Tag Archive for: Pitch

Tynemouth’s members pitch in

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Tynemouth’s members pitch in: Tynemouth Golf Club in the north-east of England, opened in 1913 and designed by Willie Park Jr, is reaping the benefit of an innovative bunker renovation programme, carried out with the help of synthetic bunker edging solutions provider EcoBunker Ltd.

“It was pretty obvious that we had to do something about our bunkers,” says greens chair David Steven. “Not only were they 107 years old, but we run a regular membership survey, and every time, the bunkers were voted as the biggest problem, with members complaining about contamination of sand and animals digging up the edges.”

Tynemouth’s members pitch in

Tynemouth’s members pitch in

Club pro John McKenna saw the EcoBunker solution in use when playing at another course, and brought it to Stevens’ attention. “We are a parkland course, not a links, although we are close to the North Sea, so there was some concern as to whether revetted edged bunkers would meet our needs,” says the greens chair. “So, as part of my research, I visited the BIGGA greenkeeping show in Harrogate and met the EcoBunker team. I realised that the solution would fix a lot of our problems – it would give a permanent shape to the bunker edges and protect against invasive animals. And the use of recycled materials was very attractive from a sustainability perspective.”

After building two EcoBunkers as a test, the club decided to take the plunge and rebuild all its greenside bunkers using the solution. But Steven was concerned about getting the bunker construction right. “If you are doing all the bunkers at once, then if you get it wrong you get everything wrong,” he says. Employing a specialist golf contractor to do the work was out of the question on cost grounds, but the club found an answer using an innovative ‘hybrid’ method. EcoBunker construction manager Llewelyn Matthews came to Tynemouth to act as project manager, and labour was provided by the club’s own greens crew and a group of temporary staff – who were all club members!

“We didn’t want to do the job on the cheap and mess it up, but at the same time we could not afford to throw money at it,” says Steven. “To protect the value of the project, it was essential that we had great buy-in from EcoBunker, and using Llew Matthews as a PM gave us that. When he came to do the two test bunkers, he was brilliant, which gave us confidence that EcoBunker had its fingerprints all over our job. He stayed for four weeks, which was essentially a month-long course in building EcoBunkers. We think we could have completed the entire project of 34 bunkers on schedule, had COVID-19 not reduced our manpower. When Llewellyn left, there were still eleven bunkers left to finish, but our team had been trained so well that they were able to knock them off in two and a half days, and we are over the moon with the results.”

“Lots of clubs want to do bunker renovations, but don’t have enough money for a contractor and a turnkey project,” says EcoBunker CEO and inventor Richard Allen. “But they can afford to buy in the materials, get a project manager and provide the labour and plant from within. The alternative is that they have a two day training course and say ‘Right, now we know what we are doing’. But it is hard to keep the impetus high like that. Greens crews are busy and get distracted, and the bunker work is usually the first thing to be forgotten. If they hire a project manager, though, they realise they need to hit it hard while he’s with them. It’s a way of committing to the project, which is what all good bunker work needs if it is to be to the high standards that golfers expect.”

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Irish surfaces kept pitch perfect

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Irish surfaces kept pitch perfect: There may be no games taking place in the Danske Bank Premiership right now, but a small band of individuals up and down the country are still having to prepare as if there are.

The day that football does return is still a long way down the line as the coronavirus continues to make its presence felt across the world, but pitches still need to be maintained in the meantime and it’s down to groundsmen across the league to ensure that they’re ready to go when sport gets the green light again.

Tommy Doherty, the groundsman at the Coleraine Showgrounds, said: “It’s just about keeping it ready while we’re waiting for a call from the Irish League to get back to playing again.”

The general duties tend to be the same around most grounds right now, bar those clubs who have 4G pitches, in that the grass needs mowed and the white lines need repeatedly marked.

It’s vital work done behind the scenes to little fanfare, and if it isn’t done now then the Irish League wouldn’t be able to return as soon as it will. Instead, every ground should be up to scratch when needed.

Glentoran groundsman William Kirkwood explained: “If Mick McDermott rang me right now and told me there’s a match tomorrow then the pitch would be ready to go. It’s not panic time. We do keep on top of things.”

It’s a thankless task, especially because no fans are even able to see the fruits of the groundsmen’s labour at the moment, and it’s frustrating as well. After all, the season could, theoretically, be cancelled at any point.

Dungannon Swifts groundsman Davy Magee said: “It’s tough when you’re cutting the grass and marking the pitch and there’s no football at the weekend. It’s all for nothing, you know?”

Doherty agreed, and added: “It keeps you busy, although you miss the football. There may not be any football for the rest of the year and all my work is for nothing, but you can’t take that chance. They could step onto the pitch at any time.”

In the meantime, Kirkwood and Magee are trying to get ahead of the curve by completing some of the work that they were hoping to do over the off-season.

Kirkwood’s intentions are to spread 100 tonnes of sand on The Oval pitch and then re-seed the surface so that it’s in pristine condition for the start of next season, plans which have been halted both by the lack of rain and the lockdown.

