A floating football Pitch Is Being Built In Cardiff Bay

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 A floating football pitch is being built in Cardiff Bay as part of the Champions League festival, and will be open between June 1 and June 4.
A floating football pitch is being built in Cardiff Bay

Whilst there is always a football pitch built as part of the festival, this is the first floating pitch that has been built. On Friday, June 2, it will host the Ultimate Champions Match featuring footballing legends.

Over the festival, the pitch will also host community activity, including walking football, refugee teams from Cardiff, Swansea and Newport, a deaf football friendly international, learning disability and youth age groups matches.

Building of the pitch began this week and is expected to last three days. Lorries are bringing the huge pieces of the base into the Bay and then a crane is lifting them into place. The pieces are then being connected together in the water.

In total, it is understood 200 different blocks will make up the main structure, which will be attached to the wall in a similar style to a pontoon. The 3G pitch will be laid on top, with net around the side.

Marc Diaper works for Coffi Co coffee shop in Cardiff Bay. Staff have been watching the pitch being constructed all morning.

“There’s going to so many people down here for the festival as well as staff and the huge police presence. We’re really excited that we can see it coming together now. It feels like it’s real now. Until now it’s all been speculation, but it’s really nice to watch it going up”.

The free festival is open to anyone and is expected to attract 200,000 visitors over the four days. Other parts of the festival include a gallery built inside the Wales Millennium Centre, workshops, a virtual arena and stalls and stands. Fans will also be able to have their pictures taken with the trophy for free.

To read the original article from Wales Online, click here

Royal Birkdale Gets Ready For The Open

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Royal Birkdale gets ready for The Open. Royal Birkdale Golf Club in Southport hosts the 146th Open Championship this July, which will be the 10th time it has been held at this stunning links course north of Liverpool.

Royal Birkdale Gets Ready For The Open

Since the first Open here in 1954, the course has been, alongside Royal Lytham, the most regular venue for the Championship other than St Andrews. Royal Birkdale will also be hosting the final of the R&A Nine Hole Championship on the Saturday before The Open.

As course manager for the past 22 years, this will be Chris Whittle’s third Open at Royal Birkdale, following two more when he was course manager at Muirfield and deputy at Royal Lytham. Chris has never worked on anything but links courses, and his experience of balancing the demands of the golf course with those of the land’s SSSI status is unparalleled.

Although he says the course set-up for 2017 will be very much the same as it was for the last Open here in 2008, there have been a few recent changes to the course maintenance equipment fleet supplied by local John Deere dealer Turner Groundscare of Tarvin in Chester, whose area sales manager Ian Roberts has been looking after Royal Birkdale on both the sales and service side for over 22 years.

Eight new 180SL walk-behind greens mowers have now replaced the previous 220C models, and have been joined by two new A Series machines, an 8000AE hybrid electric five-gang cylinder mower for the surrounds and an 8800A rough mower. Additional tournament support machinery and staff will be provided for The Open as required.

“Since the last Open at Royal Birkdale in 2008, we have worked very closely with Chris and his team to provide the key greenkeeping staff with technical training at John Deere’s Langar HQ, as well as specialist onsite training. This has been designed to help them become self-sufficient in all the main aspects of machinery servicing and maintenance, and understand how to optimise machine performance,” says John Deere territory manager Marcus Morris.

“This ongoing partnership between the club, John Deere and Turner Groundscare helps us all to achieve the best possible results where they matter, out on the course.”

On the newest machines in the fleet, which also includes greens/tees and fairway mowers, Chris Whittle says: “The new 180SL walk-behinds were recommended to me by John Deere and Turners when it came time to replace the older models, so we got the dealer to send us one on demonstration and it basically sold itself.

“The narrower working width means we get very accurate contour following on our undulating greens, and at John Deere’s suggestion we’ve also had them fitted with groomers, which we’ve never used before. These help to maintain the quality of cut and finish we’re looking for.

“We only use the 8800A rough mower on the semi-rough, as we never cut the rough at Royal Birkdale,” he adds. “This is generally used to mow at two heights, one at around 35mm and the other at around 70mm – it’s a Birkdale thing! We might widen this area from five to 10m if required for tournament purposes. Other than that nothing’s really changed much at all.”

Two new electric TE Gator utility vehicles have also been added to the fleet this year, which now includes three heavy-duty Pro Gators. One is equipped with an HD200 low-profile amenity turf sprayer, one with a cargo box and one with a Dakota top dresser. Aside from the course equipment, the main aspect of running an Open championship that has changed massively in Chris’ eyes is how much bigger the tournament has become – particularly the infrastructure that envelops the event, which had already started to go up on the course in late April.

“I went to Royal Troon last year and it was a real eye opener,” he says. “We always get plenty of experienced greenkeeping support for our team behind the scenes, though, and this year will be no different. All the Open venues send a representative, plus we have a mix of local course volunteers, R&A Scholars and our own Royal Birkdale Artisan Golfers on hand to help get the extra work done. In addition, BIGGA will be providing volunteers to rake bunkers with each match during the Open.

