Praise For Orient Groundsman

/in , , /by

Praise For Orient Groundsman: Leyton Orient assistant Ross Embleton hailed the work of Colin James and his staff after pitch struggles last season due to a lack of investment by the previous regime.

The current condition of Leyton Orient’s home pitch will given the team the chance to impose themselves on their future opponents, according to Justin Edinburgh’s number two Ross Embleton.

After two National League games in E10 to date, O’s have only managed to pick up two points following draws with Ebbsfleet United and Barrow.

In both fixtures Orient produced some eye-catching football, but couldn’t hold onto their lead and as a result have yet to win at the Breyer Group Stadium so far.

Nevertheless, Embleton hailed the work of groundsman Colin James and his staff after Orient’s well documented problems with the pitch last season.

Ahead of hosting Boreham Wood on Saturday, O’s will look to make the most of their plush looking surface.

Embleton said: “I was really disappointing for Colin and all the other staff who have worked on the pitch because they got it into top class condition for the stage of the season we are at and then the foxes come along and did what they did to it!

“When you look at it now, Colin has definitely turned it around into a pitch he can be positive and proud of.

“As it evolves across the season, I am sure we will work out exactly how good the pitch will be because in recent history the pitch has got worn in certain areas, but right now it is giving us the chance to impose ourselves on the opposition.”

Orient, as they were last year, have been well supported during the new campaign and both of their home fixtures have seen over four thousand O’s fans in attendance.

Assistant manager Embleton hailed the influence the crowd can have, especially when the east Londoners have their backs to the wall.

He added: “There was a period around the 65-minute mark against Ebbsfleet where we were under a little bit of pressure and the crowd really gave us a lift.

“We were really sorry about the late goal we conceded and these types of games you really want to hold onto the lead and send everyone home happy, but the biggest thing for me was the support was there again.

“It was outstanding away to Salford City, there was only one set of fans there on that day, and then against Ebbsfleet the numbers were fantastic, so the biggest thing for me is the backing we got once again.”

Click here to read the original article

For the latest industry news visit turfmatters.co.uk/news

Get all of the big headlines, pictures, opinions and videos on stories that matter to you.

Follow us on Twitter for fun, fresh and engaging content.

You can also find us on Facebook for more of your must-see news, features, videos and pictures from Turf Matters.

Pitch Perfect At Swindon Town

/in , , /by

Pitch Perfect At Swindon Town: Long summer hours, ensuring a pre-planned fertiliser programme is on target and achieving the right aeration balance – you could consider all of the above to be traits required by one of Wiltshire’s many farmers.

But it also applies to Swindon Town’s chief groundsman Marcus Cassidy, who is midway through his 18th season at the club.

It’s a job that started for the Stonehouse-born groundsman by chance after he landed the role through a friend before completing various courses to expand his qualifications.

He now works alongside apprentice Conor Collins – who spends his Saturday’s working on Southampton’s pitch – while using an army of 10 volunteers to ensure the pitch is prepared to perfection ahead of matchday.

A fortnight ago on Saturday proved a rare occurrence for Cassidy as Town’s home game against Forest Green Rovers was postponed due to heavy snowfall.

But it was only dangerous conditions around the perimeter of the Energy Check County Ground that forced the game off – with the club deeming the pitch as fit to play on.

“Snow is a great insulator,” explained Cassidy. “So if the ground isn’t frozen, the snow will keep the frost out – and vice-versa.

“Our pitch is a very old pitch, it’s essentially a sand and soil pitch. Premier League, Championship and even some pitches in League Two are hybrid – they are three to five per cent plastic.”

assidy has every right to claim the County Ground as one of the truest pitches in League Two, and he pinned that down to the investment provided by chairman Lee Power and chief executive Steve Anderson.

While he accepts he is a way off having the tools Premier League staff have to their disposal, Cassidy revealed the club is more than half way there to being home to world-class equipment used by top teams including Manchester City, Barcelona and Bayern Munich.

He added: “The club has invested in the machinery that I can use in the last three years.

“That makes things a lot easier. When you’re waiting on contractors, they might not be able to get there or might be on another job.

“With the tools I’ve got, I can go out and do what I want, when I want.

“That’s why the pitch is holding up well, because the club has invested.

“I’m always asking for more equipment. In the Premiership, they get what tools they want.

“We try and improve a little bit each year. I’m under no illusions, when you get relegated into League Two budgets will be cut.

“But Steve Anderson and Lee Power do try and keep the pitch to the standard it is. They expect a good pitch, and they want a good pitch.

“It’s a slow process – I’ll always ask for more than I can get. They can only say no.”

Watching the game often comes second on Cassidy’s list, who has his eyes on the ball more than anything else come 3pm on Saturday.

