A few weeks ago I mentioned in my blog that we had being doing up a local clubs pitch in Ipswich to enable the club to have an alternative venue. The pitch at Ipswich Wanderers home in Humber Doucy lane is next door to our training ground and in terms of location is ideal. In recent seasons the main pitch at Portman Road has suffered from hosting too many games with much of the damage coming from games involving the younger players at the club during reserve games.

Finally the first team won again on the road. This time they recorded a fine 2-1 away win at Crystal Palace. Palace are now managed by former Ipswich manager George Burley and has a few ex town players in their ranks. The young lads in the team continue to perform well making the most of their chance in first team. Long may it continue?

The season is well and truly up and running. The first team have played two league games and a cup game and are unbeaten. It’s quite a contrast from last season when we went 16 games in the league without winning.  There was certainly a better feel amongst the fans after the Burnley game at home on Saturday. The gaffer sent out a team which was a mixture of youth and experience and they fought well against one of the league’s top sides and deserved their point.

If someone had offered us four points from our first two games we would have taken it. Both Burnley and Boro will be up there at the end of the season and to come out of both games unbeaten will give all the players allot of confidence. In mid week the lads travelled to Exeter for a game in the Carling cup. These early round games are potential banana skins for the bigger clubs and after extra time we went through by 3 goals to 2. The draw for the next round has been kind to us in terms of pitch use by putting us away at Crewe. It’s another difficult game for the players and mangers 6^th away cup draw on the trot since he joined the club.

For the grounds team it’s been ideal as we have been able to catch up on the essential pitch works post concert. The focus has been on cleaning the pitch up by trying to reduce the annual meadow grass population in the sward. We accept we will not totally eradicate it this season but the heavy summer schedule on the pitch meant we could not tackle it as we would have wanted to. The pitch is playing ok but like any grounds man worth his salt I want it to look its best at all times.

This weekend saw the start of the Premiership and for all of us trying to get promoted Blackpool have been an inspiration. Just getting up last season gave us all hope but after their great win at Wigan yesterday they showed that a great team spirit can get results. I know its early days but what but what a start.

Those of us working in the game were more than a bit worried when Chelsea started to spend big in the last few seasons. Although the Premiership clubs were spending big a few seasons ago it was not ridiculous. When a club like Chelsea starts spending big as they did then the others try and follow to keep up. This increases the value of player’s right through the leagues and makes life a bit more difficult for everyone. If we thought the Chelsea revolution was bad then Man City has taken it to new heights. Yaya Toure who recently joined City is reported to be earning £200,000 per week. With such a big squad earning serious money not all will get a game. It won’t be long before some of the players will look for a move. I shudder to think what some of the demands will be and I feel even loan contracts will be beyond most of the Championship clubs.

My fear is that most of the clubs are living beyond their means. Look at recent financial disasters at West Ham, Hull and Portsmouth. These clubs were trying to stay in the big league to keep earning the millions the Premiership offers its clubs. Two of them were owned by foreign owners at the time. Having been through financial meltdown with Ipswich it’s not nice. When a club hits tough times it’s very often the off field staff who suffer. Some of the clubs bigger earners will be sold off to reduce the wage bill but they will still play somewhere. For the off field staff it often means jobs being made redundant. The fall out for some can be catastrophic.

Before then we have a difficult away trip to Exeter in the Carling cup. The game comes in a week when the first Internationals of the new season are played. This has left us thin on the ground player wise and the team will have a few of the kids in it. If they play as well as their counterparts who played in the game on Saturday we should do ok

After several weeks of pre season we are counting down the days to the season’s opener away to Middleborough. Our latest friendly saw us play on the stadium pitch for the first time since the concert just over three weeks ago. West Ham were the visitors to Portman Road on Saturday and went away with a 1-0 win in a decent game. From my side of the things I was pleased to get through 90 minutes intact. The Portman Road pitch is well past its sell by date and hosting concerts is a tall order. I have to be honest and say I was looking for at least 6 weeks between the concert and the football starting again but such is the need to keep the cash coming in a friendly was necessary.

