KELTY Hearts has vowed to boot out teenagers who they say are vandalising their stadium while boozing and taking drugs in their stands.

The club has hit out at constant incidents of vandalism – which has included burn marks being left on the playing surface – and trespassing amid concerns that the thoughtless actions could potentially lead them to losing their SFA licence.

They issued a statement on their Facebook page and said they are working with police and the council to stamp out the on-going problem.

"The Police are aware of the situation and they will be visiting regularly during the day and at nights," said the statement. "We can't go on like this any longer. There will be zero tolerance policy on trespassers and people in the ground who shouldn't be.

"There has been major investment in terms of finances and time to create a place Kelty can be proud of. This can quickly be nullified by the abuse and vandalising of the pitch and surrounds.

"The only people who should be inside the ground is people who pay to use the pitch or anyone officially connected to Kelty Hearts FC.

"This week there has been teenagers hanging around the two stand drinking and taking drugs, the evidence of this has been photographed and witnessed.

"It's a disgrace and we will not stand for this type of behaviour. We will pull out all the stops to find these people and bring them to some sort of justice and punishment. There is a lot of anger and frustration amongst our committee and fans."

Kelty Heart's committee treasurer, George McTrusty, told the Times that they have worked hard to improve their facilities and said the recent actions were destroying these efforts.

"Seats were just starting to get installed and they have damaged some of them already," he said. "It is getting beyond a joke. It is probably about six or seven youngsters.

"We are having to get CCTV put up which could cost thousands of pounds and then monitoring it so there is the labour of that as well.

"We are planning a lot of investment – over £250,000 worth – and it is all for the community. We have got 160 kids, women's football, under 17s, under 20s, walking football, over 35s – around 300 participants playing football. There is nothing more pleasurable than going and seeing 100 kids playing football on the park and this is spoiling it for everyone.

"They have been going on the park and burning wee holes on the surface. It is absolutely shocking. We just want the vandalism to stop so we can enjoy the football."

Cowdenbeath Community Inspector, Gavin Cameron, described the abuse of the facilities as "hugely disappointing" and said they were working closely with Kelty Hearts FC to tackle the issue.

"We are carrying out patrols in this area and I would urge people to please report any anti-social behaviour or damage being caused whilst it is happening so we can respond quickly and appropriately," he added.

"We want local children and young people to enjoy their summer holidays and to make use of facilities like this sensibly and responsibly. "Parents and guardians have a vital role to play by ensuring they know where their children are and reminding them that such behaviour as we have seen here is not acceptable."