Winter Sports - Rugby World Cup
with the slightly higher temperatures, the wind that they get up at the stadium is something that has to be kept in mind. Being so high up and exposed, as well as being near to the coast, the salty wind from the sea affects the tip of the grass, stunting the growth of the leaf: “We had it on our old pitch and we still have it slightly on this pitch, although it hasn’t been as prominent on this one. I think probably because our feeding regime is a lot higher, so it’s kind of knocked that out of it.”
Neither Adrian nor Max trained in Exeter Chiefs were not allowed to train on the pitch ahead of the Rugby World Cup
groundsmanship or turf but, as Adrian says, “it’s a bit sad but, if you’ve got a love of grass, you’ve got a love of grass.” Adrian, a printer all his life, started looking after the grounds of his local cricket club as a hobby twenty-five years ago. He started at Sandy Park eight years ago when the previous groundsman left. “Luckily, my friend was a director of the club and I had been here a few times just helping out now and again. Then, when the old groundsman left, it gave me a chance to take over. And that’s it really. It’s gone from strength to strength.” Max, a joiner by trade, has been at Sandy
Park for six years, and takes care of the maintenance side of things. “We sort of separate our jobs to an extent. Adrian does the grounds as he enjoys it and knows what he is doing, and I tend to pick up the maintenance side. So dealing with the contractor or, if not, doing it myself. Whatever is necessary. We work as a good team.”
The pedestrian machinery that they both
prefer makes pitch maintenance a two-man job now, says Adrian. “It’s a big job. We’ve got two spreaders, two Honda rotaries, and we've just got two new Dennis G860 cylinder mowers. Hopefully, that will be a little bit better for two of us, rather than a tractor or a ride-on. They’re better for the grass and allow for better presentation.” Mentioning the two new Dennis G860s,
Pitchside discussions ahead of the Rugby World Cup
It’s great when the grass is looking nice and green, but it comes from the roots in the first place. We try to get as much retention of nutrients in the roots as possible
”
Exeter Chiefs have been a Premiership side since 2010
64 I PC OCTOBER/NOVEMBER 2015
due to arrive later that day, have the effect of producing the biggest grin that I have seen from Adrian. “Can't beat a brand new piece of kit!” They’ve been after them for about a year, and I am guessing that the World Cup has given somebody up at the top the push to grant their wishes. Not that they have to worry too much about budgets, as it seems like they are quite well looked after in that respect. Max talks to me about how much more
they have learnt by using pedestrian machinery, as opposed to the ride-on equipment that they were used to. “When you are doing it by hand, you see a lot more, you learn a lot more by doing it. You’re walking at a slower pace, you’re watching where you’re going. It probably gives you a quicker reaction time to deal with a problem when it comes about.” They buy their machinery from a
longstanding club sponsor, Radmore & Tucker, and have always used the same consultant for the pitch, Tim Wakeham, previously a sales rep. Max says, “He’s got to know the pitch as well as we have and so you sort of work as a team and you agree things.
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