And you can rest assured he and his hard-working team of staff will be putting the hours in ahead of Town’s next home game against Grimsby Town on February 23.

“You try and watch the game, but I’m watching the ball more than anything,” said Cassidy.

“I want to see the ball rolling well. When I watch the highlights, I’ll watch them twice – I study the pitch first and then the goals.

“It’s pretty sad, but that’s my job.

“We do less hours in the winter – sometimes you just leave it alone. You can do more damage by overworking a pitch.

“Less is more in the winter.”

Click here to read the original article

For the latest industry news visit turfmatters.co.uk/news

Get all of the big headlines, pictures, opinions and videos on stories that matter to you.

Follow us on Twitter for fun, fresh and engaging content.

You can also find us on Facebook for more of your must-see news, features, videos and pictures from Turf Matters.

Otterbine Fountain At Ladbrook Park

/in , /by

Otterbine Fountain At Ladbrook Park: For the past 15 years, Otterbine’s Sunburst aerating fountain has created a stunning centrepiece to the heart of Ladbrook Park Golf Club in the midlands.

Three impressive interconnecting lakes make up the centre of Ladbrook Park and with 12,000m² of water in total, it’s paramount a high-quality aerating system is in place to keep the water clear and healthy. And for 15 years, Otterbine’s Sunburst aerating fountain has been more than up to the task, says course manager, Kevin Fellows:

Otterbine Fountain At Ladbrook Park

“The lakes are central to the course and provide the backdrop to many of our 18-holes, so having a reliable aerating fountain that keeps the water clean and clear, while also creating a striking centrepiece is of the utmost importance.

“For 15 years, the Sunburst has given us everything we needed. When we first excavated the lakes in conjunction with a local contractor, there was a transition period when we had a lot of weed and algae build up which was causing problems and fixing that as soon as possible was a real priority.”

To combat this, the club worked with a water management company who recommended the Otterbine Sunburst fountain. Everyone was confident the Sunburst was up to the task of keeping such a large body of water in good condition, and that confidence was well founded!

“Once we had the fountain installed it solved all of our problems within a couple of weeks,” says Kevin. “You could see the improvement pretty much immediately, which definitely gave us peace of mind we’d made the right choice.”

The club excavated the lakes itself, not just to create beautiful surroundings for golfers, but to give themselves a source of water for irrigation purposes. With the Otterbine aerating fountain, the water is a good enough quality to use for irrigation across the course and without having to rely on the mains water supply, the club has saved money and gained peace of mind from its ability to be self-reliant, which “has been a real bonus” says Kevin.

During its time at the club, the fountain has performed brilliantly, and Kevin doesn’t expect that to change. “The fountain hasn’t let us down yet, and it’s over a decade old! We have routine inspections anyway and knowing we have the back-up from Otterbine and its distributor Reesink Turfcare should we need it is enough to guarantee peace of mind.”

He concludes: “The Otterbine fountain has not only been one of the best investments we’ve made, it’s part of the scenery here at Ladbrook Park. It’s cost effective to run and has proven itself to be a really reliable product which is quite literally at the heart of the course.”

For more information, visit: reesinkturfcare.co.uk

For the latest industry news visit turfmatters.co.uk/news

Get all of the big headlines, pictures, opinions and videos on stories that matter to you.

Follow us on Twitter for fun, fresh and engaging content.

You can also find us on Facebook for more of your must-see news, features, videos and pictures from Turf Matters.

Praise For H2Pro TriSmart

/in , /by

Praise For H2Pro TriSmart: ICL’s H2Pro TriSmart provides everything required from a wetting agent, believes Stuart Hogg, Course Manager at The West Lancashire Golf Club.

Founded in 1873 and featured in the top 100 golf courses in Great Britain, The West Lancashire Golf Club is one of England’s truest seaside tests. There are few golfers who come away from this revered links course, midway between Liverpool and Formby, in any doubt that every aspect of their game has been suitably examined.

Praise For H2Pro TriSmart

“The West Lancashire Golf Club is an amazing place to work,” said Stuart. “It is steeped in history and very well respected. You don’t appreciate how close the course is to the sea until you come and see it.”

Stuart, who has been in greenkeeping for just over thirty years, has been the Course Manager for four years and has worked exclusively at Links courses throughout his career.

“Does the sea bring challenges? No, because having grown up on Links courses I’m used to it. However, we probably dry out a lot quicker, we get wind burn, we get salt burn and we have to be more mindful of height of cuts.

“Choosing products that can work to fit our circumstances is the key. I’ve had a lot of experience with different products and I believe in finding an optimum product range. For me, that is predominantly ICL.”

Praise For H2Pro TriSmart

The most recent addition to Stuart’s range of ICL products is the H2Pro TriSmart wetting agent, but it was a decision that he did not take lightly.

