife Council's team manager Sarah Roxburgh added: "The council has invested £665,000 in this facility for the whole community to enjoy. It's incredibly disappointing that this enjoyment is being spoiled by a thoughtless minority who are determined to cause costly damage. We will be working with the Club and police to help tackle this issue and make sure the Park is a safe place for all to enjoy."