“I want to try and do it now, but most of my suppliers are closed. Most of the sand comes from Emerson’s in Lurgan but they’re closed up. Because it’s heavy work, I usually bring in a contractor but he’s closed up too,” he explained. “I’m preparing to do it myself, but hopefully at the start of May those guys might be able to work again.”

Magee has already seeded his pitch but has run into similar problems.

“We seeded it three weeks ago and now it’s just about waiting for the new stuff to come up,” said the Swifts man. “We can’t get sand or anything like that because everywhere is closed, and we need sand to fill holes. We can’t get the machinery either.”

But at the end of the day, for all the work they can do, what all three groundsmen are united on is that football can’t return soon enough and they’ll see their pristinely prepared pitches back in use once more.

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College Cup winners prepare Clásico pitch

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College Cup winners prepare Clásico pitch: After winning the 2019 SALTEX College Cup, four students from Myerscough College recently enjoyed an unforgettable experience at Real Madrid’s Bernabéu Stadium.

The annual SALTEX College Cup, sponsored by Toro and Reesink Turfcare, is a student-led sports turf challenge – an academic test of turf management knowledge for student competitors who are enrolled at a college on a relevant course of study.

College Cup winners prepare Clásico pitch

College Cup winners prepare Clásico pitch

Myerscough College, located in Bilsborrow, Preston, entered a team into the competition solely consisting of apprentices. Scott Danter (Warwick School), Ashley Hill (Warwickshire County Cricket Club), Ryan Harrison and Nick George (both from Leicester City Football Club) are all currently studying Level 2 or Level 3 sportsturf apprenticeships.

The competition consisted of paper-based multiple choice and short answer questions on turf management, plus a case study which required a more in-depth written answer. The students were also presented with live test samples in which they had to identify potential threats to the health of turf.

Myerscough College proved victorious and saw off competition from Askham Bryan, CAFRE, Bridgwater and Capel Manor to win the trophy. The Myerscough team was then presented with a prize that money can’t buy – a once-in-a-lifetime visit to Real Madrid’s Bernabéu Stadium, where they would get the opportunity to learn from Paul Burgess, Madrid’s director of grounds and environment.

As part of the prize the four students enjoyed an invaluable groundscare work experience placement in the run up to one of the biggest domestic fixtures in world football, El Clásico, between Real Madrid and Barcelona. During their weekend visit the group enjoyed a full, behind-the-scenes experience of just what it takes to prepare the playing surface for such a prestigious fixture, and even got the golden opportunity to be part of the team that maintains the Bernabéu’s hallowed turf.

It was an experience that will live long in the memory according to student Ashley Hill: “This was a real honour,” he said. “Seeing in detail what the grounds team do at the training ground and at the stadium was inspirational. Mowing the pitch at the Bernabéu was the icing on the cake.”

Ryan Harrison believes that opportunity to learn from Paul Burgess has helped to improve his skill set and will enhance his prospects in the grounds management industry: “Paul and the team were brilliant with us all and I learnt so much. Helping to prepare the pitch for the El Clasico was a real privilege and I am going home a better groundsperson.”

The Bernabéu tour follows three extraordinary SALTEX College Cup prizes in previous years. In 2017 the winning students were part of the Wembley grounds team at the FA Cup Final and the following year the winners enjoyed an unforgettable experience of helping with pitch preparations at the 2018 Six Nations Championships at BT Murrayfield Stadium. Last year saw the winning College win a behind the scenes tour at The All England Lawn Tennis Club (AELTC), Wimbledon in which the students received an in-depth look at court preparations the week before The Championships 2019 took place.

The SALTEX College Cup continues to go from strength to strength and Dan Prest, head of technical and learning at the Institute of Groundsmanship, believes it is a fantastic platform to encourage and inspire the younger generation.

“This competition is all about raising standards in our industry. Young people should see this opportunity as a viable career option and that there is a progressive career path for them to follow,” he said.

All colleges interested in participating in the 2020 SALTEX College Cup should email Dan Prest at dprest@iog.org for more details.

SALTEX 2020 will take place at the NEC, Birmingham on 4 and 5 November.

For more information visit www.iogsaltex.com

Follow SALTEX on Twitter @IOG_SALTEX and Facebook – www.facebook.com/IOGSALTEX

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Angels crowdfund to protect pitch

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Angels crowdfund to protect pitch: Tonbridge Angels Football Club has launched a crowdfunding campaign to raise £35,000 so that it can purchase covers and carry out urgent work on the pitch and drainage system at Longmead.

The plea comes with the club’s finances suffering severely after a succession of home games at the stadium have been postponed due to waterlogging.

Incessant rain has meant the ground has been too wet to satisfy the National League’s requirement for player safety, and the club has only played at home once since January 4.

On Monday (March 16) the league announced that all fixtures would be postponed until April 3 in response to the coronavirus outbreak.

Three days later the Football Association said football would not resume until at least April 30 – though the governing body intends to try and complete the season during the summer.

When the season resumes, they may have to complete the campaign by playing at other club’s grounds, which means they will have to pay a fee to the hosts and also miss out on crucial bar and catering revenue. The National League has given them permission to do so.

