A hardware store has struck a deal to renovate a Pembroke sports club, it was revealed yesterday.

Gorham’s, on St John’s Road, will improve the pitch at Western Stars Sports Club, better known as the home of football club Dandy Town, and renovate the clubhouse in return for a nearby strip of unused Government land, to be used to create a connecting road to its store.

The plan was announced yesterday by Lieutenant-Colonel David Burch, the public works minister, at Dandy Town’s St John’s Field. Devarr Boyles, the president of Western Stars, said the club would divide up its programmes among Northlands Primary, West End Primary and the Berkeley Institute while work was carried out.

Shawnette Perot, the club’s secretary, added: “With this venture, real value will be added to the Pembroke West area. We foresee a purpose-built facility that can be used for major local and international events.”

Andrew Mackay, the general manager of Gorham’s, said: “The children are the ones that are really going to be able to enjoy this ground after a lot of us have got our walking canes and moved on.”

Colonel Burch said the deal was “a testament to working collaboratively”.

He added that the Western Stars had operated in Pembroke West for more than 100 years and that Gorham’s had been a fixture of the area for about 80 years. He said the club’s site was “plagued with uneven grounds, leading to frequent flooding”, which often made it unusable for weeks at a time. Colonel Burch added: “The clubhouse, erected in the 1970s, is in dire need of refurbishment.”

He said the refurbishment work had the backing of the Government and would start “as quickly as possible”.

The minister was joined at the club by his godson, Kayden, aged 9, the newest player on the club’s youth football team.

Gorham’s pitched the proposal to the Government in December and the Estates Department co-ordinating meetings.

Colonel Burch said that Gorham’s could “get cracking” as soon as approval came from the Department of Planning.