Tag Archive for: groundsman

Groundsman Wins Volunteer Award

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Groundsman Wins Volunteer Award: Birmingham Exiles’ Andy Harris was honoured at the annual North Midlands Volunteer Awards recently.

The awards, now in their 13th year, celebrate outstanding voluntary service to rugby sides in the region, with the hard work and generosity of volunteers often proving the difference in keeping rugby clubs running.

Groundsman Recognised At Awards

Harris was named the Groundsman of the Year, providing him with recognition for his attentive work of maintaining the pitches at Old Damson Lane.

He has learnt from one of the best in the business, after being passed on extensive knowledge by RFU head groundsman Keith Kent, and has since allowed for the Exiles to attract higher profile fixtures thanks to the quality of the pitches at the club.

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Groundsman ‘Tweaks’ Pitch Plans

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Groundsman ‘Tweaks’ Pitch Plans: Fleetwood Town’s head groundsman Nick Hyndman has revealed that feedback from keeper Alex Cairns has resulted in a different approach to relaying the Highbury pitch this summer.

Hyndman is hopeful the pitch will be in “brilliant” condition by the time Premier League side Burnley arrive for a friendly on July 23.

Groundsman 'Tweaks' Pitch Plans

The groundstaff’s normal summer schedule was altered last year, when Highbury staged Alfie Boe’s Homecoming concert in June and all Town’s pre-season fixtures were away.

This year Town will host the Clarets and Preston in their final warm-up games and Hyndman told the club website how preparations are going ahead of the players’ return to the revamped Poolfoot Farm pitches for training on June 26.

He said: “We are under tight deadlines to produce a surface, so we are trying to make it grow as quick as possible. It’s all guns blazing to get the pitches ready.

“We have the stadium but ultimately we have everything that is happening at the training ground, and that is where we are day-to-day.

“It’s a very similar process to what we do each year, even though there have been some slight tweaks due to how we feel the pitch performed.

“We stripped the turf and added over 150 tonnes of new material. We’ve added synthetic goalmouths – called hybrid carpets – like last season. We got some feedback from the keepers that they weren’t getting stability throughout the season.

“The hybrid carpet almost looks like astroturf. It’s five per cent artificial fibres. Your seeds and grass grow into the fibres to create a strong rooting system that gives instant stability.

“We’ve been able to get the surface up earlier than last season, so our main aim is to get it ready for Burnley and keep it up for the game against Preston North End on July 27.

“I’m fully confident that we have more than enough time to present a brilliant surface for both games.”

As for Poolfoot, he added: “We are just over two weeks from seed now and we’ve had a brilliant uptake.

“The weather has been brilliant for it – a mix of sun and rain – which has enabled us to get on with it earlier this year.

“We were cutting it after 10 days, which I would say is the best I’ve ever seen it.

“The contractors have done a really good job. My guys have been keen to get on there to start doing what we need to do to get it ready for the start of the season.

“We normally need eight weeks to grow a pitch. Each year the players seem to be coming back earlier and earlier, which has an effect on us.

“They go on the development pitches, which we take up early so the first team can come straight back on to the grass.”

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Award For Gillingham Groundsman

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Award For Gillingham Groundsman: Gillingham groundsman John Plummer was awarded the Elliott Scally Cup at the club’s awards evening last Sunday.

The cup goes to someone at the club who deserves special recognition.

Award For Gillingham Groundsman

Plummer was given the daunting task of dealing with a new hybrid pitch early on in the season after the old one was written off.

The Gills invested big money in laying a new surface, which is partly made of plastic, paying around £500,000 for the works which included new drainage and irrigation.

Chairman Paul Scally spoke of the groundsman’s dedication to the job during the awards night, quipping that he “spends most of his life on that pitch”.

“It was a challenge,” said Plummer. “The old pitch was okay, but the new one will now hopefully settle down and improve.”

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Groundsman Targets Improvements

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Groundsman Targets Improvements: Swindon Town groundsman Marcus Cassidy hopes beneath the surface improvements, as a result of continued investment over the summer, can help improve the County Ground pitch even further next season.

Town were confirmed as winners of the Grounds Team of the Year award for League Two on Wednesday night, one place better than last season’s efforts that saw Cassidy and his army of volunteers earn Highly Commended.

Groundsman Looks To Improvments

Stonehouse-born Cassidy now has his eyes focused on the summer – where he will be working seven days per week to ensure the County Ground’s surface is in top condition for Town’s pre-season schedule in July.

He said: “To pick up the award is very pleasing. It’s not just good for me, but for the club as well.

“It shows the investment that the club has put into the pitch has worked well.

“We haven’t got a bottomless pit, so we’re trying to improve things little by little – whether that be improving renovation or investing in the machinery.

