The pitch at Old Trafford

032Devil

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Oct 26, 2004
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Just watching the United vs. Milan game when Ronaldo and a Milan player slid down the side of the pitch and crashed into the electronic hordings causing injury.

I've always had a feeling that one day the raised pitch with it's angled slope down is going to cause a player serious injuries some day.

Anybody know why it's raised and not level with the ground?
 
Surely they can use artificial floor at the sides to level it.Its dangerous for the players.
 
Just watched all MOTD clips from last season, and I have to say our pitch looks so poor. We really need to sort that out

BTW, the Roma game at home was just brilliant, especially Carricks 2nd goal
 
The solution is - Eboue.

He could level the ground with couple of his tumblings and rolls.
 
I remember that United had endless problems with the pitch a few seasons back when it had to be replaced every few months. It had something to do with the lack of light getting to it caused by the stadium expansion. Also, we allowed rugby to be played on it.

Don't hear about that the grass problems anymore but I can't remember either when the whole pitch was raised either.
 
032Devil said:
Any reason why that can't be lower in the ground?
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I'd imagine because it would involve ripping everything out and starting again digging new foundations for it and the like. A big task to be done in the close season in time for any new pitch to be well laid and ready to play on.

Perhaps the season the drainage and undersoil heating went in it was too big a task to sink the pitch too? Don't know really.
 
Need to improve the pitch itself. Emerates grass is always in top shape, OT last season clearly wasnt.
 
It was only a couple of seasons ago when all the pitch was renewed
They have also had countless problems in the past with the undersoil heating
The size of the stands now also dont help

Remember in the early 80s when the under soil heating broke down and some clever sod had a brain wave of using some sort of flame thrower to try and defrost the frozen pitch
All they succeeded in was burning the pitch and it left big scorch marks on the grass
 
032Devil said:
I remember that United had endless problems with the pitch a few seasons back when it had to be replaced every few months. It had something to do with the lack of light getting to it caused by the stadium expansion. Also, we allowed rugby to be played on it.

Don't hear about that the grass problems anymore but I can't remember either when the whole pitch was raised either.
Click to expand...

They replaced much of the stands with perspex roof panels so that more sun reached the pitch. They still play one of the rugby cup finals on the pitch as far as I know.

As for it being raised, its not really much of a problem, there are many stadiums where the hoardings are even closer to the pitch itself, which is more dangerous. I've walked along the red track down there as well and it's surprisingly cushioned.
 
mickthered said:
Remember in the early 80s when the under soil heating broke down and some clever sod had a brain wave of using some sort of flame thrower to try and defrost the frozen pitch
All they succeeded in was burning the pitch and it left big scorch marks on the grass
Click to expand...
:lol: Don't remember that mate. I'd have paid this year's season ticket prices to watch that! What a plonker!
 
amolbhatia100 said:
Need to improve the pitch itself. Emerates grass is always in top shape, OT last season clearly wasnt.
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They use a natural grass pitch reinforced by over 20 million artificial fibres.
A computer-controlled machine injects over 20 million artificial grass fibres about 20 centimetres deep into a natural grass pitch.

Spurs and liverpoo also use the same system as well as a few others
as well as a lot of others world wide
 
kf said:
:lol: Don't remember that mate. I'd have paid this year's season ticket prices to watch that! What a plonker!
Click to expand...

I remember seeing the big burn marks at the side of the goal at the scoreboard end
 
Slightly off thread, i have a piece of the sacred old trafford pitch at home, i nabbed a bit on a stadium tour years ago, it was end of season , they were doing work on it and lumps of grass were dumped at the bottom of the players tunnel. Everyone grabbed a slice
 
BezsMaracas said:
They replaced much of the stands with perspex roof panels so that more sun reached the pitch. They still play one of the rugby cup finals on the pitch as far as I know.

As for it being raised, its not really much of a problem, there are many stadiums where the hoardings are even closer to the pitch itself, which is more dangerous. I've walked along the red track down there as well and it's surprisingly cushioned.
Click to expand...

It would also have been possible to put small mirrors over the floodlighting on the north stand to reflect the sunlight onto the grass under the south stand roof, no need now though .
 
mickthered said:
I remember seeing the big burn marks at the side of the goal at the scoreboard end
Click to expand...
Early 80s was when I was in my soujourn in London so didn't get to many matches at OT that year probably. Cue Cockney Reds slagging me off for being a part timer...
 
032Devil said:
Just watching the United vs. Milan game when Ronaldo and a Milan player slid down the side of the pitch and crashed into the electronic hordings causing injury.

I've always had a feeling that one day the raised pitch with it's angled slope down is going to cause a player serious injuries some day.

