Magazine - Cricket World/Pitchcare.com Groundsman of the Year 2009

By Laurence Gale MSc in Cricket on 2nd Sep 2009 9:00

Cricket World/Pitchcare.com Groundsman of the Year 2009

Now in its sixth year, Cricket World® and Pitchcare.com are pleased to announce that over 100 nominations were received for the Cricket Groundsman of the Year Awards in 2009.

Nominations were received from as far north as Aberdeen and as far south as Guernsey.

Candidates were judged on a range of criteria - operational, management and technical issues: -

· Resource availability
· Maintenance and use of machinery
· Use of materials
· Presentation and house keeping standards
· Technical knowledge
· Management of compromise
· Scope of operations
· Management skills
· Budgets
· Added values

The Cricket World/Pitchcare.com Groundsman of the Year 2009 Winners were chosen in the following categories -

ICC Europe Award - Alan Hamilton, Guernsey Cricket Board

School Award - Tom Punchard, Millfield School

Private Club Award - Rodney Heyhoe, Lightcliffe CC

Local Authority Award - Jimmy Yea, Bollington CC

Alastair Symondson, Head of Media at Cricket World said " The Groundsman of the Year Awards are now in their sixth year and every year I am amazed at the dedication and resourcefulness of all the groundsmen that have been nominated"

Richard Holdsworth, ICC Europe Regional Development Manager - said: "The Awards are designed to raise the interest and awareness of Groundsmanship and to encourage and promote Groundsmen, in Cricket, at all levels".

Laurence Gale, Pitchcare said, "It has been another fascinating year, meeting so many dedicated, committed Groundsmen who continue to produce excellent playing surfaces often under very demanding circumstances.

The sheer amount of time they dedicate to the facilities is phenomenal, many long hours and often for no remuneration.

No two grounds were the same, each had its own set of unique challenges. Most, if not all, the groundsmen I met were adept at making good use of the resources at their disposal.

Time to prepare and repair pitches seems to be the biggest challenge, with many clubs increasing the amount of fixtures and matches being played at their grounds, particularly junior and youth matches.

Also, more and more Groundsmen are becoming aware of new technologies, machinery, materials and funding schemes on offer, and are now looking at how they can utilise these to improve their own facilities."

Whilst everyone cannot be a winner, I know that this year's selected winners are proud to be representing all who practise the art of groundmanship.

I am sure this year's winners will enjoy their day out at Lords on the 14th September.

I would also personally like to thank all our award sponsors who have again made the event possible.

Read more articles in Cricket, by Laurence Gale MSc or from September 2009.