DIRECTORS of Tadcaster Albion Football Club have abandoned plans to sell its ground for £1 million after failing to find an alternative site to re-locate to.

They now intend to focus instead on re-developing the clubhouse in a way which will prevent the main facilities being at risk of flooding.

The pitch and clubhouse in Wharfe Bank were badly flooded in late 2015 when the nearby River Wharfe burst its banks.

Club chairman Andy Charlesworth said the electrics had to be renewed and it was out of action for several months.

He said he had hoped to be able to re-locate the club to a new site in the town which was above the flood plain, not only for the benefit of the clubhouse but also so that astroturf could be laid to replace the traditional grass pitch.

An astroturf pitch would have provided the club with a greater opportunity to raise revenue by renting it out to teams to play on, but it could not be laid at Wharfe Bank because of the damage flooding could cause, unlike a grass pitch which could recover.

The land and stadium was marketed by Hunters estate agents as a "real unique opportunity", with the agents stressing: “This potential sale is due to re-location of the club, and must note that this does not affect the club or team in anyway."

They said the five acre site consisted of turnstiles, a clubhouse with kitchen, bar, seating, gents and ladies toilets, a cellar, three different changing rooms, a temporary building with a medical room, and stands with more than 300 seats, a covered terrace and a car park with 105 parking spaces.

Mr Charlesworth said there had been a great deal of interest in the ground, from organisations interested in everything from building a care home, flats or a retail building.

“We have had a number of developers come to talk to us,” he said.

However, the club’s attempts to find a suitable alternative site had foundered, with landlords unwilling to sell the freehold on sites which might have been ideal for the club.

Now the board had decided to take the ground off the market and concentrate instead on creating a new two-storey clubhouse, with the lower level made with flood resilient concrete and used for storage, and which could recover quickly after being inundated.

The main facilities would be on the second floor above the flood level, and the clubhouse could succeed in attracting more revenue from people wanting to rent it out for events.

He said a phased re-development was planned, with funding from the Football Foundation and planning permission needed before any work could start - hopefully by next spring.