“From here, we’ll look at what budget we have got for next season and see how we can best spend that money to improve next season.

“Everyone sees the grass on Saturday and thinks it is in that condition all week, it definitely isn’t.

“The pitch can look awful in the week – we can pick up different diseases, and the weather has a big say in that.

“It’s about getting things just right for Saturday at 3pm.”

Cassidy’s work was put on show to the nation last month when Phil Neville’s Lionesses hosted Spain in a pre-World Cup friendly at the County Ground, a game England won 2-1.

That game itself presented challenges to Town’s groundsman, who has now completed 18 seasons with the club.

Yeovil’s visit in League Two on Saturday was followed by Spain’s training session at SN1 on Monday, before the game itself took place on Tuesday.

With the help of apprentice Connor Collins – who has now secured a role at Bournemouth for next season – Cassidy said planning for that week proved tough, but achievable with the help of the team behind him.

He added: “I was really banging my head against the wall that week – getting the fertiliser programme right was important.

“A lot of planning went into that week to get the pitch into the condition it was in.

“The volunteers are invaluable. They get free entry, but they’re out there in the wind, rain and sunshine.

“Also I must mention our apprentice Connor Collins. He’s had a very good year – and that’s shown in the pitch as well.”

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Groundsman Celebrates 30th Year

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Groundsman Celebrates 30th Year: A long serving groundsman at Worcestershire County Cricket Club has celebrated a milestone of 30 years looking after the picturesque cricket ground.

Tim Packwood, the head groundsman at the New Road ground, marked his 30th year at the club this weekend.

Groundsman Celebrates 30th Year

Mr Packwood came to the club in April 1989 as an assistant working under then head groundsman, Roy McLaren, before replacing him upon his retirement in July 2000.

Mr Packwood, a lifelong supporter of Worcestershire, has completed his three decades at the club just after the retirement of another long-serving member Martin Watts, who spent 40 years on the ground staff.

Paying tribute to his service, Matt Rawnsley, the club’s chief executive, said: “It’s fantastic we are celebrating two members of the groundstaff who have been with the club such a long time in Martin, who has just retired, and Tim.

“Tim has done a great job after coming in as an understudy to Roy McLaren.

“He probably has one of the most unique groundsman’s jobs in the country in dealing with the floods that we have. But he manages to produce some fantastic facilities – not only just out in the middle on the square but also on the practice wickets as well.

“We are trying to make facilities that put both sides on an equal footing and give entertainment for the crowd – and Tim certainly knows the New Road wicket better than anyone else.”

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Groundsman’s Expertise At Aintree

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Groundsman’s Expertise At Aintree: The head groundsman from Cartmel Racecourse headed to Aintree over the weekend to play a crucial role in the 2019 Grand National.

Gary Sharp, 40, has worked at the south Cumbria course since 2002, ensuring the track is in peak condition for each of its nine race days every year.

Groundsman Lends Expertise To Aintree

But tomorrow he will join eight fellow head groundsmen from across the country to take charge of fences in Liverpool as 40 runners and riders line up to contest ‘the most famous horse race in the world’.

While there, Gary will use his years of experience to quickly decide whether his assigned Grand National fences are safe to jump, need to be replaced or should be left out altogether on the second pass.

Gary said: “I’ve done this role at Aintree for 17 years now. It’s a big responsibility but it’s always exciting to play a part in such an important race.

“We’re stationed by the fence so we’re first on the scene.

“It’s my job to assess whether it’s safe to jump after the first lap or whether it should be bypassed if someone has fallen.

“I’m always guided by the medics on site. Safety is absolutely the priority.

“If the fence is damaged, it can also mean replacing the hurdle altogether before the horses come round again.

“You have to be quick, but there’s enough time to do it between laps,” he added.

The Grand National is run over four miles and 514 yards. It includes 30 fences, many of which are made from spruce from the Lake District.

Gary will arrive for the start of the three day festival on Thursday with three other members of Cartmel Racecourse’s grounds team; Brad Thompson, Tony Hadwin and Ceri Eccles.

Gary, who won the Groundstaff of the Year title at the Racecourse Association Showcase and Awards in 2016, said: “This is a great experience for everyone to be involved in.

“Going to the Grand National also marks a turning point in the calendar for my team because it means our first race at Cartmel is getting closer.

“A lot of work goes on here over the winter to look after the ground, build fences and prepare the course for the racing season.

“Now we’re all looking forward to seeing the horses and crowds arrive back on track on May 25.”

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Liverpool Groundsman Retires

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Liverpool Groundsman Retires: Groundsman Allan Webster has retired from his role at Liverpool after more than 40 years working at the club.

