Shincliffe Juniors FC devastated by Tudhoe equipment blaze

The horsebox which was used to store Shincliffe Juniors' equipment was destroyed by the blaze

Players, parents and officials at a junior football club say they are devastated after a blaze destroyed their equipment.

Shincliffe Juniors FC said the fire destroyed a horsebox where it was stored at Tudhoe on Monday afternoon.

It contained nets and match balls worth £3,000 and followed the theft of the club's defibrillator, which was stolen at the beginning of the month.

County Durham and Darlington Fire and Rescue Service is investigating.

Everything stored inside the horsebox was destroyed in the blaze

Sara Clasper, club secretary, said: "It's absolutely devastating and it feels so personal after the theft of our defibrillator, we'd only bought it all in August and it's just not what we wanted to happen.

"Parents are angry and frustrated by what's happened and it's left the youngsters feeling very upset, my two boys who've played for the past seven years are just gutted as they're so involved in the club and for them like all the others, playing football is their weekend outlet."

Unable to use pitches

The club, which was set up in 2012 by a group of parents, has about 320 children members and about 120 of them play at the home pitches, off St Charles Road in Tudhoe, at weekends.

Because games cannot be played with nets, the fire means the club will now be unable to use its home pitches - used by its 10 to 14-year-olds - which it had paid for across the current season, officials said.

However, Mrs Clasper added: "A few local clubs have contacted us to say we can play on their pitches in the meantime, with some offering us the chance to have a look through their kit stores and take any old, spare equipment.

"So we're hopeful some matches will be able to continue."

A spokesperson for County Durham and Darlington Fire and Rescue Service said: "An initial investigation has been carried out and enquiries are ongoing."

They urged anyone with information to contact FireStoppers anonymously.