Portsmouth FC have announced plans for a new state-of-the-art training facility to be built in Gosport in time for the 2009/2010 season.
The facility will be built at Alver Valley, Lee-on-the-Solent and will have 10 full size football pitches, two mini football pitches, a three-quarter size pitch and a dedicated goalkeeping area. In addition to this, a 18,000 square foot building will be built and will contain top medical facilities as well as a media area and a refectory.
Two of the full size pitches will be made available for the local Gosport Borough schools to use as well as the facilities in the building. Peter Storrie has said that Gosport Borough Council have been "extremely supportive" and so the next hurdle is probably the hardest to overcome: the general public.
The cynic inside me says that something will stop the facility from being built and we'll continue to be left in the wilderness that is Eastleigh training ground. Still, maybe this time we will be able to overcome the big "if" and build a training facility that will attract top quality players and further cement our status as a top Premier League side.
Who knows? Maybe we'll get a new stadium too...