| Volunteers needed now! 11:31 - Feb 5 with 42821 views | R17ALE |
Just had word that the club are doing the drill and fill by hand today. Anyone with an hour or two to spare is welcome, badly needed, as it's a time consuming business.
I think the general aim is to whack in one hole per square yard about 2-3 feet down and then fill with kiln dried sand.
Given that the pitch is around 8000 square yards the club needs help.
Now! |  |
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| Volunteers needed now! on 19:36 - Feb 5 with 3549 views | 100569 |
| Volunteers needed now! on 19:13 - Feb 5 by kiwidale |
I would imagine Millwall will be fully aware of the condition of the pitch and ongoing work. I would fully expect that they have someone on site or at least some one from their club giving them daily updates and also expect them to have asked the FA if its within the rules for them to refuse to play on a pitch that they believe is dangerous? I guess the final decision will be the Refs but I would imagine Millwall will be bending the ref's ear one way or the other. |
I would imagine your probably right kiwi. I thought the same. A proper professional club would have someone there on site. Lets face it, they want to progress to a home tie against Spurs (sorry Newport I don't see you doing it) just as much as we do there`s a lot of money at stake. So it makes sense to send a body/bodies up a day early to see what`s going on and report back. |  | | |
| Volunteers needed now! on 19:37 - Feb 5 with 3538 views | MoonyDale |
| Volunteers needed now! on 19:27 - Feb 5 by dingdangblue |
Yes that machinery drilled and filled automatic - I guess the club had a budget? but it was mentioned in the trust statement that the pitch laying company from last year were involved and we were using their gear. Unless it only drilled? And the filling has to be done manually - like you said though - why wait till lunchtime today to ask for volunteers? Why not pre warn people? [Post edited 5 Feb 2018 19:38]
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The cover could and should have gone on much earlier though..... |  |
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| Volunteers needed now! on 19:38 - Feb 5 with 3520 views | Shun |
| Volunteers needed now! on 18:44 - Feb 5 by DevonDale |
This photo is on Twitter
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Ugh, that photo is so embarrassing. And it's not just the disgusting state of the pitch. The mashed up gates with the bent bars and flaked-off paint in the foreground just adds to the image that this is a non-league club. Really embarrassing. |  | | |
| Volunteers needed now! on 19:42 - Feb 5 with 3488 views | 100569 |
| Volunteers needed now! on 17:08 - Feb 5 by R17ALE |
I've been up there today filling in the holes with sand. It looks awful to the eye, but on the drilled and filled area in front of Pearl Street, the pitch is much firmer than the Sandy Lane area, so it does work.
This work couldn't be done sooner because the pitch was simply too boggy to get on it.
All hands to the pump now to finish the filling - there were about 20 people there - then on with the cover.
Rated 80-20 to be on, and if it is it'll be grim!! |
R17 can you confirm that it is only the main stand to centre spot that has been drilled and filled and if so what`s the other half to the Wilbutts like ? | | | |
| Volunteers needed now! on 19:42 - Feb 5 with 3483 views | D_Alien |
| Volunteers needed now! on 19:38 - Feb 5 by Shun |
Ugh, that photo is so embarrassing. And it's not just the disgusting state of the pitch. The mashed up gates with the bent bars and flaked-off paint in the foreground just adds to the image that this is a non-league club. Really embarrassing. |
Just what i was thinking |  |
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| Volunteers needed now! on 19:44 - Feb 5 with 3456 views | tony_roch975 |
Cover is now back down with work ongoing - presumably to raise it & install heaters? | |
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| Volunteers needed now! on 19:45 - Feb 5 with 3441 views | Swissdale |
Forget about tomorrow night, what are we going to do for the rest of the season?
Fixtures piling up and Rugby starting again, genuinely think we'll have to play at another ground. I'm led to believe that the wheels are already in motion with this. |  | | |
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| Volunteers needed now! on 19:49 - Feb 5 with 3382 views | 442Dale |
After all we've seen with the recent Trust interactions with the club and everything that is happening with the pitch, this really is time for the club to draw a line in the sand (literally), and actually start admitting where they can improve.