The pitch played well and our big fears that the sward would not be strong enough to withstand the rigours of a top game were unfounded. Only two divots of any size came out and both of these were in the area where the steel floor had been. This area would have been the main area of concern for us but the flow of play was kind to us and the area in question did not see too much action. Steady rain in the morning of the game helped the pace of the ball across the surface. With so much grass on the pitch as a result of all the over sowing carried out around the concert I was worried that the roll of the ball would be too slow. Another worry was that the player’s boots would get to much grip in the surface causing what is called foot lock resulting in injury to knees and groins. Happily no one was injured and the rain ensured a steady pace over the pitch for the 90 minutes.

We have a second game against a Spurs eleven on Tuesday then a 10 gap to our first home league game against Burnley. I will use this time to watch a DVD of both games as well as speaking to the players and coaches before deciding if any fine tuning is required. I am of a mind to carry out some fine verti cutting and increase the brushing of the surface ahead of mowing to help thin the sward out gently. With over ten months of Championship football ahead I do not want to lose grass cover unnecessarily but realise I have to get the balance right between density and good playing characteristics.

New safety netting erected to protect fans from way ward shots during the warm ups went well. In the last few seasons we have had numerous facial injuries from shots hit in the warm up that have missed the goal. We did have a small net up but this was not enough. Along with one of our sponsors Harrod of Lowestoft we have come up with a net 5 metres high and over 50 metres long. The net is in three sections to make handling easier. I was happy with the result on Saturday with only one ball going over into the crowd. This was lobbed and did not have any pace on it to cause injury.

Out Academy has gone into over drive now the school holidays are here. 35 friendlies in just over four weeks have been arranged. Along with all the regular training for the pros and the scholars we have never been so busy in pre season. Most of the renovation programme has been completed with the remaining works to be done in the academy fields spread over the next few weeks. With us having such a small team we have been relying on our casual helpers who ease the strain in pre season. Without them this summer we would have been over whelmed by football.

One of our summer signings in the department has been a ride on line marker. The machine from Fleet line markers has reduced the time to mark out the 11 pitches and off pitch areas from three days to one day. This has given me back valuable time to keep on top of the match and training damage which has to be tended to on a daily basis.

With so much academy football on the cards for the season we have been upgrading an amateur pitch next door the training centre to help us with evening games over the forthcoming winter. Although we have 11 pitches on the centre we only have one full size and one three quarter floodlit. This is partly due to budget and partly to strict planning regulations.

It has been a desire of mine to use the home of Ipswich Wanderers to help us out. Wanderers have a great group of locals who run them but they face difficulties like all of us in making ends meet. By helping us host games we have upgraded the pitch allowing them to use their funds to improve other areas of the ground. I have also used it to let my crew see how difficult it is to produce a pitch at local level to date all is going well and the Wanderers will play their first game on August 11th. We are hoping to play on the pitch in October when the clocks change.

While the majority of the country has been suffering from heavy rain and high winds the South East has been going through another heat wave. Over the last two weeks temperatures have been regularly in the mid twenties occasionally rising to around the thirty mark. With so little rain our irrigation systems are going full tilt. In the 14 years I have been at Ipswich this has been one of the hottest summers I can remember. So far we have managed to prevent the swards from stressing too much. The only advantage about doing the watering at night is it is cooler. Watching the players at the 150^th Open golf Championship at St.Andrews being blown around this week you would have thought it was being played on the other side of the world. I started my career there and worked at 78 open and know how the wind can get up and wreck the dreams of many. Sitting watching the TV I think I was in the right place.

Pre season has entered its third week and the games and training are building up. The first team visited PSV Eindhoven over the weekend to play in a game to honour Bobby Robson who managed PSV as well as us. Our Dutch hosts won 1 -0 but I think the result on the day was not the most important thing. On the whole the professional squad are doing most of pre season at home this year. Last year pre season involved alot of travelling and the feeling is this time around staying at home will be best. The Academy started back last week and over the next month we will host 35 games as well as numerous training sessions. Most pleasing from my side is the pitches are holding up well an indication that the works carried out have worked. We have three more games this week on the centre the most attractive coming on Friday. Our reserves will play against FC Twente from Holland.

