Technical
In his third article on winter sports pitches, Carl Pass, Managing Director of Premier Pitches Ltd., discusses drainage systems and suggests that clubs need to be realistic about what is achievable, what offers the best value for money and, importantly, what work will be carried out in the future
Carl Pass I Drainage Improvements
Assess and identify...
116 I PC APRIL/MAY 2015
n the last two issues, we looked at working with high end pitch systems which are more often out of the reach of lower league, non- league and amateur clubs. At higher league level, whether or not a pitch is reinforced by one of the systems discussed previously, it will be of a reasonably consistent nature in terms of construction, with either a sand over gravel carpet or a reasonable drainage system. Unfortunately, this is often not the case in the semi-professional and amateur leagues, be it rugby or football. In the lower leagues, you can find pitches that
vary enormously, both in terms of construction, if indeed there is any, and also the quality of the growing medium that is expected to sustain a grass sward through the winter months. Given this scenario, what can be done to maintain or improve standards of play at these lower level clubs?
The first thing is to assess your own particular
situation and identify what problems you have and how these can be best resolved. Personally, my main objective before any other would be to make sure the pitch has an adequate drainage system as, without this foundation, it is often impossible to achieve a suitable playing surface at any level. If you do have a good drainage system, you can then move on and look at things like sward composition, surface levels, and the pitch’s overall capability of performing to the standard required for the amount of play it needs to sustain. When looking at drainage improvements,
there are several factors that need considering. Clearly, the type of soil, annual rainfall and topographical details will have an effect on the
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