Why would all teams want this artificial pitch?
We, as has been noted on this site many times before, have an excellent natural pitch so what's the advantage in changing it?
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Why would all teams want this artificial pitch?
We, as has been noted on this site many times before, have an excellent natural pitch so what's the advantage in changing it?
Because clubs only have one real asset, their ground, and for the most part they lie empty and not making any money for you at all bar once every two weeks. With an artifical pitch you can have people playing on it 24/7, so you could rent it out to every local team around to train/play there, let fans spend money for a chance to play there. In other words the thing could be making money for you round the clock without the disadvantage of making the pitch completley unplayable. I'd imagine it costs less to maintain too, and you have a quality surface all year round.Quote:
Originally Posted by superfrank
Apparent cost of looking after pitch is around €1.5k per annum, compared to €40k for the natural surfaceQuote:
Originally Posted by Slash/ED
Adam - can I take over the URL to set-up a porn site.....? :D ;)Quote:
Originally Posted by fosterdollar
Drogs statement:
Notwithstanding the fact that the FIFA – appointed team were in the process of approving the laying of the new Pitch, Drogheda United expressed their reservations in writing on Tuesday afternoon to the F.A.I. with regard to Player Safety on a pitch surface which has not had the normal bedding-in time to settle.
The F.A.I. has replied to Drogheda United today at 1.15pm to state that the match would proceed as scheduled.
So I presume thats that, and Drogheda will play at Oriel?Quote:
Originally Posted by Cosmo
Quote:
Originally Posted by Maribor
Makes it a no-brainer if you can get the capital together to lay one in the first place. In UCD, there are 2 hockey pitches side by side (one is for hockey only - national stadium etc. and the other one can be rented out for soccer/ to schools etc.)
The cost of renting the pitch for an hour is around 50 or 60 euro (open to corrections here) and costs about 20 euro to rent a quarter of the pitch which is the perfect size for a crossfield game of soccer.
It should be possible to earn around a thousand euro a week (conservative estimate) just by renting out the facility to 5 a side teams, or nightowls leagues etc.
I agree that some clubs have good grass pitches but in other places the pitches are abysmal - the RSC for example was never actually laid as a football pitch, it was just the infield of the track was grassed over when the track was built.
despite summer soccer we are still playing in some awful weather both at the beginning and especially at the end. Alot of games are usually called off each season and we have had the misfortune of havingtwo or three high profile games called off due to sudden rainfall. It still makes sence to at least look into the costings for one of these artifical pitches.
During league games in the Faeroes we were allowed onto the astro pitches for a kick about at half time. Dundalk should have a similar policy.
Quote:
Originally Posted by bigmac
Absolutley. Even without renting it out you'd make your money back and more. It's 38.5k a year saved plus whatever extra rent money you can squeeze out of it which would probably be far more than that. That is alot of money in EL terms, and the added benefit is a top class playing surface no matter what. Also, it would save teams renting out other pitches for their youth teams, U21s and for training, more money saved. When you add it all together, it is a big deal.
As a matter of interest, if a pitch was being used nightly by local junior/underage leagues, at weekends for 5 aside, kick abouts, etc. etc., and used by players to train on everyday, and play a game very fortnight, plus cup/ league cup games, how long is the lifetime of the surface?
Just how long does the artificial stuff last with heavyish use?
thats very amateur looking!Quote:
Originally Posted by Bald Student
dundalk said they expect the pitch to be worth 3-4K a week to them from renting out
NY Hoop- they did start on it at the end of last summer, but got bogged down with financial difficulties regarding drawing down grants from the fai
i think the pitch looks very astroturf-ish, but whether it responds like that or grass is obviously the main issue,and fifa are satisfied there.so good luck to them and their pitch
btw i wonder how will 5000 (dundalk were talking about such a crowd today) fit into oriel with the shed now a pile of rubble?
Sorry, this was a conversation for clubs who actually have a ground they can call home. :p :DQuote:
Originally Posted by NY Hoop
I'll inform the Munster FA so.Quote:
Originally Posted by Peadar
Do the FAI not own United Park?Quote:
Originally Posted by Cosmo
I've never seen so many shattered glasshouses in one place before.
Excuse me for interrupting this plastic pitch love-in, but, and you may call me old fashioned, football is a game played on grass. And mud. And bumps. And hollows.
You can inform them all you like.Quote:
Originally Posted by Bald Student
I never said we owned the place.
Just like pretty much no eL club owns its own ground.
We're the principle tennants.
We've contributed most of the money for the development of Turners Cross.
Without us, it would be three mounds of gravel and the shed.
They do but we can charge whoever we want rent (and we have charged craptown already this season)Quote:
Originally Posted by Bald Student
Yeah think it was something like €1000 a game :eek: [Not too sure on that tho]
Quote:
Originally Posted by Bald Student
Anto think of the fun if they instituted that policy in Bohs v Rovers games. All the casuals clambering onto the pitch for a half time kickabout, it would be just like the Christmas Day match in no-mans land during WW1.Quote:
Originally Posted by anto eile
One of you would have to give up the Burberry though, as it would get a bit confusing working out whose who....
Finally the pitch saga is at an end. FAI have decided that capacity will be 5,000 for the game. I got my ticket today - apparantly they are selling like hot cakes. It is looking like it might even sell out.
Roll on Friday. :)
Yeah got mine today as well, Oriel can hold 6000 but FAI put a max of 5000 smart move. Still a lot of work to be done tv stands, ad boards, tunnel, putting seats into the dugouts and fencing off behind the carrick road goals.
then it has nothing to do with cork either. you dont own turners cross, the munster fa do. remember that, "biy"Quote:
Originally Posted by Peadar
Noitce how it was only Longford fans calling for a return to Winter football in this thread. As usual no ambition, no forward thinking.
and the winter weather acts as an equalizer, making it more difficult to play good passing football due to boggy pitches, wind and rain. :DQuote:
Originally Posted by Colm
Cork are afraid of winter football as the high winds would affect their hoof-ball tactics.
Why were the PFAI meeting with the dundalk players tonight?Quote:
Originally Posted by eamo
Also, latest drogs statement:
"The Board of Drogheda United have received a communication from the F.A.I. stating that a F.I.F.A. Referee will inspect the Dundalk Pitch tomorrow morning (Thursday 25th August) to determine its playability. "
You obvioulsy haven't seen City play much in the last couple of years.Quote:
Originally Posted by Bald Student
There wasn't much hoofball when we destroyed UCD 5-1 a few weeks back.....
I'm not sure on what basis you make that assertion, they may not have been articulated publically as yet, but a significant number of administrators within the game have expressed serious misgivings about summer football, as I think a straw poll of eircom League chairmen would attest.Quote:
Originally Posted by dcfcsteve
For an additional perspective, it's worth noting that Swedish league is "likely" (according to my sources there) to revert to an Autumn/Spring rhythm in the near future (probably by 2007, if not sooner), with fixtures commencing in early August, pausing for a break in December, resuming in March/April and concluding in mid-June.
The reasoning behind the proposed move includes the increased quality and availability of synthetic surfaces, as well as the perceived adverse impact (borne out by Malmo's recent elimination) upon Swedish clubs in Europe, who are often field teams in European competition which differ radically from those which qualified via the Allsvenskan.
Consider one with a roof over it :-) then the possibilities are endless.Quote:
Originally Posted by Xlex
With 5 (fold away) rows of seats going each side, thats 2,000 seats. Then about 1,000 can stand around and watch. There are 2 of these in my neighbourhood (admittedly its Iceland) both are UEFA certified. pitch size 105m x 58m, pitch arena 120m x 90m
http://egilshollin.is/english.htm
this one cost about €8m to build but it is a complete sports centre.
It doesn't have to be built to the same standard.
One club in a country town (pop 5,000) built an indoor arena with a small pitch for training 50m x 30m for about €700,000. Industrial construction standard.
The pitches are used non stop until midnight every day. Registered clubs have priority but off peak its possible for any joe soap to rent the pitch. You can have 2 games playing across the pitch 55m x 35 m. then it costs €95 per hour for half the pitch. Thats student rate, playing at 10.00pm.
Day time rental costs are much much higher.
Real money is in renting it out for rock concerts, holds 18,000 unseated, here's a few pictures from a seated concert
http://www.domingo.is/English/index.htm
The clubs here just borrow the funds from the banks and make it pay for itself OR don't sign players like Foley.
If a few hick clubs up here can get this together it does demonstrate how far EL clubs have yet to progress. The Dundalk venture is exciting.
:rolleyes: Where exactly on this thread? Someone saying it may be another factor in the arguement.... Mores the pity you wouldn't disappear from here like your mate the corner....Quote:
Originally Posted by Colm
I think if the pitch proves to be a success and plays like grass, it should at least be considered by other clubs. As previously mentioned, the potential to rent it out would be huge, plus the savings on training pitch rent for the club, plus availability for the underage teams, clubs with bars getting the knock on effects of people stopping for a pint....
You tell me where I said we own the ground?Quote:
Originally Posted by anto eile
Typical Rovers, flying off the handle without getting someone to read the post to them first! :rolleyes:
Can you please name all the eL clubs who own the ground they play in and then get your parole officer to type it here for everyone to read it.
How can someone make such a blatantly incorrect statement? And post it on the internet. In writing.Quote:
Originally Posted by Colm
Colm, as Macy says where have Longford supporters been advocating a return to winter football? In any case the "grounds" for a return would not be playing surfaces but the decrease in gates due to clashes with GAA fixtures.
Anyway I think we are excluded from this thread on the basis that we own our own pitch. :rolleyes:
I can only tell you that Sligo Rovers and the people of sligo own The Showgrounds and it can not be used for any other purpose other than Soccer. Also we have just built a new Sate of the Art 'Mondoturf' pitch in The Showgrounds,beside the main pitch.Quote:
Originally Posted by Peadar
Longford fans would have seen it being built when they were down a month or so back.
Quote:
Originally Posted by The Stars
What I want is a club where the club actually own the ground.
Not Mr. Fat Chequebook who is the club director or not some local community association.
Eh, Bohemians own Dalymount Park.
Interesting! Why is there a fear that it will be sold out from under you so then?Quote:
Originally Posted by Vitruvian Man
We can only sell it if we own it in the first place.
Where are you going with this arguement?
Dalymount Park is 100% owned by the members of the club, for any part of the land to be sold it has to be approved by a vote of the members.
No county councils.
No sugar-daddys
No property developer investors
You can't get any more "owned" than that.
If it f*cks up, and we have to sell the gound, it's because we f*cked it up ourselves. We cannot be shafted by anybody outside the club.