Winter Sports - Football


“ R


My grandad had the perfect lawn and everyone who walked past the garden would stop and admire it. He took great pride in his grass


ochdale Association Football Club is based in the town of Rochdale in Greater Manchester. Formed in 1907, the club plays out of the 10,249 capacity Spotland


Stadium, their home since being accepted into the League in the early 1920s. Since that time, the club has remained in the bottom two professional divisions of English Football and achieved promotion three times - in 1969, 2010 and 2014. Although the club has never won a competition since joining the League, they have the distinction of playing in the final of the League Cup in 1962, the first of only two teams from the lowest tier to have done so. With some rather well-to-do neighbours,


‘The Dale’ count Bury and Oldham Athletic as local rivals; not for them, the millions available to their Premier League neighbours. Spotland benefitted from three new stands in the 1990s and early 2000s. The


only remaining stand pre 1990s is at the Sandy Lane end, which is a small terrace behind one of the goals. Spotland’s Head Groundsman is Rob


Bennett, who has been at the ground just fifteen months. “I first started working in the industry with my dad when I was around sixteen years old. I got my first full time groundsman’s position at Orrell rugby union club, before moving to Wigan Athletic’s training ground, followed by becoming a full time groundsman at Middleton Cricket Club. From there, I came to Rochdale.” He was first inspired to work in the


industry by his grandad; “he had the perfect lawn and everyone who walked past the garden would stop and admire it. He took great pride in his grass.” Not one to shy away from extra personal


development it seems, Rob has completed his NVQ level 2 and is in the process of working towards his NVQ level 3, as well as


PC APRIL/MAY 2016 I 71


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