Duncan Ross has carried out essential turf rejuvenation work at Edenhall and Langwathby Cricket and Football Club in the Cumbrian village of Edenhall, after severe flooding rendered the site unplayable.
The sports field is run by three trustees, and provides an area for villagers to play cricket, football, archery and croquet, as well as hosting athletics in the summer for a local school.
At the beginning of December 2015 the entire field was submerged in water for only the second time in over 100 years, leading to a build-up of silt on the pitches that needed professional work carried out to remove it.
After a tendering process Duncan Ross were chosen to carry out the essential maintenance on the site, which was recommended by the English Cricket Board and The Football Foundation, with their professionalism, planning and hands on appraising of the situation cited among the reasons behind them getting the job.
A grant was obtained from the ECB and Football Foundation to pay for the work, after their pitch advisors reports had stated that no activity should take place on the site before the silt that was left over from the flood was thoroughly removed.
Edenhall Cricket Club chairman and sports field trustee, Graham Monk, explains the impact of the flood and the process of recruiting Duncan Ross. “I had Duncan Ross recommended to me by the head greenkeeper of Penrith Golf Club, he spoke highly of them and that’s why we decided to include them in the tendering process,” he explained.
“We sent them a copy of the report that had been drawn up by the pitch advisors from the ECB and Football Foundation, and they sent a member of their team down to look at the field before providing us with a quote, and to make sure we were definitely going to carry out the work that we needed.
“There was then a further visit to make a second assessment, and from there we decided to go with Duncan Ross because of their attention to detail in terms of the fact that they had made the journey twice to make sure that everything was in place, and they were very easy to deal with.
“With the money coming from a grant we had to be careful in that we needed to carry out the stipulated work whilst also making sure it was done right, and the planning process with Duncan Ross gave us confidence in that. As soon as the conditions were right they arrived and from the off I was impressed with the excellent quality of their equipment.”
Over the three days on site work was carried out on the cricket and football pitches using the newly acquired KORO® FIELDTOPMAKER® from Campey Turf Care Systems.
The machine was used to KORO® scarify the cricket outfield before verti-draining it, whilst the KORO® was also used to scarify the square before top dressing with loam and over-seeding took place.
The senior football pitch was fraise mowed to remove the organic matter that had built up on the surface because of the laying water, including the silt, vertidrained and a layer of sand was applied before grass seed was drilled.
The acquisition of the of the KORO® FIELDTOPMAKER® comes as Duncan Ross continue to expand their business, and now as well as offering high quality drainage they have invested in the most innovative maintenance equipment to provide customers with a complete service.
