On Friday, a special event was held at the Cliff Hill Training Ground to officially open Exeter City Women’s new Team Hub Facility.
Throughout the summer, work has taken place at the Cliff to renovate a vacant facility and transform it into a dedicated space for the women’s first team.
The new facility includes dedicated changing rooms, physio and rehabilitation spaces, offices, a kit room, as well as meeting and social areas for the team.
Click below to view a gallery of all the rooms in the new facility:
Previously, the women’s team shared facilities with their male counterparts. However, as City Women have continued to progress through the women’s football pyramid, this has become increasingly challenging, with scheduling clashes becoming more frequent.
With just one dedicated changing and shower room available in the main Cliff Hill building, this was set to become an even greater challenge this season as the frequency of women’s team training sessions increases.
This facility has come at a minimal cost to the club, with the funding coming from several groups, including Cans4City, Grecian Goal, the Senior Reds and Nigel and Toby Hawker's cycle ride to Blackpool. This funding is also being underwritten by the Supporters’ Trust, on top of their doubled contribution to the women's team this season.
Speaking at the opening, Women’s Team Chair and Trustee Julen Beer Ayo said: “Both to the Trust, the Club Board and all the people who have made this possible, thank you.
“A facility of this standard sends a very positive message of where we see women’s football at Exeter City.”
We would also like to thank our friends at Arque Construction for their support throughout the renovation.
Abbie Britton, Women’s First Team Manager, added: “A massive thank you to everybody who has made this building possible.
“It’s not just work we have done over the last 12 months, but work that has been going on for years since the women’s team have been a consistent presence here at the Cliff Hill.
“This building is massive; I don’t think I can overstate how much of an impact it has had already during its short tenure. We’ve had new players come in and say how different it is even compared to clubs in WSL 2 and academies. This is now a real home for the players to base themselves out of.
“This is going to give us a great platform to build, and continue to push the boundaries about what this football club can do.”
You can take a look at the opening event below on Grecian+: