The diggers moved in earlier this week and the work on Buckie's new all-weather pitch has started.

More than £700,000 has been allocated into both the facilities for Buckie Community High and Speyside High, Aberlour, which will also be used by local sports clubs and the wider community during the evenings and weekends.

Each pitch will be full-sized with a third-generation synthetic turf carpet, floodlighting and fencing, and will cater for five-a-side and 11-a-side football as well as other sports, including hockey.

Both facilities will be constructed by contractors Blakedown Sport and Play Ltd who specialize in installing synthetic pitches nationally. 

The Buckie pitch will cost £371,364 and the Speyside pitch £354,125 with 40% of costs to be provided by Sportscotland.

Mark Duncan, president of Highland League club Buckie Thistle, said the new pitch would be the biggest thing to happen to football in Buckie for 40 years.

He said: "A large number of football teams in the local area will benefit from the pitch, including ourselves, Buckie Rovers, Buckie United, Cullen, Portgordon Victoria and Buckie Thistle Boys' Club.

"The pitch will also open up opportunities for the development of girls' and women's football and the establishment of leagues for the over 40s and 50s.

"A major boost that will come from this facility is that it will allow teams at all levels to train on a surface that is decent, clean and floodlit, with up-to-standard changing facilities."

Work on both pitches is expected to be completed by October.

Moray Council leisure and healthy living project officer Robin Paterson said: "The pitches will be used by the schools during the daytime and will be accessed by the wider community during the evenings and weekends".

"With each pitch able to withstand 20 to 30 times the amount of play of a natural grass pitch, the shared access arrangement will help address the significant demand, particularly from local football clubs, for high quality playing facilities in the Moray area."

Several photographs were taken showing the start of excavation works.