They have to realise how overwhelmingly demoralising this is for their supporters. Supporters who would do pretty much anything to help the club improve. |  |
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| Volunteers needed now! on 19:52 - Feb 5 with 3347 views | electricblue |
| Volunteers needed now! on 18:44 - Feb 5 by DevonDale |
This photo is on Twitter
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Truely shocking...... |  |
| My all time favourite Dale player Mr Lyndon Symmonds |
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| Volunteers needed now! on 19:56 - Feb 5 with 3303 views | 49thseason |
If the wrong sand was put down during the 2016 summer overhaul, and the Feb 2017 re-lay (soil based) was simply put on top of the wonky sand base, then in effect we have had this problem twice, once in January 2017 causing the pitch to be relayed and obviously now. The major difference being that it has been raining more or less every day since September and the underlying sand drainage has simply not coped and has become tightly compacted and the new (soil based) turf has not been able to grow roots through the sand layer and help the natural drainage. I understand that if quarried sand was used it tends to pull together when wet because it has flat edges rather than the rounded edges of the sand that should have been used, but I have no idea what the technical terms for this are.
So here we are again in January / February with a non-draining pitch essentially because it was built incorrectly back in the summer of 2016. To further exacerbate the problem, I suspect the new rain covers (the flat ones, not the "dome") were put onto an already wet pitch and simply acted like a cork in a pipette and created a vacuum which prevented water getting away from the surface (rather like leaving a plastic bag on your patio and finding it still wet underneath if you lift it after days of dry weather) and causing the soil to simply become mud.
I suspect that getting a large quantity of water away from the surface will help knit the pitch back together to an extent and when rolled it will still look awful but may play better than it looks. There is still some grass there which may, in time start to regrow a little (but not if the temperature drops to -14 later this week as predicted).The next step would seem to be grow-lamps 24/7 to see if the grass can be re-grown it would also be sensible to retain the dome as long as possible, at least until the surface is dry and the drill and fill is deemed to be working.
It seems to be one thing to build a pitch that drains well (even if done with the correct sand). It is, however, an entirely different thing to carry out the work that is required to enable grass to grow well and in such a way that enables the pitch to be cut and rolled to the tolerances required for professional football and rugby. |  | | |
| Volunteers needed now! on 19:57 - Feb 5 with 3289 views | mingthemerciless |
What's St Clements pitch like ? It's only around the corner. | | | |
| Volunteers needed now! on 19:58 - Feb 5 with 3278 views | TVOS1907 |
| Volunteers needed now! on 18:31 - Feb 5 by NordenBoysLoveGravy |
I posted this three days ago in ‘The Pitch’ thread:
‘- I think the terminology of ‘drill n fill’ is very much misleading based on the link to the machine earlier in this thread that performs such an operation. All that I am led to believe was/is to happen is that the pitch will be vertidrained (by the same company who laid the turf 12 months ago), and the groundstaff will backfill the holes with kiln dried sand-a much cheaper way of doing the actual ‘drill n fill’ operation and extremely time consuming.’
If I knew this would be so labour intensive three days ago then surely the club must of and could of asked for help we’ll in advance of today’s short noticed call to arms? Job very much done on the cheap unfortunately. |
You seem to have
(a) a lot of specialist knowledge
(b) a chip on your shoulder (with gravy)
(c) or both. |  |
| When I was your age, I used to enjoy the odd game of tennis. Or was it golf? |
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| Volunteers needed now! on 19:59 - Feb 5 with 3254 views | TVOS1907 |
| Volunteers needed now! on 19:45 - Feb 5 by Swissdale |
Forget about tomorrow night, what are we going to do for the rest of the season?
Fixtures piling up and Rugby starting again, genuinely think we'll have to play at another ground. I'm led to believe that the wheels are already in motion with this. |
Where have you heard that, Swiss? | |
| When I was your age, I used to enjoy the odd game of tennis. Or was it golf? |
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| Volunteers needed now! on 20:01 - Feb 5 with 3234 views | electricblue |
I agree with what Shun says the overall picture tells the story from the pitch condition to the run down gates etc.
