'You haven't stopped us,' says chairman after suspected arson at Fleetwood Gym

Four fire engines from Fleetwood, Bispham and Blackpool, and an aerial ladder platform from Preston, were called to King George's Playing Fields at 12.30am on Tuesday after a fire broke out at the sports pavilion.

After investigations by Lancashire Fire and Rescue, the fire was believed to have been started deliberately, but no arrests have been made so far.

The brick hut used by grassroots club Fleetwood Gym JFC, founded in 1894, was used for equipment storage and thousands of pounds worth of damage was caused.

Communities across the Fylde coast and neighbouring football clubs have come together since the fire to support Fleetwood Gym, donating nearly £3,000 to help it recover.

Club chairman John Egan, 57, from Fleetwood, said he was proud to be "born and bred" in the town and was "humbled" by the outpouring of support the club had received.

"We still had children coming to training on Tuesday night, so whoever did this hasn't stopped us, we go again and we'll come back even better," he said.

"I've been so humbled by all the clubs and people I don't know who have messaged me to offer their help or show us support.

"Football clubs may have rivalries, but what this has shown is that we all want the same thing - to keep children off the streets, and give them somewhere to play.

"We worked so hard to get to where we were, and this isn't going to stop us."

Catering equipment, goalposts, nets, kits, two fridge freezers and marquees used for tournaments were all destroyed in the fire, amounting to costs the club cannot afford to replace.

Neighbouring club Fleetwood Town Juniors set up a Go Fund Me page after the fire, which has raised £2,764 so far.

A spokesman for Fleetwood Town Juniors said: "Our chairman is the league chairman and as a welfare team we were discussing how awful it was and what a shame for the children who had only in recent months gone back to football after Covid-19 stopping grassroots.

"We discussed offering some of our own equipment that we could spare to help games to still go ahead, and then it was suggested a Go Fund Me was a quick way to support a local football team who needed our help.

"Everyone has already been so generous and we’ve already raised nearly £3,000 since Monday. We’ve also had offers to provide items to help rebuild the building too.

"It’s important at times like to all help each other and this was how we felt we could help as a club."