Winter Sports
Very little goalmouth wear
Spot on Spotland in January 2012
“To give you some idea of what we have to contend with, our first match of this season was a Rugby League game on 3rd July, just five weeks after sowing”
football friendly against Leeds United on the 19th July. It’s a demanding schedule on new growth,” admits Phil. “A lot of hard work is required to get the pitches up and running, and I was doing this all on my own at this time!” Phil’s skills were again tested in August when he had five games in just ten days; two back-to-back football matches, followed by one rugby, one football and, finally, another rugby match. “Having a fibresand pitch certainly helps; divot damage is greatly reduced compared to the soil based pitch. It is all about attention to detail. We get on when the weather is favourable, apply fertilisers, fungicides, water and wetting agents as and when the pitch needs it, whilst being thorough and precise when undertaking pre and post match maintenance regimes.”
“One of my biggest bugbears during the playing season is the damage done by warms ups and warm downs,” says Phil. “With little or no spare space off the pitch, all of the warm up drills are
carried out on the playing surface. Fast feet drills are the worst,” bemoans Phil. “It’s not so bad when coaches rotate the drills, but some teams are adamant about conducting repetitive drills in one spot. I try to ‘educate’ the coaches to understand the problem, so that they can at least try to help reduce the damage. Our lot are pretty good, but some visiting teams ...!” Verticutting and regular brushing helps
keep the pitch in good order. Mowing heights are kept between 28-30mm. Phil has a set of frost sheets to cover the pitch during icy conditions, using the heavier, thicker sheets in the shaded areas. “They have only been required a couple of times so far this season, in complete contrast to last winter.” Aeration is undertaken every three to four weeks using their Vertidrain 7316. “The operation takes up to five hours to complete the whole pitch,” explains Phil, “and I generally combine it with a feed.” The club have recently acquired the use of a new training venue, moving to
Manor Farm, a twenty-four acre site, with a view of securing a long term lease in the coming year. The site boasts four full size pitches and accommodation for players, together with full office, kitchen and rest and relaxation areas. In the past, the club had ties with
Rochdale Cricket Club, using two of their lacrosse pitches for training. “The Manor Farm site will give us greater control over the appearance and playability of our training pitches,” says Phil, “and, in time, we hope to emulate the surface of the stadium pitch.”
On a mild January day in Greater Manchester, Rochdale’s pitch looks a picture, with little goalmouth wear and good grass coverage; a perfect scenario for the start of the new Rugby League season. That, of course, will test the skills of Phil and Drew but, judging by comments from visiting coaches from both sports, they have one of the best playing surfaces in the north-west.
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www.supaturf.co.uk FEBRUARY/MARCH 2012 PC 69
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