“I used to use a different wetting agent and there was nothing really wrong with it except I felt it was perhaps just holding a bit of moisture in the top. The decision to change to TriSmart could have come back to bite me but Phil Collinson (ICL’s North West Technical Area Sales Manager) had every confidence in it.”

Containing three water management technologies consisting of surfactant and polymer blends, TriSmart is renowned for providing great water penetration and an even water spread through the rootzone.

Stuart starts the programme at the end of February and applies TriSmart at a rate of 10L/ha every four to five weeks, depending on weather, until the end of July. Last year, he applied TriSmart to all of the greens and surrounds, which equates to an area size of 4 hectares, but due to the successful results the areas for treatment is set to significantly increase.

“With TriSmart I believe I got everything I was looking for in a wetting agent,” said Stuart. “Considering the season we encountered; we had improved rooting and I believe that was due to the fact that TriSmart was pulling the soil moisture down a little bit more. I also didn’t have to hand-water those areas at all which really helped in reducing irrigation and labour.

Praise For H2Pro TriSmart

“This year we will be increasing the applications of TriSmart to use it on the greens, surrounds and now the fairways – which is a big jump for the club considering that we will be going from using it on a unit size of 4 hectares up to 16 hectares. Ultimately the club has backed me and given me the funds to commit to this increase because I have shown them the difference TriSmart can make.”

Stuart also praised the support he receives from ICL.

Over the last couple of years working with Phil and ICL, it has helped make this decision easier. I have every confidence if I ever needed any help or support from ICL as a company, then it would be there which I believe is important.”

Please contact ICL on 01473 237100 or visit www.icl-sf.co.uk or www.icl-sf.ie if you are in Ireland.

For the latest industry news visit turfmatters.co.uk/news

Get all of the big headlines, pictures, opinions and videos on stories that matter to you.

Follow us on Twitter for fun, fresh and engaging content.

You can also find us on Facebook for more of your must-see news, features, videos and pictures from Turf Matters.

Seven For Sawgrass

/in , /by

Seven For Sawgrass: This year’s group of British and Irish greenkeepers are getting set for the experience of a lifetime as part of the John Deere TPC Sawgrass Volunteer Programme, organised annually in partnership with the British and International Golf Greenkeepers Association (BIGGA) and the Golf Course Superintendents Association of Ireland (GCSAI).

Held at the legendary TPC Sawgrass course in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida, THE PLAYERS Championship regularly features more of the world’s top players than any other venue throughout the year, leading to its unofficial title of the fifth men’s major. As such it presents an incredible opportunity for BIGGA and GCSAI members to network, learn and gain a huge amount of invaluable experience, in a once-in-a-lifetime setting.

Seven For Sawgrass

THE PLAYERS is made possible thanks to the hard work and dedication of a course preparation force of over 90 volunteers from around the world, who join the home greenkeeping team in getting and keeping the course in shape. Following the final day’s play, the greenkeepers also get the chance to attempt to hit the 17th hole’s intimidating island green.

This year the event returns to its traditional March timing after 12 years of being hosted in May. The shift is the result of changes to the PGA Tour calendar and will see the greenkeeping team in 2019 undertake a very different challenge to that of preparing the course in May. The successful BIGGA and GCSAI members selected to join the volunteer team at the tournament, which takes place from March 14 to 17, are:

  • BIGGA Scottish Region – Darren Skinner, Castle Stuart Golf Links
  • Northern Region – Jon Gamble, Welshpool Golf Club
  • Central England Region – Matthew Shaul, Cleethorpes Golf Club
  • South West and South Wales Region – Mark Simmons, Kingsdown Golf Club
  • South East Region – Andy Copeland, Chesfield Downs Golf and Country Club
  • International – Niels Sorensen, Randers Golf Klub, Denmark
  • GCSAI – Alex Newenham, Douglas Golf Club,

John Deere Limited turf division sales manager Chris Meacock said: “I would like to congratulate all this year’s successful BIGGA and GCSAI members for winning through the rigorous selection process and earning a place on what will be our fifth annual TPC Sawgrass Volunteer Programme in 2019.

Seven For Sawgrass

“The quality of applications that we receive each year is a true reflection of the high standards of greenkeeping and course management throughout the UK and Ireland. I know from the comments of past volunteers that this latest group will benefit greatly from the experience of being part of such a large, well-organised international greenkeeping team involved in the preparation of one of the world’s top golf tournaments.”

For more information, visit: www.JohnDeere.co.uk

For the latest industry news visit turfmatters.co.uk/news

Get all of the big headlines, pictures, opinions and videos on stories that matter to you.

Follow us on Twitter for fun, fresh and engaging content.

You can also find us on Facebook for more of your must-see news, features, videos and pictures from Turf Matters.