“I am really pleased with Jamie’s
progress. He has an old head on young shoulders, does not wait to be told what to do and uses his own initiative”
Greg with Trevor Hutchinson
mark in less then two hours.” As well as looking after the stadium pitch Greg and Trevor have, more recently, helped develop and maintain Notts County’s new training facility just down the road opposite Nottingham University. The land belongs to the local council who have leased it back to the club. “We have inherited four very flat and level soil based pitches, and I want to continue to improve them. With that in mind, we have taken on an apprentice, Jamie Mudie, to work solely at the training ground. I am really pleased with his progress. He has an old head on young shoulders, does not wait to be told what to do, uses his own initiative and is keen to improve his knowledge. He’s currently studying for an NVQ in sports turf management, such is his enthusiasm for the job.”
Ongoing maintenance is fairly typical. Aeration is undertaken monthly, using a SISIS fitted with solid tines, to keep the pitch free draining. Headland products are used for feeding - every four to six weeks - usually Greentec 6:5:18+Mg+04Fe NPK, with some liquid iron applied, as and when needed, to maintain colour. The pitch is marked out using a spray jet impact linemarker - both football and rugby lines are painted in white. Mowing is done on a daily basis
throughout the growing season, maintaining a height of cut around 28mm to provide a safe and quick
surface for both rugby and football. “The rugby lads have now got used to playing on a flatter, quicker surface, and they reckon it helps the speed of play,” says Greg. Available budgets dictate the amount of work that can be achieved in terms of maintenance and, more importantly, end of season renovations. In recent years, the club have had to watch their spending so, for the last three years, the club has only been able to fraise mow the top 15mm, re-level, topdress with 30 tonnes and overseed with MM60. The work is carried out by Fineturf. “I’ve used them for a number of years now and am very happy with the results. I like to build good relationships with all my suppliers, and do not simply go on the cheapest price.”
The machinery is moved between the stadium and training pitches as required and includes two Allett Regals, two Kioti 35hp compact tractors with trailers, a Toro Reelmaster 6500-D triple cylinder mower, line marking equipment and the aforementioned SISIS aerator. End of season work at the training
ground is centred around scarification, topdressing with thirty tonnes of rootzone per pitch, and overseeding with MM60 grass seed. The pitches are mown with the Toro 6500-D set at 28mm.
Jamie Mudie with Greg
“I consider myself very lucky to be working here. Sure, it can be stressful at times, and I do get some flack about the current state of the pitch. But, the management understand the reasons for it and, together, I think we will see improvements next year, especially if the snow and freezing temperatures stay away. Sometimes, you just cannot compete with Mother Nature!” In his eleven years with the club, Greg has seen fifteen managers come and go. “They all have their own ways of working and special requirements, but I always make a point of getting to know them and ensure I build up a good working relationship.” With Forest’s Ewan Hunter and Steve Birks at Trent Bridge ‘just over the road’, the three of them often call on each other for advice, sympathy or to borrow a bit of kit. And, next to the training ground, Greg can pop in and see David Lawrence, the Head Groundsman at the Nottingham Tennis Centre. He is definitely not alone when it comes to managing high level sports facilities in the city of Nottingham.
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