Thursday, 24 May 2007, 19:05 GMT 20:05 UK BBC News

Fire destroys Asian club's ground

The first semi-professional Asian football club to own its own ground has been hit by disaster after its clubhouse was destroyed in a fire.

Sporting Khalsa bought its ground in Bloxwich, West Midlands, in 2004.

And the team finished this season near the bottom of the West Midlands Regional Division One.

Manager Tarlaz Dosanjh said: "Now I'm afraid we're going to be knocking on doors again asking for contributions so we can stay in this league."

He added: "We've got to keep going. We can't let this set back affect us too much."

The fire was so intense that it melted the clubhouse's steel roof.

West Midlands Fire Service said the cause of the blaze was initially being treated as accidental.