Winter Sports - Rugby World Cup
have to stay the same because we can’t move the goal posts. Now that they are each in four and a half cubic metres of concrete, it’s fair to say they are here to stay!” says Dave. As well as making structural changes, the
turf team had to invest in new maintenance kit to ensure the turf met strict criteria set by the World Cup. Dave purchased a new Toro triple mower with boxes, because of the need to up the scale and precision of the mowing, to meet strict grass height stipulations. “During the tournament, there was
pressure to make sure the pitch met criteria throughout, and to keep it looking and playing impeccably. And this was a challenge, especially with three games in one week during September:
- Saturday 19th September Tonga v Georgia
Kingsholm turf team l-r: Geoff Swift - ex head groundsman of Cheltenham College, brought in to help with divoting (extra staff needed for World Cup), David Balmer - stadium manager, Graeme Balmer - pitch consultant, Jerome Vidgen - stadium assistant and Mick McCahill - groundsman
It was challenging to maintain the pitch when there were games in such close proximity. Both teams had to train for two hours, in what they call a ‘captains run’, one in the morning and one in the afternoon. Therefore, we lost a recovery window
”
The Kingsholm set up for an Elton John concert on 7th June
Pitch looking good ahead of the Rugby World Cup 68 I PC OCTOBER/NOVEMBER 2015
- Wednesday 23rd September Scotland v Japan
- Friday 25th September Argentina v Georgia
In addition, Kingsholm hosted USA v Japan on Sunday 11th October.
“It was challenging to maintain the pitch when there were games in such close proximity, because it’s not just the day of the game that you can’t do any maintenance work, it was also the day before. Both teams had to train for two hours, in what they call a ‘captain’s run’, one in the morning and one in the afternoon. Therefore, we lost a recovery window.” “We prepared the pitch for the captain’s
runs to the same standard that we prepared for the games, so we were working around these sessions and games, as and when we could,” says Dave.
Renovation works
Kingsholm, like many stadiums, hosts a number of concerts and, this year, Madness played on 30th May and Elton John performed on Sunday 7th June. For the concerts, the turf team killed all the grass with a total herbicide, and the ground was covered, so the gigs could be performed. Following this, on the 8th June the
renovation started, they drilled the perennial ryegrass seed and, within two weeks, the grass was perfectly well established, and needed to be mown. “We had to plan exceptionally well in order
to make sure we successfully renovated the pitch for the World Cup. We started right after the last concert and had to mow after two weeks. We then had to implement a strategic fertiliser regime to ensure the pitch looked good for the tournament,” explains Dave. “Having invested so much time, resource
and effort into preparing for the World Cup, it was absolutely vital that we maintained the health of the turf throughout the tournament. We had the eyes of the world on the pitch, and a lot of reputation to uphold. Built in 1891 (twenty years after the creation of the RFU), Kingsholm is one of the oldest stadiums in the UK, and we ensured that its prestige was upheld with a pitch that looked and played as well as possible,” adds Dave.
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