Whitehaven RLFC have revealed an ambitious £6million project to revamp their home and put the club at the heart of the community.

The redevelopment of the Recreation Ground would involve the creation of a new building – The Hub – at the Railway End of the stadium which would have a range of uses including the capacity to host events for up to 700 people, hydrotherapy pools for rehabilitation and spaces for community groups.

The ground itself would also be overhauled, with the installation of a 4G pitch, the creation of new stands and a move to return a roof to the Popular Side.

Director Mark Stamper gave a passionate presentation to a packed room of supporters at the stadium about the club's vision of a team filled with local talent and a modern facility to bring the community together under one roof.

Mr Stamper said the new building could also include tournament-class facilities for boxing and martial arts, educational and arts facilities and space for socialising with a bar and cafe.

He said: "We've been working on this for four years and this is where we are now.

"It's not a wild dream; we have a detailed plan.

"This is a historic home for rugby league in Whitehaven.

"We don't need a new stadium, just renovation of our existing facilities.

"We have the capability among us to develop it so why lose it?"

Fans heard that the club have been working on the plans for a number of years while creating a team of mostly local players and strengthening links with amateur sports clubs, and are now at the stage where funding must be found to make the development a reality.

Mr Stamper appealed to local people and businesses to help them secure the money needed and added that if some but not all of the £6million could be secured, the project could be scaled down to £3million as long as it did not compromise what they were trying to achieve.

"This is a call to arms," he said.

"That is what we are here for today; there's no point pretending it's not a lot of money because it is.

"We need you to come to us with businesses.

"It's about doing something that would benefit the whole community as well as elevating this rugby club.

"The timescale is budget.

"We need to make it happen and whatever avenues we need to go down to secure that, so be it."

Director Andrew Canavan also revealed that the club hopes to relaunch a reserves team next season and said conversations had already begun about potential targets for that side.

He said: "We're only targeting the best young talent.

"It would also provide fitness for players who aren't playing regularly for the first team or are coming back from injuries and give us a bigger player pool.

"We want to make this a sustainable Championship club or maybe even beyond that but we also want it to stay local as it is now.

"They're going to really feel involved with the club, not just some vanity project."

Establishing the side could cost the club approximately £40,000 and Mr Canavan suggested a potential rewards scheme to help fund it which could see 100 people or businesses pledge to donate £400 and in return they would be eligible for prizes including sponsorship deals.

It was also announced that two of the club's talented young players, Sam Dowsett and Tom Wilkinson, have signed new deals to commit to the club.