The 64-year-old has tended to the famous Anfield pitch as well as the training ground at Melwood, and since 2005 he has looked after the lawns at the academy in Kirkby.

Liverpool Groundsman Retires

Speaking to Liverpoolfc.com Allan explained how he landed the role: “A job was advertised in the Liverpool Echo as a trainee groundsman at Anfield.

“I didn’t get it at first but the lad who got it never turned up.

“I was at Anfield in the queue for tickets for a big cup game and the foreman Bert Johnson picked me out and said I could have it on a month’s trial. I started the next day.”

Allan spent the first 28 years at Anfield and was there for Shankly’s final year at the helm, he said: “He’d talk to anyone. ‘All right, son?’ he’d say.

“I remember everyone’s shock when he stepped down.

“Bob Paisley took over. Bob didn’t know my name, he didn’t know some of the players’ names!

“He’d just say, ‘Here’s Dougie Doins’, that was his saying.”

It was a labour of love for Allan, a lifelong Liverpudlian, he added: “When the old standing Kop was singing during a night game it was absolutely brilliant – ‘You’ll Never Walk Alone’ moved you.”

In a special interview with the club the West Derby grandad revealed it would be a six mile walk every time the Anfield grass was cut.

His last shift was on Friday after 45 years of dedicated service, Allan added: “I enjoyed it. We took pride in the pitch – we were made up the players did what they did and what we were doing.”

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Manager’s Tribute To Former Groundsman

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Manager’s Tribute To Former Groundsman: Southend United manager Chris Powell has paid tribute to Sid Broomfield, the man who helped to build Roots Hall.

Broomfield passed away earlier this week, aged 94.

Manager's Tribute To Former Groundsman

And Powell insisted the club’s former groundsman would forever be a massive part of the club’s history.

“You don’t get too many people like Sid at a club,” said the Shrimpers chief, who first met Broomfield in the early 1990s.

“I knew him from my days as a player and since coming back as manager too.

“This is a man who built the ground.

“We talk about moving ground and pastures new and it’s something which needs to happen.

“But sometimes we forget about where we are, who we are and who has been involved in that.

“Sid’s a man we saw regularly and he’s part of the reason we’re at Roots Hall.

“He’s a massive part of our past and a massive part of our history.

“He will be sorely missed by all of us because when you talk about Southend he was someone who definitely bleeds blue.

“Rest in peace Sid.”

And Shrimpers legend Kevin Maher has also paid tribute to Broomfield.

“Sid’s a true legend of the club and a lovely man too,” said the former Blues skipper.

“Condolences to his family and friends.”

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Award For Beccles Town Groundsman

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Award For Beccles Town Groundsman: Beccles Town have been crowned winners of the Suffolk FA Groundsman of the Year sponsored by Ransomes at the first time of asking.

The club had never previously entered the competition, which is open to clubs in the county at Step 7 and below.

Award For Beccles Town Groundsman

The five members of the Judging Panel visited this year’s seven entrants on Thursday and were unanimous in their choice of Beccles Town as winner.

Chris Brown and Shaun Soloman are joint groundsmen at the club, who play in the Premier Division of the Hadley & Ottaway Anglian Combination.

Tony Adams of Claydon, the 2017 winner, was runner-up and Bryan Simmonds of Bacton United 89, who won the competition in 2016, was third.

Beccles Town will receive £200 to be spent on groundscare equipment, with Claydon receiving £100 and Bacton united 89 £50.

The groundsmen from all three clubs will be invited to attend the Suffolk FA Awards Ceremony later this year to receive their prizes.

Coddenham Athletic, Leiston St Margarets, Old Newton United and Westerfield United, whose groundsman is Ipswich Town’s 1978 FA Cup Final winning goalscorer Roger Osborne, were the other four clubs to enter the competition.

Beccles Town Vice-Chairman Mark Jermey, who nominated Chris Brown and Shaun Soloman, said: “I am so delighted for Chris and Solly, who have transformed College Meadow over the past few years.

“They have transformed not only the playing surface but the facilities at College Meadow. Their most outstanding quality, aside from hard work, is their ability to enthuse others to donate time and resources.”

Ipswich Town FC Head Groundsman Ben Connell, who led the Judging Panel, said: “I have been impressed with the groundsmen’s innovation and can-do attitude in making and servicing their own machinery to help maintain their football pitches.

“This has influenced the quality we have seen today.”

Phil Jeggo, Regional Pitch Advisor for the Institute of Groundsmen, said: “It is very encouraging to see the increase in the number of entries this year in the county.

“Full credit to all the volunteer groundsmen for producing high-quality standard pitches in the challenging conditions we’ve experienced over the past 12 months.”

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Praise For Orient Groundsman

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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.

Praise For Orient Groundsman

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.”

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