Am I alone in thinking that the club are being made to look a bit of a laughing stock due to the state of our pitch? Saturday was the second time already this season that weather has been a problem and caused a game to be either called off or very close to it. As I iluded to on another thread, my mother in law was able to warn me ''you will get wet at Charlton on Saturday''. If she can warn me, why at a time with so much technology available can nobody from the club have a look at the weather forecast and arrange for the covers to be put over the pitch as a precautionary measure?? The weather has already meant one team from Yorkshire had a wasted journey to the valley this season, and subsequent expensive return journey for a re-arranged game and it very nearly meant that Leeds would have had a long journey south for nothing as well. Welling had no problems getting their game on and we are meant to be the championship club. And then to give a round of applause to the ground staff for getting the game on was laughable, the game should never have been in doubt in the first place.
It is definitely a concern, because as you point out, teams with stadiums less equipped than ours didn't have the same struggles to get the game played. I guess the covers hadn't been put on over night?
The condition of the pitch is another sign of the Era of Austerity at Charlton. It was noticeable during the rain delay v Donny that the equipment (ie. an old broom) that the groundstaff were using was less than state of the art. Word is that we can't afford proper covers, and they would'nt come cheap.
I agree Vol, it all points to a vastly reduced budget for the upkeep and maintenance of the surface. Having said that we do have covers of sorts, we all saw them used whenever the snow has hit us over the past two seasons. I am sure these same covers may not be completely fit for purpose and more geared towards keeping out the ice, but would surely offer some sort of improvement on just leaving the pitch open to the elements.
The game went ahead purely on the insistence of the police, who didn't want over 3,000 Leeds fans sitting around with time on their hands (although the landlord of the Antigallican would no doubt not have complained!) God knows what would have happened if there'd been a downpour just after the game kicked off, as looked likely.
During the recent half-term, I had the good fortune of following the Robert the Bruce trail - a trail which took me to a very wet Dumfries, home of Scottish Championship side Queen of the South. The excellent groundsmen allowed me to take a walk onto their semi-artificial pitch, which, I have to admit, was strange to the touch but simply awesome at keeping water off the surface. Small holes take away the water and carry it off to the main drainage system. So how can a smallish team such as the Doonhamers have such an excellent playing surface, but we can't? They have average attendances of just over one thousand and are hardly setting the football world alight. Having said that, a decent borough council grant would have helped, methinks.
I agree Ponders, my local club growing up, Maidstone United have recently moved into a brand new stadium after years in exile. The jewel in the crown of this stadium is a 3G pitch which provides (so I am told) quality of bounce and roll of the ball comparable with Wembley. When other games (at their level, currently Ryman Premier) have fallen victim of the weather Maidstone have not had a cancellation in the 18 months since moving in. No cancellations coupled with an average home attendance of 2000 and the added revenue of being able to hire out their pitch during the week means for a club of their size they are absolutely raking it in! Sadly, FA rules dictate they cannot play any higher were they to be promoted (currently top of the Ryman Prem) because of the pitch and the fact that the dinosaurs at the FA have not woken up to 3G yet. Now I cannot see the FA allowing 3G anytime soon, but I would like to see semi-artificial surfaces introduced at the very least.
Is that really true, TA? Maidstone will not be allowed promotion due to their 3G pitch? That is an awful predicament for an upwardly mobile club, especially one that has gone through some real dark times. I suppose the club knew this when they had the pitch installed, but surely exceptions can be made for clubs who are not only trying to better themselves, but the local community as well.
Unfortunately so, they have also recently been forced to play their FA Cup matches at nearby Chatham Town for the same reason. I take your point though, the club would have known of any future pitch requirements were they to move up through the leagues. The money generated from the ground has given the manager continually increased playing budgets meaning a quicker than expected move through the leagues. They were only promoted from Ryman Div 1 South last season and are already the pace setters in the Premier. They were able to recruit the goalkeeper and top goal scorer from Confrence South Tonbridge Angels in the close season because of the money they couold offer and the chance to play in front of the sort of size crowds of a mid table confrence premier club. I think silently, the club had hoped the FA would change their stance on 3G higher up the footballing pyramid by now, but a combination of this simply not happening and a quicker than expected resurrection of the club means they could be denied promotion come the end of the season.
It sounds as though the club has developed a superb business model, one that many other clubs could replicate. I remember the days of watching Maidstone United highlights on Meridian News (anyone remember Andy Steggles?) and their tenure at Dartford's old ground, so they have don't brilliantly to resurrect themselves. The FA should help such clubs to thrive, not stunt their progress due to what pitch they use. It is like you say, prehistoric thinking. Surely the club will have to look at changing the pitch, rather than forgo an opportunity to climb the pyramid once more?
To my knowledge there has been no word from the club as yet with regards to their next move over the pitch. I suspect if the rules are not relaxed from the FA it will put them in a difficult situation. The extra revenue that pitch generates from hiring it out is I would imagine too much to lose. The only maintenance it requires is to be swept over every few weeks and the pitch is literally being used all the time the first team do not have a game.
The pitch is a mess, which is shocking as its new, can you imagine what it will look like once the snow and freezing tempatures come, it wont last the season
Ponders - http://maidstoneunited.blogspot.co.uk/2013/11/much-ado-about-3g.html The latest on the 3G wranglings. I've played on 3G and it's bloody lovely.
Thanks MA, fingers crossed the stones get some positive news on this before the end of the season. I must admit myself and my sunday league teammates are incredibly excited about the prospect of playing on the 3G maidstone pitch as the cup finals in our league are being played there this season.
