Kirkcaldy amateur football club's new kit stolen just weeks after debut

Eddy's Bar AFC team manager Shaun Leishman said the kit was in his car when it was stolen. The vehicle has since been recovered, although the kit and a laptop belonging to his employer were missing.

He said: “We take turns washing the kits and it was my turn. Unfortunately they were inside. They were literally brand new – we’d just advertised them the week before and we’d only played one or two games in them”.

Shaun said that it’s unlikely that the thieves will have much use for the kits, and that adds to the frustration.

He said: “When they stole the car, they probably saw a bag and not looked in it, and thought ‘this is going to be good.’ They’ve probably then realised what it is and they’ve not really got much use for them. They’ll just sit somewhere and probably do nothing, which is the most frustrating part”.

Fife Council has been made aware of the theft by Police Scotland, and been asked to be on the lookout at recycling centres around the regionFife in the hope that they turn up there. However, Shaun said he feels it is unlikely to be the case.

He said: “I’ve not conceded the fact, but it's probably going to be difficult now to get them back.”

The club, which represent Eddy’s Bar on Birnam Road, will now look to raise the money for a new set of strips, but Shaun admits it’s a difficult proposition for an adult football team.

He said: “My uncle works in recruitment, he has offered some support in terms of trying to get new ones but that is it so far. We’ll probably need to do some fundraising of our own through football cards. We’ll run a last man standing appeal – ideas like that will probably need to go towards new kits.

“People look at it a these appeals a bit differently. It’s great with kids teams where you have a wee bit more understanding, but with an adults pub team it’s a wee bit more difficult”.