Message Board - Cricket: Ground repairs and advice sought
7 Mar 2010 by StewartCh
Hello,
Hope you have all wintered well and are pumped for the season coming.
I have just come back from inspecting the park after what I will hope will be the final game of football to be played at the NMP.
I think you could best describe it as a mine field, deep gashes all over the ouptfield and on the square, and from appearances it doesn't look like any repair work has been carried out over the season's play.
I'm main concered about the square the outfield will need a lot of work and TLC to bring it up to spec, but we don't have the time or the resources to repair this.
The square normally has 8 playable wickets and a further 2 for training. I think we will be lucky to have three available at the start of the season.
As you all know pictures can speak louder than words
damage to square:
7 Mar 2010 by StewartCh
another one
7 Mar 2010 by StewartCh
heres a coupe of the outfield
7 Mar 2010 by StewartCh Last edited 7 Mar 2010
another
Your thoughts would be gratefully received.
7 Mar 2010 by paul kelsey
Stewart
Is the square part of the playing area for football.
7 Mar 2010 by StewartCh
Yes the centre circle is right in the middle
7 Mar 2010 by paul kelsey
UL
What have you done previously to combat this.
7 Mar 2010 by jontaylor
Sorry Stewart.
Football on cricket squares doesn't work in the UK without massive time and resources to put right the inevitable damage.
How long has football been played across the cricket square?
To be honest, with this winter, the damage looks remarkably minimal.
The ciderman rolls
7 Mar 2010 by StewartCh
Sorry, I don't understand your question fully, Unfortunetly the park is council owned an we don't have any say what organisations can use this venue.
7 Mar 2010 by StewartCh Last edited 7 Mar 2010
Jon,
Saturday just past was the first game played here since December 12th, they have played here now for two years. There was minimal damage to the square when I inspected on Friday afternoon, but as previously stated no repair work has been carried out by either the football club or the council.
8 Mar 2010 by jlawrence
I can't think of a great deal that you can do at this time of year to that.
Playing cricket on a square which is also part of a football pitch isn't something I'd want to do - full stop. Perhaps it's just me but as a player (forgetting the groundsman side of things) I'd be looking for another club.
All I can think of is to lever up the worst divots and pack with loam underneath. Then flood the whole square and roll the sh1te out of it.
It could be that it looks worse than it is and that preseason rolling (along with lifting with a fork) will sort out most of the problems.
Of course there's no bounce, bend your back and put some bloody effort in.
8 Mar 2010 by Aintgottaclue!!
Jon, a little short sighted my friend, private schools live on having winter games pitches over cricket squares, it separates the men from the boys.
Stewert, I have rolled my squares after every match this week and today run a dimple seeder over them, then seeded, i will continue to roll as much as poss and put germination sheets on when there is no football matches. This has kept me producing fantastic surfaces since Ive been here (4 summers)
I may cut grass, but i'm not green !!
10 Mar 2010 by jontaylor
TOA,
It's a council park!
You have the luxury of a degree of security behind closed gates.
They have the certainty of theft.
I wonder who is the more short sighted?
The ciderman rolls
11 Mar 2010 by barry glynn
I dont know any private school around here who have football going over their cricket square.
What do I do? I just cut the grass.
11 Mar 2010 by wicketdevil
jon, i look after a private school ground no locked gates for me public footpaths etc and i have damage from cars across my squares. So lift the damage with a fork and fill under the lifted areas have a look on this site for wicket repair and then when the football is finished and the square is moist give it a roll and a feed. I understand the issues with the council do they burn in the lines try to discourage that. I wish you the best of luck. By the way no way would i allow winter sports over squares outfields yes squares NO WAY. Ian
Can you just is the longest sentence in the world !!!!!!!
11 Mar 2010 by Aintgottaclue!!
Barry ,try Reed School, Hampton, St Pauls, Reigate Grammar anymore!!
JT, so you wouldnt roll the surface back down then and re-seed, will they nick the seed!!
I may cut grass, but i'm not green !!
11 Mar 2010 by Neil Dixon
At this St Pauls ( SW London) we dont have any football going over our cricket squares so you are mis informed on this fact, but cant speak for the others.
11 Mar 2010 by Aintgottaclue!!
Neil are you right next to Hammersmith Bridge?? if so are you still wet?
I may cut grass, but i'm not green !!
11 Mar 2010 by barry glynn
Hampton school isnt like that either
What do I do? I just cut the grass.
12 Mar 2010 by Neil Dixon
Yes just by hammersmith bridge, we have dried out now at last ( but for how long???) thankfully term ends soon, only 27 more games between now and 25th March!!
12 Mar 2010 by Mal
I can't think of any schools that have football across a square either. I supose it could happen at some smaller junior schools where wear is a little less than in a senior game but would be very few and far between i'm sure. I used to have a square that had hockey played over it back when grass was the normal surface for hockey but that was on the wing of the pitch. I would go with JL's suggestion and lift the bigger divots & pack and roll. Early season before I had covers, a slightly damp wicket used to occasionally become pock marked where the ball would push into the surface. But with a moist wicket I could always get it to roll out. You have the luxury at the moment of moist surfaces and presumably if you havn't already started, pre season rolling in your favour.
Geography is everywhere
12 Mar 2010 by StewartCh
Thanks for all the comments, I have started to lift some of the worst areas of damage and back fill with some loam, I plan to start PSR at the weekend. I will need to seed the bare patches should I do this before starting PSR?
12 Mar 2010 by Aintgottaclue!!
Neil Dixon, I think most of those are against us mate,we actually have no fixtures in the last week of term, first time ever.
My cricket square in the middle of my first team rugby/ football is looking really good and firm with some slight cracking would take a photo but CBA.
I may cut grass, but i'm not green !!
12 Mar 2010 by Mal
Not against you Original, it's just that your situation is unusual. If you get a good result managing a square in the middle of a football pitch successfully then it's great that you give your advice in how you do so. We all have different working methods to to cope with different situations over a wide and varid set of environmental conditions.
Geography is everywhere
12 Mar 2010 by Philmort
Back in 1975/6 I played a season of rugby for Paignton RFC and the centre of the pitch was the Cricket club square. Probably still is (ground behind railway station about 100 yds from the seafront.)
One day in Jan/Feb I played at Teignmouth in the middle of a spell of weeks of heavy rain (We were playing in ankle deep mud with puddles in every footmark, as the tide was in the other side of the railway embankment, probably higher than the drains.)
I was bemused by the little hut in one corner of the ground and as we left the pitch I asked my opposite number about it and he told me it was the Cricket scorebox! Sure enough a few months later the club was playing at a reasonably high league standard for Devon in those days.
You think your ground is wet JL.?
Proud to serve grassroots cricket
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