New surface for Carlisle Utd's Brunton Park pitch

Carlisle United's pitch is undergoing a major £10,000 revamp to maintain its reputation as the best playing surface in League One.

Work started this week on digging up the entire pitch, as well as the training grounds at Brunton Park and Creighton Rugby Club,f to improve the surface and drainage.

Since 2006 United have spent at least £100,000 on their pitch and it has resulted in stadium manager Dave Mitchell winning the League One groundsman-of-the-year award for the past two seasons. It has also prevented the Blues losing fixtures due to a waterlogged pitch, rewarding their financial investment in improving their playing surface each summer.

Club spokesman Andy Hall said: "The work is costing £10,000 but it is a spend-to-save because it means we are not losing important fixtures.

"Some weeks there are 90 per cent of League One and League Two fixtures called off and yet we are still able to play.

"In November 2009, on the weekend of the Cockermouth floods, our pitch was flooded on the Friday night and yet we were confident that when the rain stopped our pitch would be fine for the Saturday - and it was.

"We found in the past that the pitch was like a bog in December, January and February, but that doesn't happen now.

"The quality of the pitch is maintained by the fact that we carry out this work every summer."

article sourced :-News & Star