“There’s always a real family atmosphere around the course during the tournament, probably even more so this year as it will probably be my last Open. There will be people that I’ve worked with before at other courses, and some I’ve employed – one lad’s even coming over from Pinehurst Resort in the US, he’s from Southport originally and was a trainee here. It will be hard work, as usual, but I’m really looking forward to it, and to another successful Open at Royal Birkdale.”

Reesink And Aquatic Test The Waters With Free Irrigation Training Day

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Reesink And Aquatic Test The Waters With Free Irrigation Training Day – Positive feedback means this event could be the first in a series.

Reesink And Aquatic Test The Waters With Free Irrigation Training Day

Experts in turf maintenance equipment Reesink Turfcare and turf irrigation specialists Aquaturf Solutions held a free Turfcare Professionals Irrigation Training Day in Dublin this spring to teach course managers how to identify and understand potential faults in their systems, and to demonstrate best operating practice. And positive feedback determines this could be the first in a series of future training days.

Aquaturf’s managing director Stephen Daly says: “We teamed up with Reesink to deliver this collaborative event because of their expertise and in-depth knowledge of the industry and irrigation products. Both companies jointly acknowledged a skills gap in the industry’s knowledge of irrigation management, and with market feedback saying there’s a lack of training available to end-users, it was the perfect cue to stage the event.”

Robert Jackson, Reesink irrigation sales manager, explains why the day was needed: “Irrigation is a topic often left in the background until necessary. The result of this is when problems do arise, course managers don’t know how to rectify them and have to bring in contractors, costing both time and money. The aim of the training day was to provide information that can be applied to all brands of irrigation equipment, advise on the best sprinkler configurations for different areas of a course and to help end-users develop a trained eye to implement preventative measures against potential problems or ably respond to existing ones. We stripped everything back to the basics of sprinklers and hydraulics, to enable course managers to more confidently manage their irrigation systems and give them a degree of self-sufficiency.”

Irrigation designer and consultant, Adrian Mortram, gave presentations on auditing and evaluating irrigation systems, as well as basic irrigation design principles. He says: “Golf course irrigation in the UK and Ireland is very much a management tool performing two distinct functions: providing soil moisture when there is a deficiency of natural precipitation, and ensuring maintenance practices such as the ‘washing in’ of chemical products and seed germination can be carried out as and when necessary.

“Education and training on how to effectively audit, operate, maintain and understand the design of your irrigation system is therefore absolutely paramount to ensure it will perform to the best of its ability. The talks led on these subjects, and the training day as a whole, aimed and delivered on providing course managers with a fundamental understanding of all aspects of irrigation.”

According to Rob Green, Reesink’s senior technical support: “Users are sometimes hesitant to meddle with their irrigation systems due to an uncertainty over the outcome of any changes made. Unfortunately this tends to lead to a reactive (as opposed to proactive) situation, if or when an issue does occur. The two outdoor sessions I co-presented with my colleague Cevan Edwards brought a fully operating sprinkler system above ground. By having the whole sprinkler on display we were able to clearly demonstrate best operating practice, show what potential faults look like, and help people identify and deal with these problems in a proactive manner.

“Everyone involved was very engaged and it was brilliant to be speaking to a group of people who really wanted to learn about irrigation systems. There was a good turnout and audience members asked lots of questions throughout the event that we were hopefully able to address and help with. A group of attendees also kindly stayed behind to offer special thanks, saying the day was ‘fantastic’.”

Working in partnership Reesink and Aquaturf successfully delivered a worthwhile event and, while the training day gave a comprehensive view on the basics of irrigation, it only scratched the surface of a vast topic. This may well be the first of many free, in-depth irrigation training days to come.

Campey 3 Day Pitch Renovation At Greenock Morton FC

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Campey Turf Care Systems three day Mini Pitch Renovation at Greenock Morton Football Club open to all. Campey Turf Care Systems are carrying out a three-day mini pitch renovation at Scottish Championship side, Greenock Morton Football Club, from Tuesday 30th May to Thursday 1st June.

Campey 3 Day Pitch Renovation At Greenock Morton FC

Campey would like to extend an open invitation to all groundsmen and greenkeepers who wish to attend the event, with those who do advised to RSVP to Richard Heywood (richard.heywood@campeyturfcare.com) or via the Campey website.

The renovation of the Cappielow Park pitch will use the latest sports turf maintenance machinery with the KoroÆ FieldTopMakerÆ with UniverseÆ rotor taking centre stage. The heavy-duty fraise mower is used for removing unwanted surface matter such as poa-annua, thatch, weeds or the entire surface to a depth of 50mm.

This leaves a clean and clear surface to work with and allows the KoroÆ RecyclingDresserÆ, Raycam UniRake and Aeraseeder along with a Vredo Overseeder and Dakota 412 Turf Tender to work to the best of their abilities in providing a first-class pitch.

