Winter Sports - Rugby Union
days before a frost comes to keep a bit of warmth in the soil, as well as the tent. “We’ve never had a game called off, so we have always been good at sorting that out.” Steve will go to the stadium first thing and then head over to the training ground, which is just four miles away. They also have a little project going on at the moment; “another training ground that we will maybe move to, so we are doing little bits up there. Sometimes I go up there just to see how things are.” At this time of year, the team do a lot of
aeration work, and divoting is something that also takes up much of their time. This is something that Steve is very much looking forward to saying goodbye to if finances allow the installation of a new Desso pitch next season. The current pitch is Fibresand. “To be fair,
The new West stand being constructed; right is the MET-Rx stand and, in the foreground, Steve’s excellent pitch
for a natural soil pitch, it does stay in pretty good condition. You never have any problems with flooding or anything,” Steve says, “But we’ve got to move with the times I think now. Desso is the best thing since sliced bread. They’re incredible, they really are.” They will work with Hewitt Sportsturf on
the pitch installation as they already have a good relationship with them: “We have been associated with them here from when they first started, so they always come and do work for us and help us out. They are one of the best you can buy. They look after us really well, even though we are a small club, in comparison to some; I think they did Arsenal’s training ground for millions. We are talking a few thousand here, but they still do the same job for us as they would anyone else.”
With regards to machinery, the approach is
The builders do an excellent job of clearing up ahead of a game - and getting Steve’s machinery into the ground!
I used to moan, but I’ve stopped. As you get a little bit older, there’s no point. It doesn’t solve anything, it doesn’t change anything
”
Deadball zone roadway. Steve is not too bothered by what lies beneath
78 I PC DECEMBER/JANUARY 2016
a different story. When the team know what they need, they shop around to find the best deal. The Dennis Premiers that they have at the ground are a favourite of Steve’s, “The finish you get with a Dennis is really good, especially at the start of the season, cutting it close with a Dennis does a fantastic job. Also, because it’s a natural soil base, you don’t want to be driving on it too much. Although that may change if we get a Desso. I may invest in a ride-on mower as well!” Last year, the stadium’s pitch was
completely ruined by a stage that was set up for a two day concert; something the club had never done before. “We had artic lorries on there, and trucks, it was just horrendous,” Steve tells me. Despite reassurance from the companies that provided the boarding etc, the stage ruined the pitch to the extent that it had to be dug out and turfed before the season started; “there just wasn’t enough time to build it up like the rest of it. We may not have started the season if we hadn’t done it.” But it didn’t quite cover the damage: “I mean the turf looked great the first few weeks but, as soon as the weather changed and the turf started to get a bit wet, it just held the water. We had a good 50-60m that was just like blancmange. It was sodden.” So, in the summer, the turf was taken back up, the subsoil broken down, everything was rotovated to about a foot deep with Fibresand, and then it was built
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