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Members of the Hammersmith & Fulham Rugby Football Club will
be among the local sports players to use the new pavilion.
Club secretary Chris Cuthbertson said: "The new changing
facilities and the floodlit training area will be an enormous
improvement on the facilities available to the club.
"We hope these new developments will encourage more people
to play rugby, and that it will contribute to the growth of rugby
in Hammersmith & Fulham."
The club is actively working to expand its membership to include
women and junior rugby players and hopes the new facilities will
help recruit new members and teams.
The first Hurlingham stadium opened in 1935 and was built by the
Hurlingham Club. The club built the 2,600 seat stadium at a cost
of £10,000 for spectators at its polo matches.
The London County Council acquired the site in 1951 and handed
it over to the council.
The former stadium had starred on screen on various occasions
during its history, most famously used in 1981 to film scenes
used in the Oscar award-winning Chariots of Fire.
The site also featured in the 1996 BBC film, The Fix, about money-fixing
in football in the 1960s and was used for the filming of Family
Affairs in September 2000.
The council rebuilt the state-of-the art new facility through
a partnership with National Lottery who provided part of the funding.
Deputy for environment, Cllr Michael Cartwright said: "This
excellent new facility will be welcomed by local sporting groups
and pupils from local schools who use the park for school sports.
"The old stadium was in need of a serious upgrade, and the
council made a commitment to build a completely new facility.
"This new pavilion includes changing rooms, offices and a
community room which we believe will be well-used and enjoyed
by all."
Hammersmith & Fulham council is planning an official opening
of the new centre, which will include restoring "The Pugilist"
a piece of art donated to the council to its place in Hurlingham
Park. The statue had been in the former stadium but was removed
after the stadium fell into disrepair.
Hammersmith
and Fulham Rugby Football Club Web site
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