The recent MCC announcement that Karl McDermott has been appointed as the new head groundsman at Lord’s has firmly given me the proof that someone with the desire, skills and ambitions can reach the top of their profession.
I remember vividly Karl’s dedication to his role of groundsmen when I was lucky enough to go and judge him way back in 2007 at Clontarf CC as part of the Cricket World / Pitchcare annual cricket groundsman of the year awards.
Karl was clearly a man on a mission. We soon exchanged contact numbers and have remained friends ever since. I also recall Karl coming to stay with me in Shropshire to visit Pitchcare and meet up with Tim Packwood at Worcester.
The rest is history. After beginning his career as assistant groundsman at Clontarf Cricket Club in Dublin, Karl took on the head groundsman role in 1997, ahead of the venue hosting an ICC World Cup Fixture in 1999.
He spent seventeen years at Clontarf, working on numerous international and domestic fixtures and winning the European ICC Groundsman of the Year award in 2007, before moving to Worcestershire as Assistant groundsman.
He then took up post at the Ageas Bowl where he was initially appointed deputy head groundsman in 2009, ahead of the ground’s inaugural Test Match in 2011 between England and Sri Lanka.
Karl then became head groundsman in 2016 and most recently presided over England’s victory over India, the third Test Match to be held at Hampshire’s headquarters.
There is no doubt that Karl will serve the MCC well and dedicate his life to maintaining the famous hallowed turf of Lord’s. I will be looking forward to catching up with Karl in the coming months. Congratulations Karl you have certainly earned this unique opportunity.
Last week also, saw me out on the road conducting an interview with Stephen Jacob CEO of BASIS Registration who are celebrating their 40th year of service to agricultural and related industries throughout 2018.
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This key milestone is a testament to the developing industry, proving that training and continued development is not only essential for production, but it’s here to stay, as the need for increased knowledge across the board grows.
A full account of my interview with Stephen will be published in next week’s edition of Turf Pro.
And finally, I had the privilege to attend this year’s STRI Research 2018 (Tomorrow’s Turf Today) event held at the STRI trial grounds in Bingley.
The Events brought together a number of leading companies who have been carrying out some (R&D) projects for the sports turf industry. The companies attending and supporting this year’s event were Aquatrols, Bayer, Bernhard and Company Limited, Headland Amenity, ICL, MLR, Sherriff Amenity and Syngenta.
Over 250 delegates comprised of industry practitioners, managers, advisors and contractors attended the two-day event. This year there were seven separate demo areas to see.
All in all, a very busy two day event for all of the delegates. I personally think these days are very important as it gives the end users a chance to see the latest sports turf research and innovations from leading companies who are at the forefront of bringing out new products and methods of managing our diverse turf requirements.
For me it is also about the chance for delegates to meet up with like-minded professionals and share common issues and keep updated on the latest research and practices being used to manage sports turf. There were a wide range of delegates representing all of our national sports, with several premiership, championship and Scottish football groundsmen, horse racing, schools, universities and golf clubs.
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There was something for everyone. I was particularly interested in the two presentations regarding lighting rig technologies. It will be interesting to gauge what interest the new MLR / Bernhard golfing lighting rigs will have. Like most lighting rig systems, they are not cheap to buy and run. However, we have seen from their use in the stadium environment they have become an essential tool in stimulating much needed grass growth in low light conditions.
A full report of the day will also be featured in next week’s Turf Pro Weekly Briefing.
I would like to personally thank the STRI for their invitation to the event and to all the companies that continue to support our ever-challenging sports turf industry.
As for the weather, the tale end of Hurricane Ali is now hitting our shores and no doubt will be testing out the patience and dexterity of our dedicated grounds professionals. Let’s hope it passes through quickly and we can get on and complete much of our autumn renovation works.