Rye vow to rise from ashes of fire

Rye United Football Club has vowed to fight on after its clubhouse was destroyed by fire.

The Sidney Allnutt Pavilion, which dates back to the late 1950s and is also used by Rye Cricket Club, was the victim of an arson attack in the early hours of Saturday morning.

Football club chairman Clive Taylor said: "The question was asked by several people on the committee 'do we carry on or don't we'?

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"But we've set ourselves up to get back in county one which we've done and set ourselves up to be a successful football club. We will survive."

The football club's first home game of the campaign is scheduled to be a first team fixture against Hassocks on Saturday September 11, although Taylor concedes it is unlikely to take place at The Salts.

United are looking into alternative venues and have received offers from Westfield, Little Common and Bexhill United, although Hastings United, who staged several Westfield games after their clubhouse fire last September, are unable to assist. Ashford Town is an avenue they are exploring.

The football club also said it has got the go-ahead from The Salts' landowner Rother District Council to install portable buildings as a temporary form of accommodation just so that it can play home matches at home as soon as possible.

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Taylor was insistent, however, that should there be a replacement building, it would again belong to the football club. He said: "We would have to finance it ourselves, but the football club owns the pavilion and that's how it will stay."

The full article, along with the thoughts of Rye United stalwart Jim Sellman, will appear in tomorrow's Rye Observer.