Tag Archive for: Pitch

Tree Causes Pitch Damage

/in , /by

Tree Causes Pitch Damage: It should have been a case for the Special Branch, but solving the most recent tree problem at Romsey Town’s Bypass Ground was far from a laughing matter.

The Sydenhams Wessex One club face a bill of around £350-£400 to repair the damage caused when a giant poplar was uprooted in gale force winds last week, crashing through the barrier next to the goal and damaging part of the pitch in the process.

It took two tree surgeons the whole of last Saturday to chop the tree up and move it bit by bit.

The next job was to call out the groundsman to tend to the damaged turf.

The first club secretary Clare Crossland knew of the fallen tree was when she got a call from the chairman’s wife last Thursday.

“I asked her if she thought we could move it and she said ‘let’s put it this way, you and I couldn’t do it,” said Crossland.

“I then had the bright idea of asking if the players could be diverted to the ground on their way back from training on a 3G pitch to see if they could help.

“There were 15 of them and I thought we might be able to move it with pure manpower, but when I put the lights on there was raucous laughter going on. The tree was absolutely massive!

“There was no way even 15 of them could have shifted it.

“Even the tree surgeons said it would have to be cut into very small chunks to enable them to move it.

“I’ve not had the bill from the groundsman yet, but I’d estimate that altogether it will end up costing us in the region of £350-£400. It’s also severed the pitch-side barrier and bent it.”

It’s not the first time a tree has caused havoc at Romsey.

Two years ago a root was discovered growing under the pitch, forcing a first-team fixture to be postponed.

Last weekend Romsey had been due to play away, although their match at Fawley AFC was rained off.

On Saturday Andy Samuels’ men travel to Totton & Eling, while the shadow squad will host Brockenhurst in the Wyvern Combination League.

Romsey, who have not played since December 23, are fifth in the Wessex table, nine points adrift of leaders Andover New Street with two games in hand.

Click here to read the original article

For the latest industry news visit turfnews.co.uk

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 Renovation At Reading FC

/in , /by

Pitch Renovation At Reading FC: The Madejski Stadium has been home to Championship club Reading FC since its construction in 1999. With the playing surface having undergone significant wear and tear over recent seasons, especially given its dual function as the home ground for London Irish RFC, Reading commissioned a full reconstruction during the summer of 2017, in preparation for a renewed promotion challenge in the 2017/18 season.

The challenge

With the new Championship season just around the corner, Reading FC had just a five-week period to remove the existing pitch, replace both the lower and upper rootzones, and then relay the grass playing surface before completing the installation of the SISGRASS hybrid pitch system. All of the work needed to be undertaken and completed in time for Reading’s first home game of the season on 8 August.

Pitch Renovation At Reading FC

Given the pitch is used by both Reading FC and long-term tenants, London Irish RFC, the playing surface is not afforded the regular ‘off-weekends’ that other non-ground sharing clubs benefit from; while the stresses and strains of hosting regular rugby fixtures further test the durability of the pitch. As such, the club identified the need for a long-lasting hybrid solution which could withstand the intensity and variety of multi-sport use, without sacrificing the playability associated with a grass pitch.

The new pitch is a 95% natural and 5% synthetic fibre surface that is able to deliver longer playing hours with fast recovery times, making it ideal for the playing demands at Madejski Stadium.

With a view to starting work as quickly as possible, Reading FC appointed specialist sports surface contractors, M J Abbott Ltd. Given the tight timescales, and having worked together before on a series of projects, M J Abbott turned to Tarmac’s Topsport team to supply the drainage gravel, lower rootzone sand and upper rootzone for the project.

The solution

As the pitch playing surface was to be completely replaced, the first task was to remove the existing playing surface, followed by the rootzones and both the sub-pitch irrigation system and heating pipe system, ahead of the sand being delivered.

“Timing was absolutely critical to the success of this project,” said Richard Goddings, Technical Sales Manager – South, for Tarmac’s Topsport division. “Given the club’s first game of the season was at home, the deadlines were completely set in stone, with no room for error.

“Sourcing the large volume of high specification material required to undertake the work was the first challenge to overcome. We were able to source 3,000 tonnes of sand from our Sevenoaks quarry, which was no mean feat given the distance between Kent and Reading. As the pitch would retain its sub-surface pitch heating system, it was essential that the sand was laid quickly so that the irrigation and heating pipes could be re-installed ahead of the upper rootzone. Our team surpassed this brief by delivering the sand, to specification, two days ahead of schedule.”

Richard continues: “As soon as the sand was in, we were then able to deliver 1,800 tonnes of Topsport Kingsley rootzone, designed to meet strict horticultural and playing performance criteria, in less than a week. The rootzone was placed out on the Friday and laid by the Sunday. It was then levelled off, graded with a laser-guided bulldozer, and then seeded.

“The rootzone is a carefully balanced combination of high quality sand blended with organic materials, which encourages the free passage of air and water to facilitate strong and natural root growth. The 20 per cent organic content of the rootzone helps to improve moisture retention, leading to a higher quality playing surface which is noticeably softer than other hybrid systems, giving the feel of a true grass pitch. The improved percolation and water retention means that water can freely flow through the composition during wet weather, yet improves water retention in drier periods.

“To complete the installation, the hybrid element of the pitch was installed using patented technology to inject fibres into the playing surface. The artificial fibres ensure the pitch maintains consistency and stability by holding the rootzone together.

