FALMOUTH Town have raised more than enough money to pay off a £500 fine for supporters' use of pyrotechnics at matches – less than three days after receiving the fine.

Town were fined £800, with £300 suspended for 24 months, after their supporters’ use of pyrotechnics at two South West Peninsula League games at home to Mousehole and Helston Athletic earlier this season.

Town's coach Charlie Davis set up an appeal on crowdfunding website GoFundMe, with the club raising £719 – £119 more than their £600 goal – as of Monday morning.

Town boss Andrew Westgarth said: “You can take a really negative situation and make it into a positive – it got paid within two days and I think we’ve raised more than what we expected.

“It is brilliant, the fact that everyone has chipped in and some people have been unbelievably generous.

“You can’t have it at the grounds. I totally support the FA’s decision and how they’ve acted with it, but hopefully now the small minority will realise that it just cannot happen again.”

The Cornwall FA were initially made aware of incidents at both the Cornwall Senior Cup Final between Town and Saltash United in April and the Walter C Parson League Cup Final between the same two teams in May.

Both teams were warned, but no charges were made.

The incident in the Senior Cup Final related to Town’s supporters, which Town won 2-1, while the incident at the League Cup Final related to Saltash’s support, which the Ashes won 1-0. Cornwall FA wrote to and warned both clubs as a result, but no charges were made.

They then received reports of pyrotechnics being used by Falmouth supporters at two league games this season – at home to Mousehole and Helston – with Town being charged for two separate breaches of FA Rule E20 (failure to Control the behaviour of Spectators), and were fined £200 for the first instance and £600 for the second.

£300 of the second fine has been suspended for 24 months, but will be reinstated should Town be found guilty of a similar offence within the next two years.