Over the three days the importance of carrying out a meticulous renovation will be shown and attendees will discover how small improvements during the process can lead to long lasting results throughout the season.

The entire renovation process will be on show throughout the three days with visitors welcome to observe the full action, or come and view the stages they feel are most relevant to them.

For further information on this and all Campey Turf Care events and activities visit www.campeyturfcare.com

Nominations Open For 2017 IOG Industry Awards

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Nominations Open For 2017 IOG Industry Awards. Nominations are now being accepted for this year’s Institute of Groundsmanship Industry Awards, with 22 categories of entry recognising the passion, dedication and challenges faced by grounds staff in both grassroots and professional sports, and including a series of new and ‘refreshed’ categories in response to industry feedback.Nominations Open For 2017 IOG Industry Awards

 

With headline sponsorship by Rigby Taylor and Top Green, this year’s awards now feature three new categories:

[] The Private Members Sports Club Grounds Team of the Year, and

[] Two awards for the IOG Professional Football Grounds Team of the Year, to ensure recognition for grounds teams at clubs at all levels. One award is for English Leagues 1 and 2, Scottish Championship and Leagues 1 and 2, and Ireland and Wales Professional Leagues. Another award is for grounds teams at clubs in the Premier League, the Championship and the Scottish Premier League. 

 

The ‘refreshed’ Lifetime/Outstanding Achievement of the Year Award will honour those who have contributed greatly to the groundscare industry over a period of time, short or long. 

Importantly too, the Special Recognition Award (which replaces the Unsung Hero Award) will acknowledge extreme dedication – perhaps performed under the radar – for the good of groundsmanship at any level. 

 

Commenting on the 2017 competition, IOG chief executive Geoff Webb says: “Now in their ninth year, the IOG Awards continue to expand and, importantly, take account of views that will help to improve them year on year. We have, for example, created more opportunity for greater recognition of those working in the lower divisions of professional football. And by redefining the unsung hero and lifetime achievement awards, we are recognising the work of those who sometimes operate under the radar.

 

“In addition, we are also making it clear that applications to every category are encouraged from Scotland, Ireland and Wales, as well as England.”

 

He adds: “These are the only awards for groundsmen that are judged by groundsmen, and we are lucky to have a dedicated group of volunteer judges with their range of backgrounds that encompass the diversity of the industry and profession today. 

 

“The awards are truly all-encompassing and recognise both volunteers and professionals across all levels of sport. So, please take the time to nominate, as you must know many deserving candidates and great examples of sports turf management at every level.”

 

The awards will be judged by an independent, expert panel using criteria that will include equipment utilisation (including the use of IT), training and education, community involvement and career achievements. However, the winner of the Lifetime/Outstanding Achievement Award will be decided by the IOG, while the Ransomes/DLF Johnsons Alex R Millar Groundsman of the Year Award is decided from the winners of the professional grounds team awards.

 

The winners will be announced Oscar-style at The National Conference Centre, within the National Motorcycle Museum, on Wednesday 1 November, on the evening of the opening day of the SALTEX exhibition at the Birmingham NEC.

 

Visit www.iogawards.com to make your nominations online.

 

The full list of award categories is: 

 

• IOG Bowling Greenkeeper/Team 

• IOG Best Maintained Artificial Pitch  

• IOG Ransomes Environmental/Innovative Project  

• IOG Toro Most Promising Sports Turf Student  

• IOG Redexim Charterhouse/Kubota Volunteer Groundsman/Team 

• IOG Rigby Taylor/Top Green Young Groundsman 

• IOG Countrywide Turf & Amenity Independent School/University/College Grounds Team 

• IOG Private Members Sports Club Grounds Team 

• IOG NGB Professional Sports Grounds Team 

• IOG NGB Grassroots Sports Grounds Team  

[Both of the above are co-sponsored by the All England Lawn Tennis & Croquet Club (AELTC), the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB), the Football Association, the Lawn Tennis Association, the Premier League, Rugby Football League and the RFU (Rugby Football Union)] 

• IOG Professional Cricket Grounds Team 

• IOG Professional Tennis Grounds Team 

• IOG SISGrass Professional Football Grounds Team 

(English Leagues 1 and 2, Scottish Championship and Leagues 1 and 2, Ireland & Wales Professional Leagues)

• IOG SGL Professional Football Grounds Team of the Year

(Premier League, Championship and Scottish Premier League)

• IOG John Deere Professional Horse Racing Grounds Team 

• IOG Professional Rugby Football League Grounds Team 

• IOG Professional Rugby Football Union Grounds Team 

• IOG Contractor 

• IOG International Ambassador 

• IOG Lifetime/Outstanding Achievement   

• IOG Ransomes/DLF Johnsons Alex R Miller Groundsman   

• IOG Special Recognition. 

 

Nominations close on Monday July 31.