Dozens of youngsters have gained the honour of being trailblazers in trying out new multimillion-pound sports facilities in the north-east.
Groups, including local boxers, gymnasts and Brownies, used the hall at Macduff Community and Sports centre on Saturday for the first time.
The £3.5million resource also includes an all-weather pitch and it’s anticipated local football and rugby teams will make good use of the new amenities.
Launching it, John Harding, chief officer of Aberdeenshire Council’s leisure service, described the base as a “great new facility” for the town.
In the future, local groups will be able to book the centre for their own use and local councillor Mark Findlater said last night the port had “turned a corner”.
Families in Macduff had waited for years for a new sports facility to be delivered and were nearly disappointed when supermarket giant Tesco pulled out of a deal to develop a park in the Myrus area last year.
The retailer had originally hoped to part-fund a replacement for Canal Park – where it intended to build a store – before dropping the plans.
Mr Findlater said: “I’ve always been positive and optimistic that we could sort things out.
“And we won through in the end with a bit of perseverance from council officers.
“Here we are now with an excellent facility for the people of this area. We’ve waited a long time for it and all our groups, included children and the elderly, can use it.
“That’s what this facility is all about – the benefit of our community.”
His colleagues, Hamish Partridge and John Cox, have also welcomed the scheme.
Mr Partridge said: “It has been a long road getting here. There has been a lot of consultation, a lot of questions and hurdles.
“But thankfully, we have got here. It will be a fantastic facility.”
Mr Cox, chairman of the local area committee, added: “It’s another milestone in the regeneration of Banff and Macduff.”
