Winter Sports - Football GETTING Personal...
Rob Bennett - we think he may be a bit of a fan of Ian Botham - he must be nuts; and Snickers!
Who are you? Robert Bennett, Head Groundsman at Rochdale AFC.
Family status? Married; one wife, one son, one daughter, one labrador.
Who’s your hero and why? Ian Botham, because he did things on the cricket field others could only dream of.
What would you change about yourself? More hair, more patience.
What’s your guilty pleasure? There is not enough room on the paper; where do I start? Nuts, especially peanuts, Haribos, Snickers, red wine and anything else that’s bad for you.
What's been the highlight of your career so far? Being nominated for groundsman of the year in my last job and, of course, getting the position of head groundsman at Spotland.
What are your pet peeves? Rudeness, bad manners and players leaving tape on the pitch.
If you could go anywhere right now, where would it be? Australia.
What’s the best part of your job? Double cutting the pitch, then going into the stands and admiring my handy work and the manager saying pitch is looking good.
… and the worst? Rain/weather, putting the frost covers on and taking them off and putting them and taking them off; this happens often in Rochdale!
Do you have a lifetime ambition? To be head groundsman at a first class cricket club, Lancashire would be nice (sorry Matt).
Favourite record, and why? I Predict A Riot by the Kaiser Chiefs, so many good memories.
Who would you choose to spend a romantic evening with? I have to say my wife as she is typing this for me but, if I could choose anyone, it would have to be Nigella, innuendos and all.
If you won the lottery, what is the first thing you would do? Book a ticket to go to Australia.
If you were to describe yourself as a musical instrument, what would you be and why? A fiddle, because plenty a good tunes are played on an old one.
Which three people, living or dead, would you invite to a dinner party? Ian Botham, because he was the greatest cricketer ever, Freddie Flintoff, the second best English all rounder ever, and Ricky Ponting, again a great cricketer, but we need someone to take the mickey out of and Aussies are always an easy target.
72 I PC APRIL/MAY 2016
If you could be anyone for a day, who would it be and why? Ian Botham again, because he knew how to enjoy himself, on and off the field!
Do you have any bad habits? Oh yes. can’t publish many, but I do smell everything and, if in the company of people I don’t like, I just ignore them; rude, I know, but if I don’t like them, I don’t like them! I can also be too honest.
... or any good ones? Hard working, always trying to encourage others.
Do you go to bed worrying about the next day’s workload? Yes, you wouldn’t be a good groundsman if you didn’t.
What’s the best advice you have ever been given? Listen to advice given to you, but always make your own decisions.
What’s your favourite smell? A good, full bodied red wine and my wife’s baking.
What do you do in your spare time? Play cricket and spend time with friends and family.
What’s the daftest work related question you have ever been asked? Is the sight screen there to stop the sun going in to your eyes?
What’s your favourite piece of kit? Toro ProCore, if I had one (please Colin).
What three words would you use to describe yourself? Loving, honest and funny.
What talent would you like to have? Ian Botham’s.
What law/legislation would you like to see introduced? For a head groundsman to be able to call off games.
The Rochdale groundstaff l-r: Drew Duffy, Rob Bennett and James Schofield
having earned various certificates in maintenance and preparation of cricket squares and outfields. Working alongside Rob is Assistant Head
Groundsman, Drew Duffy, who started volunteering at the club at the age of fourteen, and apprentice James Schofield who, at seventeen years old, is in the first year of his apprenticeship. Both Rob and Drew are compliant with all current legislation and Drew acts as First Aid Officer. The team has an “all hands to the pump” approach, and presentation ranks very highly on their list of priorities. The FibreSand pitch is kept at 27mm all year round
with two Dennis G860s. It is verticut during the summer and rotary cut with two Honda powered Kaaz rotary mowers used for clean up after every game. “We don’t generally overseed much. We mark the pitch for the games using a wheel to wheel linemarker, which is pretty basic,” Rob confesses. The FibreSand pitch must be kept clean and free
from poa, Rob says, and the team have a few additional systems at their disposal, including frost sheets, 5m centre pipe drainage and 1m sand banding. The pitch can suffer from snow and frost due to it being so high above sea level - they are close to the northern edge of the Peak District - so the frost covers are much needed, as well as the occasional help of volunteers to clear the pitch after heavy snow. “We can call for volunteer assistance via the club’s website. I am rarely short of takers.” “The wetter winters have forced us to put more pipe
drainage into the pitch in my time here," Rob tells us. “And we’ve also installed thirty tonnes of Redgra on the track around the pitch.” The end of season renovations undertaken by Rob and the team are affected by the fact that they share the stadium with the Rochdale Hornets, the Kingstone Press League One rugby league outfit. “With additional community use at the end of the football season, our renovation window is very short; we only have five to six weeks, so there is a lot of pressure on the groundstaff and contractors to complete the work within the allocated timescale.” Rob acknowledges the cooperation given by both
the football and rugby club and the stadium company, Denehurst Park, in achieving this window. “We koro off to a depth of 28mm, spread and
ameliorate 130 tonnes of FibreSand and level and seed with twenty-five bags of Johnsons Premier Pitch and a pre-seed fertiliser.” Rob purchases machinery from a local dealer, but confesses that he isn’t loyal to just one manufacturer.
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