The concert seems quite a while ago now and the pitch has made an excellent recovery. I have been amazed at how little damage we took this time. The weather over the week of the gig was good but I feel lessons learned from previous gigs have stood us in good stead. Tomorrow I have a meeting with some of the technical staff from Scotts who helped us with a chemical management programme. When we have non football events and the pitch is under more stress than ever help from technical staff like Scotts is vital. We have had a relationship with the Scotts company for years and it’s good for me when their staff take so much time and trouble to ensure we get it right.

Writing this post on Sunday evening following England’s exit from the World cup you don’t have to be a rocket scientist to work out the headlines in the morning papers. At 2 -1 down Frank Lampard hit a screamer into the net via the bar only for the assistant and Referee to miss it crossing the line. If England go in at half time level from being two down who knows how the second half would have gone. The second game of the day also produced a controversial moment when Carlos Tevez scored the opener for Argentina from an offside position.

I have raised the question of not having camera technology on the goal lines previously in my blog. I have seen enough injustices in my time in the game to know goal line technology would make a difference. Games at the professional level are worth millions of pounds and with the pace of game as quick as it is today we can no longer rely on the human eye to make crucial decisions.

People’s livelihoods in the game rest on these decisions. I hope the FIFA panel that look at bringing in new technology are having an uneasy time in South Africa after these games today. If they need any more proof of how it can improve a sport they need only to look at Wimbledon and see how Hawkeye has taken the uncertainty out of tennis.

Pre season for most Championship teams gets under way tomorrow. At Ipswich we have spent the week end putting the finishing touches to the pitches in the first team field. With temperatures soaring into the low 30s on Sunday watering has been the main job. I am pleased with surfaces and feel they are in the best condition they have ever been for pre season. The pitches are being mown at 24mm. All the clippings are being removed.

Halfway through the Primo Maxx programme for the year and we are now seeing the density improves. Rooting has been observed at 300mm. There is strength in the leaf that impresses. I know this sounds daft but the only down side might be that the swards are too dense. I always like to start from a thick sward and am sure that with the rigours of pre season with double sessions the swards will thin naturally. Once we get the first couple of sessions under our belt and get the initial feed back from the players we will have a better idea.

Finally after weeks of planning Pink is here. The pitch is covered in the special flooring and the stage is built. I am observing the pitch under the cover at intervals during the day keeping a close eye on the temperature. So far so good. We have been applying water onto the steel floor around the stage to keep it from getting to hot. With a membrane underneath the steel it seems to be working. I accept the leaf will come out flat after six days and look very yellow but from this position I can bring it back.

I am working closely with the Stage company and promoter to ensure the damage is kept to a minimum. Everyone has a job to do and it’s good that we are all talking to each other when required. With only 48 hours to go the show we are almost there. We won’t know for sure how successful our concert programme has been for the pitch until the covers come of over Wednesday and Thursday but so far so good.

After weeks of planning for the Pink gig the final build up to the concert starts this week. Stage builders and pitch floor specialists will be on site on the 23^rd to start the works. Last week I travelled with the club architect to the Reebok stadium in Bolton to have a look at the stage.

 Bolton had the first gig last Saturday and as well as my visit colleagues from the clubs safety department attended the actual event.   Reports from their visit suggest the gig is quite a spectacle. It’s one thing to see a stage on paper but nothing beats seeing it for real.

Staging football matches is almost second nature to the clubs management teams up and down the country but when the stadium is required to host a non football event then everything changes. At Portman Road no stone is left unturned.

The frustration with this gig is that key information relating to the stage and other concert infrastructure changed several times during other legs of the tour. I like to have final drawings by the end of March at the latest to allow the engineers to carry out vital weight spread calculations. With Ipswich having a game against West Ham 21 days after the concert we cannot afford for any of the stage or delay towers to sink into the pitch.

