Blackpool FC forced to train in Preston due to scorched pitches at Squires Gate

Blackpool Football Club's well-publicised training ground issues have reared their head again after manager Gary Bowyer and his players were forced to train in Preston due to the poor state of Squires Gate's pitches.
Pool boss Gary Bowyer and physio Phil Horner at Squires GatePool boss Gary Bowyer and physio Phil Horner at Squires Gate
Pool boss Gary Bowyer and physio Phil Horner at Squires Gate
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Due to the recent heat and a lack of water, the pitches at Squires Gate were considered unusable as they were too hard.

So prior to their pre-season trip to Scotland earlier this month, Pool's squad trained at Lightfoot Lane in Preston, the home of Fulwood Amateurs.

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Fulwood Amateurs wrote on Twitter: "Great insight into how a pro club tackle pre-season. Good to have Blackpool FC at the green."

The club’s Squires Gate training ground has long been the talk of players and managers alike at Bloomfield Road, with Ian Holloway once describing the facility as a ‘hellhole’.

Former Blackpool and England international Trevor Sinclair also '¨described it as a ‘disgrace’ with the facilities long being a point of ridicule for the club.

In 2016, former Pool boss Neil McDonald claimed one of the pitches at Squires Gate had been under water for a "couple of months".

In July last year, bulldozers were brought in to demolish the dilapidated buildings at Squires Gate.