Over the coming issues we will be joining groundsmen from various sports disciplines as they undertake their match day duties.
The first in the series features Steve Packwood, Head Groundsman at Leicester Tigers RFC, as he finalises pitch preparations for the visit of Leinster.
Laurence Gale gets an insight into the work that is carried out, and rather excited about meeting so many star rugby players!
Match Day COUNTDOWN
M
atch day. Probably the most enjoyable and rewarding part of a Groundsman’s job. The focal
point of their existence, enabling them to see the fruits of all their labours. But just how much work goes into match day preparation? Steve Packwood is Head Groundsman at Leicester Tigers RFC. Together with his assistant, Tom Hoeggar, they are wholly responsible for the match day pitch. The day I joined them the Tigers were playing Irish XV, Leinster, in the sixth round of the Heineken Cup and, to add to the pressures, the game was being televised live by Sky Sports. Steve has been with the Tigers for 17 years, taking over as Head Groundsman six years ago. Welford Road has three large stands surrounding the pitch and, like many stadiums, suffers shade problems from late September through to March. The soil remains cooler and
Fish Eye images © Paul Quinn, Tiger Images
wetter in the shaded areas leading to loss of grass cover. This is one of Steve’s biggest challenges.
He has continued to improve the playing quality of the pitch in recent seasons with drainage installations and the amelioration of the top 100mm with FibreSand.
A primary drainage system at 5 metre
centres overlaid with sand bands at 1 metre centres coupled with the FibreSand has made a tremendous difference to the pitch quality and waterlogging is now a thing of the past. The sward is kept open with a
programme of aeration combining the use of a Vertidrain (hired in) 3-4 times per year and regular slit tining with the club’s own slitter. Match preparations begin immediately after the last game. The playing surface is repaired, all divots and scars are replaced and heeled in. The pitch is then
rolled to return levels and then brushed and mowed to tidy the playing surface. Frequency of mowing is dictated by both the weather and grass growth. Mowing has been made a lot easier since they purchased a couple of Dennis 36” Premier mowers, the pitch can now be cut in less than an hour. The Tigers always train on the pitch
on a Friday morning for about two hours, regardless of the weather. This only leaves Steve Friday afternoon and Saturday morning for final pitch preparations. With Sky Sports in attendance the last thing he needed was a cancelled game. So for much of the week Steve and Tom spent every hour available spiking the surface using their SISIS pedestrian slitter.
The marking out of the pitch would be left until Saturday morning.
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