The Pitch

[WoodleyRoyal]

The pitch this season seems better than previous years - since the egg chasers arrived anyway. Have they been doing anything different this year?

Also how do you think the better pitch has effected our home form this year?

[ZacNaloen]

Last year they have to fight a germ iirc

[Rex]

Wasn't it the case that it would take at least 2-3 years to bed in completely.

[West Stand Man]

Let's face it- he simple answer is that all the hype and crap over the last few years about rugby causing the ptich to be damaged is just that - crap (as several of us have said). The pitch was a problem due to issues that had little or nothing to do with the rugby.

[SpaceCruiser]

Mmmmm, but the rugby doesn't exactly help, even if it isn't anything to do with them.

[Harpers So Solid Crew]

Still trying to work that one out there Spacey, it is not a help, even if it is nothing to do with them.

London Irish assist in making RFC viable, like it or not. No doubt you would rather we lost all the income from them and could not afford the players and infrastructure that we have at the moment, 3rd tier for us then.

[PieEater]

I think Spacey's point was that if the pitch is waterlogged it will cut up badly if Rugby is played on it. Is that the Rugby teams fault or the fact that the pitch drainage is poor meaning it's likely to cut up.

Or in the case of last year, the groundsmen decide to be too heavy handed with the weedkiller and kill the grass too.

[boycey]

More importantly, are we going to get a chance to get on the pitch this season....
Its been too long.

[RoyalBlue]

The pitch this season seems better than previous years - since the egg chasers arrived anyway. Have they been doing anything different this year?

Also how do you think the better pitch has effected our home form this year?

Weather has really worked in their favour recently, so the grass has grown back really well. It was in a pretty dire state early in the New Year IIRC and, again IIRC, McD did bemoan the rugby and/or the over-usage resulting from the fact that rugby was also being played on the pitch.

For those who claim rugby has nothing to do with the deterioration of a pitch, it's plain common sense - the more a pitch is used (by whatever the sport) the greater the wear and tear and the less time it has to recover.

[SLAMMED]

The pitch really is looking immaculate at the moment, although the teams in the playoffs like to play it on the floor so could work against us.

[PEARCEY]

Rugby is used as an excuse. Swansea are probably the best passing sise in the division particularly at home. Their pitch is used for rugby just as much as ours.

[AthleticoSpizz]

For those who claim rugby has nothing to do with the deterioration of a pitch, it's plain common sense - the more a pitch is used (by whatever the sport) the greater the wear and tear and the less time it has to recover.

Yes, so what of Wembley on the Monday of the play-off finals weekend?

[Harpers So Solid Crew]

That does not count as it is not Reading.

Also it has been revealed that the car park will need new chippings more often due to being used for all those nasty rugger games. And from what my sources tell me there is a chance of a lot of guinness tree seedlings that will need dealing with following the recent hot weather.

Fortunately the bitter and lager are both sterile so no such problems from football beers.

[Svlad Cjelli]

For those who claim rugby has nothing to do with the deterioration of a pitch, it's plain common sense - the more a pitch is used (by whatever the sport) the greater the wear and tear and the less time it has to recover.

Yes, so what of Wembley on the Monday of the play-off finals weekend?

This year it'll be different, as the Tier 3&4 play-off matches are at Old Trafford because the CL Final is at Wembley on the Saturday (there are some questions over whether UEFA will have cleared out of Wembley quickly enough for the FL to set it all up properly, but should be alright.)

Incidentally, last summer Wembley spend a fortune on getting a Deco pitch (same system as ours, where the grass roots are woven into a plastic mesh, and some of the blades of grass are plastic) - no problems with it whatsoever sine then.

[RoyalBlue]

For those who claim rugby has nothing to do with the deterioration of a pitch, it's plain common sense - the more a pitch is used (by whatever the sport) the greater the wear and tear and the less time it has to recover.

Yes, so what of Wembley on the Monday of the play-off finals weekend?

A very poor comparison.

In theory it should be more than capable of handling frequent games in April/May. The weather is much more favourable to grass growing strongly for starters and it has also had very few games played on it through the lousy winter months when compared to the Mad Stad pitch.

That having been said, you are referring to a Wembley pitch which has deservedly built up a very poor reputation post the new Wembley.

That does not count as it is not Reading.

Also it has been revealed that the car park will need new chippings more often due to being used for all those nasty rugger games.

Do you argue the world is flat too?!!

Simple fact - the more grass is trodden on, run on or whatever, (completely regardless of what sport) the greater the wear. Therefore, additional games played on the pitch by LI will have increased the wear. It's not rugby per se (although I would suggest they probably do create a bit more wear on the pitch than football) It would be the same if we kicked out LI and played reserve games on there instead. I bet you could not find a single groundsman who would say otherwise.

[Harpers So Solid Crew]

I argue that we need the money from LI, it is not their fault that at times the pitch has been bad, it is up to the ground staff to maintain the pitch to its maximum, there are times when it is more difficult for them to do this, games on successive days for example.

We had heard that they have got uneven areas in the past, that is more likely to to settling rather than rugby, and can be fixed with the right equipment, but it still needs time to resettle, 24hours would not do.

Would I be right in thinking that the only postponement of football due to the pitch, was the Leicester match all those years ago, the rest being called off due to the surrounds rather than the pitch.

The ground staff have come on leaps and bounds, using lights and heat to keep the pitch in better condition over the last few years.

[Svlad Cjelli]

Would I be right in thinking that the only postponement of football due to the pitch, was the Leicester match all those years ago, the rest being called off due to the surrounds rather than the pitch.

Not even sure that was a postponemnet - wasn't it an abandonment at half-time? The pitch was playable at the start, but torrential rain didn't drain away - ISTR that was a problem with the previous pitch, where the rootbeds were clogged or something like that. Since it was relaid there have been no such problems.

[Harpers So Solid Crew]

Yes abandoned, the real point is that the pitch has been playeable ever since the Stadium was opened. Which goes to show how good it is, it is a bit more than Mr Neate going up and down with a fork and mower with a roller, like at EP.

[Svlad Cjelli]

Exactly - I was agreeing with you.

I did hear a rumour that the problems with the previous pitch were mainly down to the need for a special piece of maintenance equipment to be used on the pitch but because it was awkward and unpleasant to use it didn't actually get uised as much as it should have done. All in the past now, and that's a mistake they've learnt from.

[Harpers So Solid Crew]

I knew that, you are just lucky I did not pick you up on,

postponemnet

I feel sure it should have less letters than that.