Winter Sports - Football
Burnley Football Club
A sea of Claret and Blue...
O
n the back of a return to the Barclays Premier League, after an absence of four seasons, Burnley Football Club has been required to make a number of significant
changes at their Turf Moor home in order to meet stringent league requirements. The players’ tunnel has been relocated to
the corner of the stadium, between the James Hargreaves and David Fishwick Stands, meaning that both teams now emerge in front of the home supporters instead of visiting fans. Other necessary changes have included a
new, wider, television gantry measuring nineteen metres in length which, effectively, utilises the space previously occupied by the press box and the installation of a number of goal line technology cameras in the stands. The club has also invested in the playing facilities, renovating the stadium pitch,
44 I PC DECEMBER/JANUARY 2015
purchasing new mowers and undertaking the resurfacing of a number of pitches at the training ground. It is five years since I last visited Turf Moor and, in the interim period, nothing much appears to have changed apart from a Desso pitch which was installed after their last Premier League campaign in 2009. This pitch has served the club well and
Head Groundsman, Paul Bradshaw, has been extremely pleased with the way it performs; “there’s always plenty of stability and it delivers a great playing surface when the grass plant is kept healthy,” he confirms. In the shed, Paul now has two new Dennis G860s with eight blade cylinders and verticut and brush attachments, three brand new Hayter Harrier 56 Pro rotary mowers, a Toro ProCore 648 aerator, an Everris Accupro spreader and a Techneat 125 SPPS pedestrian sprayer.
In recent years, the club has also invested
in four SGL MU27 baby lighting rigs which are used mainly in the goalmouths and warm up areas. Paul, who has been at the club nine years,
has a team of four staff. His Deputy Head Groundsman, Barry O’Brien, has been at the club for seven and half years; Aiden McGough, twenty eight years; Chris Pickles three years, whilst newest recruit, Daniel Joyce, joined the team in September 2013. Paul and Chris remain at the stadium
whilst the others work at the training ground. On match days, all the staff report for work at the stadium, coming in early to prepare the pitch and stay up to two hour after the match to replace divots and rotary mow the pitch. In preparation for life back in the Premier
League, and as soon as the last Championship match was played at Turf
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