A County Durham football club has been given a pre-season boost after a team of water workers swapped pipe replacement work to take a shot at groundskeeping.

The team from Northumbrian Water and United Living are working in Annfield Plain, renewing 26km of water mains and supporting customers by offering free replacements for lead pipes.

While carrying out the £4.9m project to protect water quality and supplies in the area, the team took time out to visit Wearside League Premier Division side Annfield Plain AFC’s 2,900 capacity Derwent Park ground.

There, they carried out strimming on the crowd standing area, painted the stands and dugouts, and weeded the footpath, helping the 134-year-old club get ready for pre-season.

A team from Northumbrian Water spruced up a County Durham football ground while they were carrying out work in the areaA team from Northumbrian Water spruced up a County Durham football ground while they were carrying out work in the area (Image: NORTHUMBRIAN WATER)

The Northumbrian Water team used time from the company’s Just An Hour volunteering scheme to carry out the work.

Northumbrian Water’s Project Manager, Brian Hardy said: “Working on a project like this, we are very much embedded into the community, so it’s great to be able to give something back, to thank people for their patience and understanding of the inevitable disruption these necessary can bring.

"And what’s more at the heart of a community than its football club, so helping Annfield Plain AFC with getting Derwent Park ready for the coming season was a great opportunity to show our appreciation.”

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Derek Kemp, chairman of Annfield Plain AFC, said: “We at Annfield Plain AFC would like to give Northumbrian Water and United Living an enormous vote of thanks, for the work they carried out for our football club.

“It came at a very important time for us, as we had a problem with our grass cutters. They came in and did the jobs we asked and never stopped working.

“As a consequence we got our pitch in great condition for the new season. You never know - maybe promotion.”