Parents having to go on 'c**p duty' to clear dog poo before kick off at Sheffield football club

Ecclesall Rangers Junior Football Club, based at Whirlow Playing Fields on Limb Lane, Dore, said more than 500 young players use their pitches on a weekly basis but they are plagued by a persistent dog poo problem.

The club launched a petition, which so far has more than 750 signatures, calling on the council to kick out the mess.

In a petition statement they said they want to gather as many signatures as possible to persuade the council to take control of the issue and their target is 5,000.

Martin Windle, chairman of Ecclesall Rangers FC, said: “As the pitches are not secured and open to recreational use, the club has a constant issue with prolific dog fouling.

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"Many dog walkers (in particular dog walking businesses) have a very dangerous, disgusting and incredibly thoughtless habit of leaving dog mess behind.

“This is our chance to prevent this happening and to protect the health of our young players. Their safe-guarding and well-being is our absolute priority.”

He added that they were extremely grateful for the support they had received so far from the project officer in the council’s sport, leisure and health team.

Lorraine Clarke, who signed the petition, said: “My son plays on this pitch and when I arrived for his first ever game I was astonished that parents had to go on crap duty pre kick-off to make sure that the pitch is suitable for our kids to play on.

“It is unbelievably lazy and inconsiderate of dog owners to let them foul outdoors and not clean it up. Please pick it up and dispose of it accordingly.”

Pete Walker, who also signed the petition, said: “My son and our football team play on this pitch every home game and the amount of dog poo is horrendous, how people can walk their dogs and let them do that on a football pitch is a disgrace. Not only that, it’s a serious health issue for our players.”

The petition can be found at: https://www.change.org/p/sheffield-city-council-please-support-us-to-stop-dog-fouling-pollution-on-children-s-football-pitches