Anybody know why it's raised and not level with the ground?
Click to expand...


Not wishing to belittle your concerns but the slope at the edge has always been there and there haven't been any serious injuries to date - at least not that I know of. However, the presence these days of advertising hoardings could increase the dangers of players injuring themsleves. I suppose it depends what materials the hoardings are made of and perhaps attention needs to paid to that, although I'm sure it has already.
 
Van Piorsing said:
The solution is - Eboue.

He could level the ground with couple of his tumblings and rolls.
Click to expand...

:lol::lol:

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One of the reasons why pitches at the newer stadiums (Wembley excluded of course) are in better conditions is that they'll have had more time to bed in. When they are laid they are given time to bed into the surface they are laid on, yet the older stadiums only have pre-season or a 2 week period before being used. With pre-season getting shorter by the year, it's making it harder for any of the pitches to bed in as such in the older stadiums.

For me the solution to all United's problem would be to look into the possibility of having a retractable pitch, when they re-build the South Stand. That way they wouldn't have any problems over light etc. I'm sure they'll say it's too much to do, but when you add up all the money spent replacing pitches it soon adds up.
 
I think it's fine as it is, its far better than it was say 5 years ago when it would regularly turn into a bit of a mud bath with hardly a patch of grass. It's near impossible to have an impeccable pitch all year round, especially with all the cup games and internationals we've been playing there.
 
Can't they shine some sort of fake sunlight over it? It's 2007 so surely fake sunlight lights have been invented.

Anyway, it would help if they stopped letting those rugby thugs tear it up every few months.

The pitch at the Emirates is one of the most perfect, green, lush pitches there is . I remember them saying they designed the stadium to let as much sunlight onto the pitch as possible and that's paid off for them big time!
 
RUUD_10_LEGEND said:
Can't they shine some sort of fake sunlight over it? It's 2007 so surely fake sunlight lights have been invented.

Anyway, it would help if they stopped letting those rugby thugs tear it up every few months.

The pitch at the Emirates is one of the most perfect, green, lush pitches there is . I remember them saying they designed the stadium to let as much sunlight onto the pitch as possible and that's paid off for them big time!
Click to expand...
see post 16
 
032Devil said:
Just watching the United vs. Milan game when Ronaldo and a Milan player slid down the side of the pitch and crashed into the electronic hordings causing injury.

I've always had a feeling that one day the raised pitch with it's angled slope down is going to cause a player serious injuries some day.

Anybody know why it's raised and not level with the ground?
Click to expand...

Simple really.

I asked the very same question to an Everton Groundsman, and he told me its to help drainage. The water can be brushed over the pitch and then down onto the sides thus keeping the pitch clear of water even if the sides are 6" under water.


Thats what he told me about Everton, and I guess the same must apply for OT.
 
They've levelled it in recent years. I'm 4 rows back, and used to have trouble seeing over the "hill" in the middle before they sorted it.
 
I don't like myself, so players won't get injured. But what everyone is saying above about drainage and heating is understandable.
 
Abbsta said:
I don't like myself, so players won't get injured. But what everyone is saying above about drainage and heating is understandable.
Click to expand...

The only person I can think that has been injured is Greening when he caught his arm on the hoardings and that was nothing to with the slope. Really don't think its an issue.
 
Pitch seems to be cutting up badly, and can't be good for playing good football and avoiding injuries.

I'm sure the pitch will be re laid in the summer.
 
I think Fergie said a couple of weeks back that they will be re laying the pitch in the summer. Can't seem to find the article though.
 
coolredwine said:
I think Fergie said a couple of weeks back that they will be re laying the pitch in the summer. Can't seem to find the article though.
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You are right mate, here is the one I remember,

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/football/teams/manchester-united/9780542/Manchester-United-to-replace-collapsed-Old-Trafford-pitch-in-the-summer-confirms-Sir-Alex-Ferguson.html

Talks about Fletcher struggling with the heavy pitch as it has "collapsed" due to waterlogging. To be fair the pitch has been pretty good since circa 2007-2009 when it seemed to be...to put it bluntly...a bit of a disgrace for a top European side.

I think it is always natural grass at Old Trafford and this tends to be a problem during the wet winter months. The Desso turf is the way forward in my opinion, the Emirates, WHL and Anfield always look top drawer, and it saved Wembley after the farce of the first year. It doesn't cut up like pure grass as the synthetic fibres protect the natural grass from damage and degradation.
 
Might be something to do with the rain we had a couple of weeks ago.
 
The way it was cutting up yesterday, I'm not sure it will last til summer.

Out of interest, why do we let them play rugby on it? We are a team that likes a passing surface and those fecking rugby Ihni binni dimi diniwiny anitaime cut it up.
 
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