TEAMS will charge around a transformed playing pitch as a school taps into 'state-of-the-art' technology.

The Oxford Academy is set to unveil its new 3G football pitch in a bid to boost its sporting facilities, which will soon become home to a newly-announced league.

A chunk of the secondary school's field in Littlemore was replaced with the all-weather pitch; set to be officially opened by the Football Foundation next month.

Matthew Brandish, community operations manager at the school, said: "We have struggled to accommodate local sports clubs for their training and fixtures in recent years.

"This new facility will enable us to provide a state-of-the-art football pitch, along with our current facilities to local community clubs."

The school has teamed up with Oxfordshire Football Association to run the Flexi-Football League, targeted at people who do not want training or playing to eat into their weekends.

It will begin at the school in Sandy Lane West on Wednesday, October 4, with weekly fixtures for men on Wednesdays.

The league involves nine-a-side football matches played for 50 minutes with rolling subs, offering a shorter alternative to the traditional 90-minute game.

Michael Thurlow, football development manager at Oxfordshire FA said: "We are delighted to be working with the Oxford Academy on the Flexi-Football League.

"It's a very exciting project which provides another opportunity for adult males across the county to get involved in the sport, either for the first time or to get back into the game they once played."

The Oxford Academy secured a grant of £579,201 from the Premier League & The FA Facilities Fund, to make the new pitch possible.

Oxford City Council granted planning permission last year to build the pitch, with six floodlighting columns to ensure games can continue through winter months.

The school, like many others, hires out its sports facilities for use in the wider community.

Mr Brandish said: "As a school, one of our objectives is to serve the community in the evenings and weekends.

"This project has allowed us to take a step closer to achieving this and we can't wait for the new Flexi-Football League to kick-off."

The Oxford Academy already boasts an astroturf hockey pitch, tennis courts, a dance studio and a covered 3G football dome, which was revamped at the end of last year.

Any teams interested in registering for the Flexi-Football League can email oxfordflexileague@theoxfordacademy.org.uk, or complete an online form by visiting surveys.thefa.com and entering the code 'ml0Mll4M'.