A youth football club was broken into by travellers using an angle grinder, who then set up 20 caravans on the site illegally. 

CCTV footage showed a convoy of cars towing caravans arrive at Thetford Town Youth FC in Norfolk last Friday at around 3pm. 

The group of travellers used an angle grinder to break locks and force entry to the club site, damaging the main gate and driving ‘back and forth over the pitches used for matches’. 

Some men even attempted to angle grind the locks off goals, before the group eventually left two days later on Sunday, July 5 at around 7.30pm. 

But they left behind a pitch strewn with dirty nappies, cans, and a car seat in the aftermath, forcing the football club to spend a day cleaning the site. 

Thetford Town FC said they filled five trailers’ worth of waste in an expensive cleanup operation which came out of their own funds. 

Darren Iles, a director at the club, said they had only recently forked out £2,000 worth of grass seed and fertiliser, which the ‘blatant’ group ruined. 

Mr Iles said: ‘You put all this work in to give the kids the best football ground they can have and these people just do what they want. 

CCTV cameras caught a convoy of 20 caravans breaking into the pitch last Friday afternoon

Men were later seen attempting to break the locks on goal posts using an angle grinder 

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‘We’re hoping with some rain the pitches will be okay but this season won’t be very pretty for our youth teams. 

‘The travellers left behind five trailer loads full of rubbish. The money to clean up is going to come straight out of our youth funds. 

‘Every inch of our pitches is covered with CCTV. What frustrates me is that these people are breaking and entering. This is private land. 

‘They can do what they want and no one can touch them. They’re so blatant about it and they were clued up.’ 

Volunteers for the club staked out the pitches for the duration of the travellers’ stay to make sure no further damages were caused. 

Nigel Armes, chairman of Thetford Town Youth FC, added: ‘The club and volunteers have been on full alert and have been up all night to protect the on-site facilities. 

‘The biggest problem was them running cars over the pitches because it is going to cost thousands to repair.’ 

Thetford Town FC shared a statement on social media on Sunday evening: ‘The club recently experienced an unfortunate incident involving unauthorised access to our youth pitches on Friday. 

Thetford Town FC said they filled five trailers’ worth with rubbish left behind by the group 

Included in the waste were used dirty nappies 

A car seat was also left behind. The club said the clean up operation took an entire day and came out of their own budget 

‘Those responsible forced entry by breaking the locks and damaging the main access gate.

‘In May, the club invested thousands of pounds in preparing the pitches for the new season, including drill seeding and fertilisation to ensure the highest possible playing surfaces for our players.

‘A clean-up operation will begin tomorrow morning, along with a full inspection of the pitches and goals to assess the extent of any damage.

‘We would also like to extend our sincere thanks to all the volunteers who have dedicated their time over the past few days and nights. Your commitment, vigilance, and willingness to go above and beyond for the club are greatly appreciated.’ 

The incident follows a traveller land grab in May, when a group attempted to take over a village cricket ground by parking their caravans on the wicket. 

Aerial images taken in Clayton Recreation Ground in Clayton show vehicles parked directly on the wicket at the centre of the pitch. 

Around 15 caravans and motorhomes spread across the cricket field, with two vehicles parked on the square itself, raising fears that the playing surface could be damaged. 

Four additional cars were also seen on the site, alongside litter scattered across the ground. 

Meanwhile, back in April travellers tore up a children’s football pitch near Penzance in Cornwall by parking caravans across it. 

Travellers forced their way into the site by ripping off a gate, before driving their vehicles directly across Ludgvan Lions’ football pitch, according to Club vice-chairman Joe Pritchard. 

At least six vehicles including trucks, motorhomes and a caravan formed an ‘unauthorised encampment’ on April 16 and refused to leave. 

The Daily Mail contacted Norfolk Police for comment.