Every summer the club should inc the hornets should have spent a few quid having remedial work completed intead of letting it get so run down and then its costs a whole lot more..
More penny pinching by the board its embarrasing.....
Just no pride in how the ground looks...... [Post edited 5 Feb 2018 20:10]
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| My all time favourite Dale player Mr Lyndon Symmonds |
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| Volunteers needed now! on 20:16 - Feb 5 with 3128 views | nordenblue |
| Volunteers needed now! on 19:59 - Feb 5 by TVOS1907 |
Where have you heard that, Swiss? |
You have pm | | | |
| Volunteers needed now! on 20:24 - Feb 5 with 3037 views | R17ALE |
| Volunteers needed now! on 19:42 - Feb 5 by 100569 |
R17 can you confirm that it is only the main stand to centre spot that has been drilled and filled and if so what`s the other half to the Wilbutts like ? |
Yes. When I left at 5pm three quarters of the filling had been done. From the centre-spot to the main stand touchline had been done. All the Pearl Street half had been done and was beginning to dry and firm up.
Half the Sandy Lane half had been done, but this half was in far worse condition. The Willbutts Lane side of the pitch looks reasonable.
I'm not belittling the situation, but it looks much worse than it is. At least you can now walk in a normal way on the treated Pearl Street half, whereas on the untreated Sandy half you were walking on a moving floor with mud squelching out from under your feet each time you took a step. And the mud smelt of shit.
Hopefully overnight the sand will soak up all the moisture and thicken up the top 3 inches and give the pitch some structure. Playing football on it might be tricky, and a ref might deem it dangerous. I certainly wouldn't like to open the batting on it.
I imagine it will be fairly obvious if it's got a chance first thing tomorrow. The hope is that it's completely dried out overnight, and can be brushed and rolled. Spray it with green paint, put the lines down and no-one will ever know! | |
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| Volunteers needed now! on 20:25 - Feb 5 with 3027 views | 442Dale |
| Volunteers needed now! on 20:16 - Feb 5 by nordenblue |
You have pm |
Why are these rumours floating about? Why is it ok for some, presumably connected with the club, to talk about these plans with supporters in conversation and yet not be totally transparent with the entire fanbase through official channels.
If there's an update, then communicate it. | |
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| Volunteers needed now! on 20:31 - Feb 5 with 2974 views | JimmyRustler |
| Volunteers needed now! on 20:24 - Feb 5 by R17ALE |
Yes. When I left at 5pm three quarters of the filling had been done. From the centre-spot to the main stand touchline had been done. All the Pearl Street half had been done and was beginning to dry and firm up.
Half the Sandy Lane half had been done, but this half was in far worse condition. The Willbutts Lane side of the pitch looks reasonable.
I'm not belittling the situation, but it looks much worse than it is. At least you can now walk in a normal way on the treated Pearl Street half, whereas on the untreated Sandy half you were walking on a moving floor with mud squelching out from under your feet each time you took a step. And the mud smelt of shit.
Hopefully overnight the sand will soak up all the moisture and thicken up the top 3 inches and give the pitch some structure. Playing football on it might be tricky, and a ref might deem it dangerous. I certainly wouldn't like to open the batting on it.
I imagine it will be fairly obvious if it's got a chance first thing tomorrow. The hope is that it's completely dried out overnight, and can be brushed and rolled. Spray it with green paint, put the lines down and no-one will ever know! |
It's no shock that it's the Sandy end that smells of shite given the amount spouted from there on matchdays! |  | | |
| Volunteers needed now! on 20:32 - Feb 5 with 2967 views | 442Dale |
| Volunteers needed now! on 20:24 - Feb 5 by R17ALE |
Yes. When I left at 5pm three quarters of the filling had been done. From the centre-spot to the main stand touchline had been done. All the Pearl Street half had been done and was beginning to dry and firm up.
