Turf Moor nominated for national award

The backroom team have deservedly secured a nomination in the top three for ‘Pitch of the Year’ in the Championship.

Turf Moor will be visited on Wednesday by Dr Stephen Baker of the Sports Turf Research Institute, with the winner of the award announced before the end of the season.

Turf Moor, which faces competition from Nottingham Forest’s City Ground and Norwich City’s Carrow Road, earned its top three nomination through a combination of match reports from referees and marks awarded by visiting managers.

Head groundsman Paul said: “we are naturally delighted to be nominated in this category after all the work put in to provide the players with an excellent surface this season.

“It has been a real team effort by all the groundstaff and I also believe we have benefited from the best surface we’ve had at Turf Moor in living memory.

“The £700,000 investment into a Desso surface last summer was a welcome one and means we now have a top class pitch we can work with.

“Despite the harsh winter conditions – one of the worst we have experienced in a long time – the pitch has come through with flying colours.

“The undersoil heating has meant we have been able to host training sessions on the pitch throughout the winter and into the spring without any real detriment to the pitch’s longevity.

“We have retained excellent grass coverage throughout the worst the winter could throw at us and I am sure the supporters can see the investment made was a wise one.”