FOOTBALL
Getting Personal
Jason Stewart - you never know what’s around the corner
Who are you? Jason Stewart, Head Groundman at Maidenhead United Football Club.
Family status. In a relationship and a father to my two beautiful children.
Who’s your hero and why? Peter Griffin, the Chairman. He gave me the opportunity to work full-time at the club and to do what I really enjoy.
What’s been the highlight of your grounds career so far? Maidenhead United winning the National League South in 2016-17. And, this season; 2019-20 because the pitch has never been so good.
If your younger self saw you now, what would he think? Hopefully he would be proud, as I’m working very hard.
Which famous people wind you up? Reality TV stars.
What job would you love, other than your own? I love what I’m doing so I don’t really know.
What is your favourite film? Jack Frost.
What scares you? The future - you never know what’s around the corner.
What is your favourite sport? Football. I don’t play, but I like watching.
Do you have a lifetime ambition? Just to carry on with what I’m doing.
What’s the best advice you have ever been given? Never give up and always ask if you’re not sure about something.
What’s your favourite smell? I love the smell of freshly cut grass (just as well really).
Which three albums would you take to a desert island? I’m not really sure as I can’t see myself going to a desert island.
What’s the daftest work-related question you have ever been asked? Have you just cut the pitch?
What’s your favourite piece of kit? Ransomes cylinder mower.
What three words would you use to describe yourself? Hardworking, ambitious and proactive.
What is the single most useful thing you could tell a 16-year-old groundsperson/greenkeeper? Do things the best you can and, if you’re not sure about something, ask someone!
50 PC April/May 2020
fantastic. It’s a lot cleaner, meaning less chance of disease. It’s meant a lot more walking for me, but it is worth it when it comes to the presentation of the pitch. I cut the pitch at 26mm all season with the box on. The day after a game, I will go over the pitch with the rotary mower, which has had new brushes attached recently, this picks up a lot of the dead grass left on the pitch. During the game, while I’m busy flipping burgers for the fans, I have a volunteer - Gary Trenby - who will divot the pitch for me at half time. Then, immediately after the game, I will spend a few hours divoting.”
The pitch is verti-drained twice a season by Shorts, a contractor from nearby Winkfield and, if the budget allows, Jason will carry out a third pass before the end of the season.
Jason undertook some of the renovations of the pitch himself at the end of last season, starting by building back up the goalmouths and linesman’s runs using a rootzone mixed with grass seed. He then brought in Shorts to carry out the rest of the works. “They came in, verti-drained, overseeded with a disc seeder applying sixteen bags of Pro Master grass seed; the pitch was then topdressed with eighty tonnes of sports field sand which was brushed in. Finally, a 12:6:6 pre-seed fertiliser was applied.”
The club bought Jason a 50-litre pedestrian sprayer eighteen months ago which has enabled him to spray the pitch with seaweed, and he believes he has seen significant benefits. “I sprayed the pitch post-germination and then followed this up every six weeks with a
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