A VILLAGE football club has been left in despair after vandals destroyed several goalposts leaving it with a damages bill amounting to thousands of pounds.

Police are investigation after the latest in several attacks on the Heighington Football Club, in Heighington, near Darlington.

Club chairman David Brassell said: “It was really disheartening and annoying to find they had totally smashed all our goalposts.

“Since lockdown, after Christmas, we have numerous goals damaged and have had to repair them each time.

“But this time round they have been just literally smashed to pieces. We believe the latest attack was over the weekend of February 14 to 15. “We are going to have to replace these goalposts. About six have been destroyed. It is going to cost us thousands of pounds. You just ask why would they do it?”

He added; “We are all volunteers and put a lot of time and effort into making these clubs work for the community.

“We are trying to get young people and children involved from an early age – helping them into society and teaching them life skills and to communicate, so they are not sat on computers all the time.

“It is terribly frustrating that people can just come along and damage equipment. I bet they wouldn’t do it if it was their younger brother’s football team.”

Mr Brassell said the club had suffered ongoing problems in the past, with people gathering to drink alcohol and leaving pizza boxes and litter lying around.

He said: “It wasn’t that long ago there were gangs gathering for fights and they were smashing bottles all over the football field. So we were going around trying to find glass."

A Durham Police spokesperson said: “This was a mindless act of vandalism. We would like to appeal to anyone who has any information that could help our investigation to come to forward and speak to us.

“Please call us on 101, quoting crime reference number CRI00318903 with any information.”