A Moira-based football club has made an appeal to local dog walkers about fouling of a different kind - after a game had to be stopped six times to clean up mess.

Rich Waldrum, the chairman at Marlborough Rovers FC, issued a message via Ashby Woulds Town Council.

He says that despite having to clean the pitch of dog mess, it is not possible to find all of it, adding that asking local people not to let it happen in the first place.

The club chairman posted: "Can I please make a plea to the people of Moira and neighbouring villages - and I know it is a minority - to please, please don't let your dog/s foul on the marked out football pitches at Measham Road Rec now the Colin Wood Memorial Fields.

"If they do they can't read signs or understand line markings, please clean it up. There are two bins one at each of the exits to the grounds and they are emptied weekly.

"We had to stop a football match SIX times because dog mess was found, and this is besides what we cleaned up before kick-off."

He also made it clear it is not the senior team that is affected.

The post added: "We had an Under-8 Girls' game there, how disgusting if one of them fell face first into the mess. It doesn't bear thinking about.

"As a local football club we are proud to play in Moira and we are proud of the grounds - and we look after them up and beyond."