Our final prep began last Thursday with the pitch being sprayed with a powerful fungicide. This was tank mixed with a liquid product to try and de stress the plant after the cover goes into place. The week will begin with a second spray application.

This time we will apply a growth regulator to try and maintain as big an air gap between the tip of the leaf and underside of the floor. Because of the quick turnaround back to football we will for the first time seed the pitch ahead of the floor going into place. My hope is that the micro climate under the floor will boost the germination of the seed giving us a head start when we come out of the gig after 7 days. I am confident what we are doing is right but am concerned that the growing time after the concert is short.

The World cup is now in full swing. It is the greatest show on earth and the second round of group games have finally brought the competition alive. After a nervy start by many of the competing countries there have been some really good games. One thing that has struck a chord with me is the way some commentators seem to be surprised by the performance of some of the smaller countries.

For me there are no easy games nowadays as many of the players taking part play there club football with some of Europe’s top clubs. Having said that I would still expect the eventual winners to come from one of the established countries but it is a measure of how far the smaller countries have come in recent years when Switzerland can beat Spain and New Zealand can drew with Italy.

After a difficult season of weather nearly all the clubs up and down the country are in the process of renovating there pitches. Whether in the main stadium or at the training grounds club staffs are working feverishly. Pre season is only three weeks away. Given the difficulty many including my own staff have had this season, the talk during the renovation period often gets round to what type of pitch could actually improve our situation.

In the professional game most of the clubs have moved to a sand dominated root zone with some form of re inforcing with clubs in some countries going the whole hog to synthetic. Pitch constructions featuring Fibresand or Desso grass master have become common place in the game and we at Portman Road are defiantly in the minority by staying 100% natural. I think I have said in previous posts that I would love to make a change probably to the new Fibrelastic type pitch currently in use at Newcastle United and Bristol City but to date it has proved cost prohibitive for us.

 The upcoming world cup in South Africa being played during there winter will no doubt add fuel to the debates for a while to come. Regardless of what pitch you are charged with looking after it will present challenges to you.  Although we have a maintenance programme that keeps producing a decent natural surface at Portman Road I have felt for some time that a sand dominated root zone with some form of re inforcement is the way forward for us. My main hope is that we can keep the synthetic pitches out of the professional game. There is no doubt they have made huge strides forward in quality and construction but they still cannot replicate grass fully.

We are now only three weeks away from the Pink concert at Portman Road. Getting the necessary information to hand on the weights for the stage and various towers to be built around the pitch has been difficult. In the last 24 hours we have had some final drawings sent to us which will finally allow the club architects to make the calculations which will allow us to spread the weight evenly over the floor preventing it sinking into the pitch. With the first game against West Ham only three weeks after the gig getting this wrong is not an option. The first UK gig is at Bolton on the 12^th June and I will be going up to have a look at the stage being built. Such trips are very useful in helping to understand what you are getting into. Believe me seeing the stage on a drawing is one thing seeing it in the flesh is quite another.

The regular season finished last Sunday with a 3 – 0 home defeat to Sheffield United. No sooner had the players left the pitch and the talk amongst my team had turned to the week of corporate games ahead of the annual pitch renovation. The corporate games have been restricted to one week because of the need to get the pitch renovated and grown in ahead of the concert on the 29^th June.

It’s the time of the season when the winners and losers become known. Ten months of hard work are about to come to an end and for some it will spark wild celebration while for others it will be abject despair. In the Championship the two promoted clubs have been known for a while. Both Newcastle and West Brom have been heading for the Promised Land of the Premiership for some time. Sunday saw the final shake up for the play offs. Nottingham Forest, Cardiff, Leicster and the surprise package for the season Blackpool will fight it out for the third promotion spot. Promotion to the Premiership is worth around 60M and if you get relegated you have the cushion of the parachute payment.