“We have a great relationship with M J Abbott who contacted us about the project, knowing that we could meet the tight timescales that were required.  Opting for a hybrid pitch with an 80:20 rootzone has resulted in a stronger and healthier playing surface which should withstand the inevitable wear and tear that comes with being the home ground for Reading FC and London Irish RFC.”

Nathan George, Contracts Manager at M J Abbott, comments: “The Topsport team’s efficient supply of high specification lower rootzone sand and upper rootzone was integral to this project’s success, given the looming championship season and physically demanding use of the pitch. The quality of the material supplied by Topsport meant there were no issues with stones or grit damaging our equipment when stitching in the fibres to create the SISGRASS playing surface. Thanks to our established working relationship, the project went smoothly and we were able to deliver a pitch, on time and to the Club’s satisfaction.”

For more information on Tarmac’s range of Topsport artificial sports surface solutions, please visit www.topsport.co.uk.

For the latest industry news visit turfnews.co.uk

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 Competition Deadline Looming

/in , /by

Pitch Competition Deadline Looming: Amateur sports teams who need a helping hand in looking after their pitch have until the end of November to make their application to win £3,000 worth of grounds maintenance machinery.

Pitch To Play, a competition ran by Allett Lawnmowers and the Institute of Groundsmanship (the IOG), is open to all amateur sports teams with an under 18s team, no matter what the sport. The winner will receive £3,000 to spend on a new Allett mower to help maintain their pitch to a professional, premiership standard! They will also receive a tailor-made maintenance programme from the IOG to help maintain the pitch for the future and tackle any problems.

Pitch Competition Deadline Looming

Entering is easy. Simply visit www.pitchtoplay.co.uk before 1st December 2017 and submit at least three photos showing why your club deserves to win.

 Leigh Bowers, sales director at Allett, said: “We know that there is nothing worse than trying to play on a poor-quality sports pitch, and appreciate the hours of hard work that groundsteams and volunteers put in. The winter is undoubtedly the most challenging time for groundsteams and the looming December deadline gives people the chance to strengthen their entry for the competition and make sure that those most in need of help are in with the chance of winning.”

Allett and the IOG want to recognise the hard work that amateur groundsteams and volunteers undertake across the country, often with limited resources and equipment, and reward them for all that they do. Pitch to Play champions amateur groundstaff and gives them the opportunity to renovate the pitches that they look after, whilst brightening the future for their club.

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

For the latest industry news visit turfnews.co.uk

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.

Newcastle Receive Best Pitch In 15 years With MJ Abbott

/in /by

Newcastle United Football Club Receive Best Pitch in 15 years, working with MJ Abbott: Newcastle United’s stadium manager, Eddie Rutherford, has hailed the new SIS Grass pitch at St James’ Park, installed by MJ Abbott and Premier Pitches, as the best in his 16-years at the club.

St James’ Park sits in the centre of Newcastle as a monument to football, with progress being made under Rafael Benitez after bouncing back from The Championship at the first time of asking in 2016/17.

Newcastle Receive Best Pitch In 15 years With MJ Abbott

Results on the new pitch have been promising through to the end of October, seeing three wins, a draw and one loss, but the decision to install a new irrigation system and playing surface was taken at short notice and required swift planning and cohesive team work between MJ Abbott and Premier Pitches, with the result delighting Eddie and the club.

“We are extremely happy with the pitch, it’s played really well,” Eddie said. “It’s probably the best the pitch has been since I’ve been here, and I know it hasn’t gone through the winter period yet but at the same stage in the last 15-years it hasn’t been any better.

“We did the job at very short notice. We decided to put the SIS Grass pitch in with only four weeks’ notice, so considering the time they had to get everything organised and put in place I couldn’t fault them.

“My only worry was that when you put two companies together, will they work well together. But they were both spot on throughout the project. When one is getting towards the end the other needs to be ready and mobilised and that worked really well, it couldn’t have worked any better.

“MJ Abbott come as a partnership with Premier Pitches when installing SIS Grass pitches. Premier Pitches have done a lot of work in the past with us and do our end of season renovations, but I know MJ Abbott are good contractor so I was quite happy to work with the two combined”

Nathan George, Contracts Manager at MJ Abbott explained “The project comprised removing the existing fibre sand surface down to a suitable depth as to expose the existing drainage slits. This operation had to be very carefully completed as to not destroy the integrity of the retained drainage.”

“A new fully automatic pitch irrigation system was installed and an imported rootzone laid to re-establish the original pitch levels. Premier Pitches completed the preparation and seeding of the new pitch, which delivered the project a week ahead of the proposed programme”

“The SISGRASS stitching was installed following grass establishment, a process that took 7 days”

The quick planning required for the project was helped by Premier Pitches’ experience at the city centre venue, and director, Russell Latham, commended the work of the design team in the build-up to the start date.

“The design team needs to work well together from the outset, especially on this project because of the time scale, but more importantly the men on the ground need to work in harmony from start to finish.

“Newcastle United have been a long-standing client of Premier Pitches so the pitfalls of working at a city centre Premier League stadium were well known. Nevertheless, without the rigorous planning and logistics from the outset things still could have gone wrong.

“The logistics of plant deliveries, material removal and material deliveries all had to be scheduled to the second to ensure that the project ran smoothly.

“We have worked with MJ Abbott on our prestigious pitch construction projects for over five years now. Their efficient and meticulous way of approaching a product from design and planning to delivery is everything that our key clients want to see but it doesn’t stop there. The back-up and support and knowledge is second to none.”

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

For the latest industry news visit turfnews.co.uk

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.