PITCHING IN ON MANAUS
It seemed everyone was a turf expert
You couldn't open a paper or look at the internet last week without being hit in the face with panic-mongering horror stories about the potential state of the pitch at the Areana Amazonia in Manaus, the venue for England's opening World Cup clash against Italy.
And it was by no means just the tabloids looking for an attention grabbing, negative story, the broadsheets were more than happy to get in on the act.
Splashed around photos of the discoloured pitch were soundbites like:
- ". .shocking state of Manaus pitch." - Daily Mail
- " . .concerns that the playing surface appears to be in a very poor condition." - The Times
- ". . growing concerns for the safety of players as the pitch doesn't look playable." - The Star
- " . . pictures emerged showing the playing surface in a shocking condition." - The Guardian
- " . . Bungle in the jungle! Fears sandy Manaus pitch could ruin England's clash with Italy." - The Express
- ". . the playing surface is in extremely poor condition." - The Mirror
- " . . England looked set to get their World Cup campaign underway on a dodgy, patchy pitch in Manaus but don’t worry, it’s been sorted – by painting it green" - The Metro
And to be fair, the groundsman of the stadium didn't exactly dampen down concern by being quoted by several news sources as saying the pitch was in "bad shape."
However amongst all the noise by instant turf experts who had seen a picture of a pitch that wasn't bright green and jumped to a myriad of conclusions, came this very sensible statement from the Institute of Groundsmanship, which was carried in The Daily Telegraph:
“The photos of the playing surface at Manaus are clearly a cause for concern ahead of such an important tournament, but it is impossible to pinpoint what has led to such an apparently poorly presented playing surface without knowing the full facts.
“The questions that will be asked include: Who in the LOC was responsible for on-site management? When were the ground staff and or contractors engaged on-site? What skills do they have? When did Fifa take possession? Was turf maintenance advice given and was it followed? What resources were available locally and how were those resources applied?
“The performance of the pitch will rest on the stability of the playing surface, which will not be known until play takes place. Depending on the outcome, inspections of the soil profile, depth of sward and root strength would probably also be required.
“The turf seed in use at all the World Cup venues would have been carefully selected - the high-end sport turfgrass mixture would have been chosen for its excellent quality, dark green colour, high shoot density and high wear tolerance.
“With such technology now available there really is no excuse for any stadium - wherever it is in the world - to not have a first-class pitch. Therefore, you have to question at a local level the decision-making processes leading up to the tournament.
“Manaus is at the northern tip of Brazil and transport to and from the area does pose logistical problems. We are blessed in the UK with good transport infrastructure combined with world-leading ground staff expertise within our many professional sports venues and the turf sector that supplies products into the stadiums.
“The skill of UK groundsmen is acknowledged the world over, which is why clubs like Real Madrid and Paris Saint-Germain employ British groundsmen and throughout professional sports turf venues in the UK we enjoy excellent playing facilities.
“For such a prestigious event as the World Cup, just as the very best players compete you also need the very best expertise available to ensure facilities are at their optimum level. The playing
surface should be the centrepiece from which everything else is built.”
Also lending some calm to proceedings were the Sports Turf Research Institute who released a statement ahead of the game saying that despite its aesthetic appearance the pitch would play fine.
And as it turned out during the game on Saturday, and indeed in all the subsequent coverage of the disappointing result, the pitch hardly got a mention. Which is how it should be.
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