Last week saw the Football league clubs reject the Premier leagues proposal to extend the parachute payment to 48M over four years. If this happens it will make promotion from the Championship even more difficult with the relegated clubs staying strong. With the Premier league threatening to withhold monies they pay to the football league unless their proposal is accepted and football league clubs struggling I feel there will be a solution.  

Sunday’s final day also brought about drama at the bottom of the league. Sheffield Wednesday and Crystal Palace played out a winner take all game at Hillsborough. In the end a 2-2 draw was enough to keep Palace in the Championship while for Wednesday it is another relegation.

While there Sheffield rivals were fighting to save their Championship lives we were playing host to their rivals United. Every now and then a cheer went up from the United fans as Palace scored such as the warp sense of humour of the football fan. I am sure from a business perspective the United management would still rather have a steel city derby in the budget for next season.

I know when Norwich were relegated last season not everyone at Portman Road was cheering. Derby games are massive revenue earners for the clubs and with money tight in the game right now it will be money missed. The Championship is the first league to finish this season and given results around the country this weekend this coming weekend promises some fantastic viewing as the Premiership title will be settled as well as the outstanding issues in League 1 and league2.  

Looking further afield I thought the second leg of the Champions league semi final was fascinating.  Jose Mourinho never fails to disappoint. Although they were leading 3-1 from the first leg the issue of not watering the pitch from the first leg was still evident. In the build up to the kick off the pitch in the Nou Camp was being well watered. Barcelona were intent on moving the ball around quickly on a slick surface but on a night when Inter needed a real team performance they got it. It was a vintage show of how to defend something that the Italians have become past masters at. I thought it was a bad show from the hosts when the sprinklers suddenly sprung into life just seconds after the final whistle soaking the Inter team.  

For those of us whose season has finished Spring plans for the end of season renovation are about to be put into action. At Portman Road we are on a tight schedule as we have one eye on the concert on the 29^th June. Work will begin this week to start turning around the stadium to accommodate around 15,000 Pink fans on the pitch. Access bridges and disabled areas will be built first. As this goes on work on the renovation of the pitch will start on Saturday. We have three corporate games to play which is ok.

With news over the weekend that the Wembley pitch is to be relayed again some sections of the nation’s media have raised questions about the sports turf industry in the UK. It’s a great shame that the ongoing problems being experienced at Wembley is leading the mis informed to believe that all pitches are not managed correctly.

This weekend I have watched several games on TV as I do and the one thing all the pitches had in common was that they were very well prepared and presented and contributed hugely to what was a fascinating weekend of football. First up was the Manchester derby at Eastland’s. This is one of the games of the season always eagerly awaited by the countries neutrals.

Take a bow Lee Jackson and Roy Rigby. Within minutes of the game kicking off the commentators were telling the audience how much the slick well grassed pitch was contributing to the excellent passing game being played. A late Paul Scholes goal won the game that was played at a good pace throughout the ninety minutes.

Next up was Spurs home game to Chelsea. Same again take a bow Darren Baldwin and his team. For the second time in just over four days the pitch at the Lane looked superb and contributed to an excellent game of football with the home team coming out on top for the second time in four days. I have always said that great players need great pitches to play on. The paying public and the millions watching on TV want to see the Rooneys, Giggs and Defoe’s of this world turning it on with great goals and defence splitting passes.

A few weeks ago I said that the UK sportsturf industry is looked up to from all around the world. Nothing has happened in that time to make me change my mind. Watch any of the round up programmes from all the home leagues and you with the exception of one or two the pitches are in great shape as all the issues of promotion and relegation are settled. We have the groundsmen that turn quality pitches out week in week out. I am sure that the problems at Wembley will be sorted out sooner rather than later.

Closer to home our renovation programme is now in full swing and we are taking full advantage of the fine spell of weather. With all the pitches over seeded the first full renovation in the first team field is under way. These are the pitches that will host the teams pre season when they report back in July. Already some of the seed sown has come through so signs are good for the summer ahead.