The club was promoted after winning two play-offs last year to reach its highest ever league position but now faces a battle to avoid relegation with a congested fixture list until the end of the current campaign.

They had to call off the much-awaited local derby against Maidstone on March 10 – which was originally supposed to be played on Boxing Day.

The club is expecting its biggest crowd of the season for the visit of their rivals – the last league fixture in 2014 attracted 1,168 fans, double the usual gate – but the fixture has now been cancelled three times.

The Angels chairman Dave Nethercott wrote an open letter to fans admitted that it was ‘running out of money’ and asking for financial help.

The club is owned by its supporters, who pay an annual fee in return for having a say in the way it is run. But Mr Nethercott said they needed to raise a minimum of £7,600 per week for the last eight weeks of the season, or more than £60,000.

An emergency meeting was called on March 5 to discuss the options for ground renovation in order to avoid a repeat of this winter’s flooding.

Peter Elves, the head groundsman, said the drainage has ‘now outlived its working life’ and that three games have been allowed to be played that have compromised the playing surface.

One suggestion was to install an artificial surface which, with new floodlighting, would cost between £500,000 and £600,000.

However, such a move would take two to three years to complete, and a more immediate solution needs to be found.

So the club has decided to buy covers to protect the playing surface while also carrying out renovations of the existing underground drainage.

A spokesperson said: “Our pitch at the Halcyon Wealth Longmead Stadium has served Tonbridge Angels FC well over the past 40 years and has been witness to scores of exciting matches.

“It’s fair to say that it’s starting to feel its age somewhat – in particular the underground drainage system – and this has not been helped by the record rainfall of this winter.

“Urgent major renovations are required which include the procurement of state-of-the-art covers if we are to maintain a high standard of semi-professional football in the town.”

He added: “Please donate whatever you can spare to this community based club largely run by volunteers to ensure we are able to provide football in Tonbridge for spectators to enjoy and for future generations of young people to compete in the UK’s national game.”

To make a donation visit justgiving.com/crowdfunding/tonbridge-angels

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Osca justifies pitch investment

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Osca justifies pitch investment: Once Warwick School had decided to invest in a new synthetic pitch, Grounds Manager Duncan Toon felt that the SISIS Osca 3 tractor-mounted oscillating brush was the only machine that could maintain the new surface effectively and truly justify the major investment decision.   

Sport plays a significant role for the pupils that attend Warwick School and its teams excel in a number of sports including cricket, rugby and hockey. However, while the school’s sports teams are making the headlines on the pitch, it is Duncan and his newly assembled team of six grounds staff that make it all possible.

Osca justifies pitch investment

Duncan, who has been in the role for nine months, was tasked by Warwick Independent Schools Foundation, which includes Warwick School, Warwick Junior School, King’s High School and Warwick Preparatory School, to significantly improve the sports surfaces used by all its schools.  He is now responsible for the eight hectares of grassland and all of the gardens and sports facilities.

“With the investment which has been made into the synthetic surface, I felt that we needed to have the best equipment to maintain it and for me the Osca was essential.

“I was actually looking online and I came across some videos of the SISIS Osca in action and after much research I felt that it was the one machine which massively stood out and the one which I believed would make the biggest difference to us.”

The SISIS Osca is a tractor-mounted powered oscillating brush with a 1.9 meter working width and is equally effective when used on synthetic turf with sand or rubber infill. The two oscillating brushes stand up the carpet fibres and redistributes the infill, minimising compaction on the surface and improving its performance – giving consistent playing characteristics while preventing pile damage caused by reduced infill levels.

A contributory factor to the reduction of compaction is that the Osca’s working width will use fewer passes than other more conventional drag brushes to complete a pitch. Its aggressive brushing action agitates the upper infill level of the surface from side to side as well as brushing forward, helping reduce surface compaction and encourage the fibres to stand up straight which reduces the risk of contamination, drainage problems and leaves a consistent playing surface across the whole pitch.

For a school that thrives on sport, the synthetic surfaces at Warwick incur a lot of usage which means that regular maintenance is of the utmost importance – as Duncan explains.

“Over the course of a year, the pitch averages four hours of play every day and we use the Osca on a fortnightly basis. It is a great machine and when you run your fingers through the pitch after you have used the Osca, it is clear to see that the de-compaction it offers is simply on a different level. Since we have been using it the pitch has significantly improved.

“The Osca’s oscillating brushes are the best feature and are very unique. Not only do they get rid of any compaction problems but they also provide a fantastic finish. Thousands of pupils play on this pitch so maintaining it effectively is important for player safety but you can’t forget about the presentation either. The SISIS Osca ticks both of these boxes.”

For further information or a no obligation demonstration, please contact SISIS on 01332 824 777 or visit www.sisis.com

For more news, reviews and insightful views, you can follow SISIS on Twitter or Instagram @SISISMachinery and like the company’s Facebook page – www.facebook.com/SISISMachinery. You can also view the latest SISIS videos by visiting www.youtube.com/SISISMachinery

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