Derry City's 'masterplan' for new south stand and Academy structures afoot

Derry City CEO Sean Barrett was optimistic about the future of Brandywell after Stormont signed off on the sub regional stadia funding.

DERRY City Chief Executive, Sean Barrett insists the club's 'masterplan' doesn't stop at the completion of the Mark Farren Stand and the new North Terrace at Brandywell with plans afoot for an incredible long-term transformation of its facilities.

The Lone Moor Road club is expected to be among the chief beneficiaries of the long-awaited £36.2 million of government funding for sub-regional stadia which was finally unlocked by Sports Minister Gordon Lyons on Wednesday afternoon - 14 years after it was first promised.

Re-packaged as The Northern Ireland Football Fund, the investment is made available for clubs to improve grounds and facilities and will be rolled out in April 2025 once clubs pass 'new criteria' checks.

While no decision has been made on who will receive a share of the monies, Mr Lyons insists the funding will go towards 'high quality projects'.

A view of the Ryan McBride Brandywell Stadium and Mark Farren Stand.

And City's CEO, Mr Barrett is confident Derry has a strong case to secure finance which will go towards the completion of phase two of the Mark Farren Stand.

"We've been told it's probably the strongest case of all the clubs who have put in for it," said Mr Barrett. "We're hopefully getting funding and getting the Mark Farren Stand started sooner rather than later."

The Brandywell's North Terrace is currently under construction off site and while it's highly unlikely it will be in position for Derry's European fixtures this summer, Mr Barrett insists it will be ready for the start of next season.

The completion of both stands would increase the capacity of the Council-owned stadium from 3,689 to an impressive 7,408. And the club also have plans in place for future developments which reflect the club's ambitions on the pitch, including a fourth ‘south stand’ at Brandywell, new training pitches and a training dome.

An artist's impression of the new North Stand which will be in place by next season.

"We have got new plans as well," added Mr Barrett. "Our masterplan doesn't just stop at the Mark Farren stand. We're talking about a stand on the south side and developing the academy structures, getting new facilities for training. Three trianing pitches. "As we all know the facilities in the north west are all really, really poor when it comes to soccer. When you look at other parts of the country it's disgraceful to be honest and we need to do something more about it.

"But we're bringing in the academy structures, bringing in the pitches, bringing in an astro and bringing in a dome - this is all part of our masterplan for the next 10 to 15 years."