Latimer Park to host Sports’ final ‘home’ game of the season against Darlington

The news was confirmed last night with Sports being forced to switch to a different venue after concerns had been raised over their Bee Arena ground being able to host the game due to their reduced capacity and the likelihood of a large following from Darlington.

The capacity is currently reduced due to Sports carrying out work on their ground to bring it up to standard to remain at Step 2.

The Peterborough club had been due to complete the work by the end of March but, in a rare move, were granted an extension until the end of this month by the National League to finish the work off.

Kettering’s home is the nearest Category B ground to Sports with Poppies chairman Ritchie Jeune agreeing to allow their league rivals to play the game at Latimer Park.

In a statement, Sports chairman Grant Biddle said: “This game was identified early in the season as one of the high-risk games.

“The situation has been magnified by the ongoing groundworks and the potential for a large following from Darlington with our reduced capacity.

“Safety and security remain paramount considerations so when you add to that a home game for Posh (Peterborough United) and Truckfest, you will understand the issues.

“The League obviously had some concerns and provided a range of options all of which have been considered with the relevant parties.

“All of these involved an element of compromise as well as goodwill from other parties.

“Tonight I can announce that, thanks to the cooperation of Ritchie at Kettering Town FC, the game will now take place at Latimer Park with Kettering being the nearest Category B ground to us.

“One positive is that there are some additional precious hours to continue the work needed at the ground.

“Segregation and normal admission prices and, of course, season tickets remain valid.”