Half the Sandy Lane half had been done, but this half was in far worse condition. The Willbutts Lane side of the pitch looks reasonable.
I'm not belittling the situation, but it looks much worse than it is. At least you can now walk in a normal way on the treated Pearl Street half, whereas on the untreated Sandy half you were walking on a moving floor with mud squelching out from under your feet each time you took a step. And the mud smelt of shit.
Hopefully overnight the sand will soak up all the moisture and thicken up the top 3 inches and give the pitch some structure. Playing football on it might be tricky, and a ref might deem it dangerous. I certainly wouldn't like to open the batting on it.
I imagine it will be fairly obvious if it's got a chance first thing tomorrow. The hope is that it's completely dried out overnight, and can be brushed and rolled. Spray it with green paint, put the lines down and no-one will ever know! |
You produced a Boycott-esque knock on Torquay beach in '95, so there would be little difference if you padded up out there tomorrow night. | |
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| Volunteers needed now! on 20:33 - Feb 5 with 2944 views | TVOS1907 |
| Volunteers needed now! on 20:32 - Feb 5 by 442Dale |
You produced a Boycott-esque knock on Torquay beach in '95, so there would be little difference if you padded up out there tomorrow night. |
He's probably still got the same cricket shirt, tbf. | |
| When I was your age, I used to enjoy the odd game of tennis. Or was it golf? |
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| Volunteers needed now! on 20:34 - Feb 5 with 2931 views | nordenblue |
| Volunteers needed now! on 20:25 - Feb 5 by 442Dale |
Why are these rumours floating about? Why is it ok for some, presumably connected with the club, to talk about these plans with supporters in conversation and yet not be totally transparent with the entire fanbase through official channels.
If there's an update, then communicate it. |
You will always get rumours at all clubs about lots of things,people will always know certain things from various sources,its always gone on and always will 442 tbh | | | |
| Volunteers needed now! on 20:38 - Feb 5 with 2892 views | 442Dale |
| Volunteers needed now! on 20:34 - Feb 5 by nordenblue |
You will always get rumours at all clubs about lots of things,people will always know certain things from various sources,its always gone on and always will 442 tbh |
It's amateurish. Those doing it should try thinking how annoyed they get when those rumours/pictures of the pitch/comments on how they could do better then appear on here. | |
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| Volunteers needed now! on 20:47 - Feb 5 with 2815 views | D_Alien |
| Volunteers needed now! on 20:24 - Feb 5 by R17ALE |
Yes. When I left at 5pm three quarters of the filling had been done. From the centre-spot to the main stand touchline had been done. All the Pearl Street half had been done and was beginning to dry and firm up.
Half the Sandy Lane half had been done, but this half was in far worse condition. The Willbutts Lane side of the pitch looks reasonable.
I'm not belittling the situation, but it looks much worse than it is. At least you can now walk in a normal way on the treated Pearl Street half, whereas on the untreated Sandy half you were walking on a moving floor with mud squelching out from under your feet each time you took a step. And the mud smelt of shit.
Hopefully overnight the sand will soak up all the moisture and thicken up the top 3 inches and give the pitch some structure. Playing football on it might be tricky, and a ref might deem it dangerous. I certainly wouldn't like to open the batting on it.
I imagine it will be fairly obvious if it's got a chance first thing tomorrow. The hope is that it's completely dried out overnight, and can be brushed and rolled. Spray it with green paint, put the lines down and no-one will ever know! |
Since questions are coming at you from all sides, would we have been better off laying a shit-based pitch, with peanuts to aid the drainage? | |
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| Volunteers needed now! on 20:48 - Feb 5 with 2790 views | TVOS1907 |
| Volunteers needed now! on 20:34 - Feb 5 by nordenblue |
You will always get rumours at all clubs about lots of things,people will always know certain things from various sources,its always gone on and always will 442 tbh |
True, but people at clubs can't then get annoyed when fans do it after they have just walked past the gates or happen to be at grounds for other reasons. | |
| When I was your age, I used to enjoy the odd game of tennis. Or was it golf? |
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