They were the words of Football Mid North Coast spokesman Larry Budgen on learning Tuffins Lane sports fields had been ripped apart by hoons in a car over the weekend.

Photos taken by Ed Godschalk reveal the extent of the damage to both soccer fields and cricket pitches at Port Macquarie’s biggest sports field precinct.

It appears a car has driven across the fields repeatedly doing burn-outs on rain-sodden ground until the turf has been gouged out leaving nothing but a muddy mess.

Exactly 12 months ago, sporting groups were left shaking their heads after a similar incident at Tuffins Lane cancelled weekend events for hundreds of Hastings juniors.

There have been similar incidents of ‘circle work’ along Ocean Drive, at Bruce Porter Reserve at Laurieton and out at Sovereign Hills.

The grounds are being assessed by Port Macquarie-Hastings Council’s field maintenance team and a decision will be made if junior soccer goes ahead on June 24.

Mr Budgen said teams from Port United and Port FC will be affected if the damage forces the closure of fields.

“Unfortunately there was a spate of this a few years ago – it would happen every weekend. But we had bollards put in to the protect the fields,” Mr Budgen said.

Mr Budgen was asked what he thought about the mentality behind this sort of disgraceful behaviour.

“You don’t want to write what I think about this.”

Council said the damage is extremely disappointing and impacts not only on sporting groups, but the entire community.

“Damage caused by vandalism to our sporting fields is extremely disappointing,” deputy mayor Lisa Intemann said.

“The damage makes the fields unusable, impacting the many community sporting groups that rely on these facilities on a regular basis, and also makes them unsafe for play.

“The damage also diverts council staff from other priorities, with the community having to wear the cost of repairs.

“Council encourages anyone witnessing vandalism to any of our community facilities to immediately report it to the police.”

An update on the state of play for this weekend’s matches will be determined as soon as possible.

Council manages and maintains 21 sporting precincts across the local government area and focuses on providing accessible facilities for the enjoyment of sporting groups and the broader community.