Affiliated with the "Malta Football Association"
Registered with the "Kunsill Malti ghall-iSport"
Affiliated with the "Youth Football Association"
Registered with the "Kunsill Malti ghall-iSport"
BALZAN YOUTHS FC - TRAINING FACILITIES UPGRADE
As from its foundation, Balzan Youths FC committees were always preoccupied of not having adequate training facilities for their teams. In the early years our teams used to train in a small open space behind Balzan Parish Church, where now there is the playing field. We had to wait till 1981 to have a decent place for training when the Maltese Government decided to build a football ground adjacent to Balzan / Lija School. This hard surface pitch ground had to be shared between the football clubs of the two small neighbouring villages of Balzan and Lija. During the years this pitch proved to be adequate but Balzan Youths FC Committees always wished to have a football ground of their own. They tried hard to find an alternative place in Balzan but this never materialized as land in the small village of Balzan is very scarce. As an alternative, recently the two football committees of Balzan and Lija decided to upgrade the available facilities. The present Balzan Youths FC President - Mr. George Borg, since he joined the committee way back in 1998, showed his intention to provide decent training facilities for our teams and he made a big effort to see it materialize.
In 2007, a good opportunity came about as the Malta Football Association announced that UEFA was offering assistance to local clubs to upgrade their facilities through the “Hat-trick Programme”. To upgrade our facilities a substantial financial commitment was necessary and it was impossible for us to see this come through without external assistance. This idea of upgrading our training facilities was conveyed to our main sponsor Mr. Anton Tagliaferro, of IML Investors Ltd in Australia, who apart from approving the project offered his financial assistance to us. To compliment this, the Maltese Government also offered assistance to those clubs ready to upgrade their facilities - through the “Kunsill Malti ghall-iSport”, the “National Lottery Good Causes Fund” and by other means. We took this opportunity and now our wish came through as Balzan Youths FC now have decent training facilities with an artificial turf pitch.
This project, which had to be carried out jointly with Lija Athletic FC, got underway in February 2009 by the signing of an agreement between the two clubs, the Malta Football Association and the Maltese Authorities. In August 2009 the project was given the go ahead. Since then a lot of work has been carried out ( as one can see from the series of photos shown below ) and the project was completed in March 2011.
The Balzan FC nursery clubhouse named "Tagliaferro - Borg Training Complex", after Balzan Youths FC Honorary President and Sponsor Mr. Anton Tagliaferro and Balzan Youths FC President Mr. George Borg, was inaugurated on Sunday 13th March 2011 by the Deputy Prime Minister Dr. Tonio Borg LLD MP - read more.
Although the whole project has not been inaugurated yet, training sessions of all the teams and the nursery are already being conducted on the playing area.
We take this opportunity to thank all those who gave us a hand to make this wish come through. This project could not have materialized without the initiative of our President Mr. George Borg who was assisted by Treasurer Mr. Peter Cipriott. The assistance from our main sponsor Mr. Anton Tagliaferro was instrumental, as he was always there when we asked for it. So thank you very much Anton for your interest and assistance in this project. We would also like to thank the Malta Football Association officials who were involved in getting assistance from UEFA and of course UEFA itself in helping us seeing this project through. Another special thanks go to the Maltese Government for the financial assistance given to us, by the Finance Ministry through the “Kunsill Malti ghall-iSport and the “National Lottery Good Causes Fund” and the Ministry of Urban & Rural Affairs for replacing the fence around the pitch. We would also like to thank all those involved in helping us obtaining this assistance. A special thanks to you Mr. Joseph Falzon A & CE, architect in charge of this project, for his work carried out without receiving any compensation. We also take this opportunity to thank all the contractors involved in this project for their good workmanship.
Now we can boast of having good standard training facilities, with artificial turf, where all our teams, including the nursery, can operate from.
The committee
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Sequence of activities – BYFC Training Facilities Upgrade
16th May 2007 - First application to Maltese Authorities to claim rights over the land where the football ground is built.
3rd December 2008 - President George Borg and Treasurer Peter Cipriott were delegated to be in charge of the project from Balzan Youths FC side.
10th December 2008 - Architect Mr. Joe Falzon prepared the first plans for the project
27th February 2009 - Agreement between Balzan Youths FC, Lija Athletic FC and the Kunsill Malti ghall-iSport giving the clubs the management and administration rights of the Sports Facilities which was to be upgraded.
30th July 2009 - The excavation of the foundation of the Balzan Youths FC clubhouse was completed.
1st September 2009 - Permission to start on building given by the MEPA.
From 3rd August 2009 till 14th April 2010 - Building of the new Training facilities and clubhouse carried out by contractor - Mario Vella
From 20th March 2010 till 14th September 2010 - Plastering and painting carried out by contractor - Karim
From 12th April 2010 till 18th November 2010 - Electrical and plumbing works of building carried out by Clifford Cipriott
From 22nd April 2010 till 1st December 2010 - Backfilling and levelling of pitch carried out by contractor – Polidano Brothers Limited
From 17th May 2010 till 19th June 2010 - Supply and laying of tiles inside the building by contractor - Josies Limited
From 19th June 2010 till 14th September 2010 - Supply and fixing of Aluminum apertures and handrails of building by contractor - Brian Bonello
From 19th July 2010 till 18th November 2010 - Supply and installation of electrical works including the Floodlighting system of pitch by contractor – Joe Camilleri
From 4th August till 30th October 2010 - Supply and fixing of new fence around the pitch by workers from the Ministry of Urban & Rural Affairs
From 2nd December 2010 till 3rd March 2011 - Supply and laying of artificial turf on top of the pitch by contractor – 389 Ltd.
13th March 2011 - The "Tagliaferro - Borg Training Complex" was inaugurated by Deputy Prime Minister - Dr. Tonio Borg LLD MP, Balzan Mayor Dr. John Zammit Montebello MD, Balzan Youths FC Honorary President and Sponsor - Mr. Anton Tagliaferro, Balzan Youths FC President Mr. George Borg and Balzan Youths FC Committee Members. A commemorative plaque, for this occasion, was blessed by Balzan parish Priest Dun Kalcidon Vassallo - read more.
Other sponsors :
