A NORTH-EAST solar panel maker is powering a football team to glory.

Romag, of Leadgate, near Consett, County Durham, has made 200 solar panels for Championship side Doncaster Rovers' Keepmoat Stadium.

Bosses expect the 50KW system to save the club £3,000 in its first year, and the deal means Rovers are the first football league club to fit solar panels on their stadium.

Phil Murray, Romag managing director, hopes it will lead to more contracts with sports teams.

He said: “We have been making panels in the UK for many years and are proud to have supplied panels for such a project.

“It’s great that Rovers chose a UK branded panel for their stadium, and we are in talks with several sporting venues and hope to help them achieve similar benefits in the near future.”

Earlier this year, Romag, which also makes glass, secured a 27-year deal to supply windows for Hitachi Rail Europe's trains.

Hitachi will build more than 860 carriages at its £82m factory in Newton Aycliffe, County Durham, from 2016 for the Government's Intercity Express Programme, creating 730 North-East jobs and revamping the UK's 40-year-old high-speed train fleet.

The contract runs for five years but Romag says the deal could extend to at least 27 years as it carries out maintenance and replacement of damaged windows.