Home turf

Those who know me best may believe it or not, but the first football team I went along to support was actually Alloa Athletic, my local team. It was an away match on 30th October 1976 against Stenhousemuir. I was 8 years old. My Dad took me there and I remember stuffing myself with McCowan's toffee - the Stenhousemuir speciality. Alloa lost 3-0.

On Tuesday 12th May Catherine Stihler MEP and I met with the owner and the chairman of Alloa Athletic to see for ourselves the effects of EU funding in my home town. "The Wasps" pride themselves on being a club at the heart of the local community. Working together with Clackmannanshire Council to bring £550,000 of EU funding to Alloa, the club has helped to revitalise the main artery into the town.

Alloa Athletic take their community role seriously. 7 days a week local kids of all ages can simply walk into the football ground to use the facilities. Vandalism - which had been a problem for the club before - has been practically eliminated now that local kids have a stake in the club.

If dribbling footballs along the main road outside Alloa's football ground helps raise awareness of the EU elections and the positive local impacts of Labour's active engagement in Europe, then Tuesday on home turf has been a campaign highlight so far.