Any Cricket Grounds Persons in here?

There seems to be every walk of life represented on this amazing site, so hoping there’s some experienced Grounds Persons.

Our cricket club grounds have been really badly affected by the never-ending wet weather. The outfield has been sodden for so long that moss has rapidly taken over across virtually the whole field. Iron-based fertiliser is recommended, but just wondering if anyone has any other advice? Season was meant to start today, and many clubs are struggling for playable grounds.

Good luck. Just been around to ours and it’s sodden, I was able to push my thumb straight into the ground.

The moss we’ve previously had we used a machine borrowed from elsewhere to run over it. Probably needs doing again as that was a few years ago.

I was able to push my thumb straight into the ground.

Yep. Bowlers’ run ups are so soft your foot sinks in like soft sand. It’s grim. Which club @Drac?

My club has been under 2 ft of water 7 times this winter – worst one ever. The silt actually makes for a very good square, but we are still too damp at the moment, and have cancelled the first warm up game for next weekend, just to protect the square as much as anything else.

Re the moss, if conditions allow cutting the outfield nice and short should let the grass back through. If it’s on the square, then it might need raking out too, maybe the scarifier will help? The correct treatment should also promote the grass whilst killing the moss.

Thankfully the league starts late this year on 11th May.

Thankfully the league starts late this year on 11th May.

Ours was meant to start today, and runs until 21st September. It’s insanity.

Do you get a mid season break, or is that 25 odd games??

13 teams in division. Most of the divisions have 13, so there are some Saturdays with no fixture, but they’ve also scheduled some games on the BH Mondays too.

https://ntcl.play-cricket.com/home

Yep. Bowlers’ run ups are so soft your foot sinks in like soft sand. It’s grim. Which club

Alnwick.

13 teams per div is big. We have 10 here is Sussex – I believe we are the biggest league in the country – 39 Divisions!!

Ours was meant to start today, and runs until 21st September. It’s insanity.

Yes, same for ours but delayed as no club could host games this week. Unless we have sun and wind like today for a couple of weeks to even have a remote chance.

Same league I think @Drac. Kirkley here

Seen a couple of lawn care guys on YouTube recommending some stuff called MoBacter. It’s meant to be an organic fertiliser with bacteria in it that eats moss. Supposedly you don’t have to scarify unlike the usual iron based treatment. Haven’t tried it myself but tempted to give it a go in our back garden which is currently a mossy swamp.

Yes, I believe so. @fazzini

Dantsw13, who do you play for in Sussex? Got a few friends around Hastings area who play or did.

Robertsbridge – the home of Gray Nicolls. Although everyone uses Keeley bats, who are based in the next village.

We’ve got 4 Saturday league teams now – not bad for a little village club!!

Yes, I’ve not played there but I’ve to to Gray Nicolls a few times.

Many decades ago I played with and against Jason Finch who played at Hastings and latterly Mayfield I believe, also Brad Smith who was more Eastbourne based I think. Couple of decent cricketers in their day.

Bowl first?

Bowl first?

Always bat first. Set a target. 😂

Where is that @dantsw13?

Pitch inspection at 11.

Who’s opening from the shallow end?

Ours isn’t quite as bad as that pic above but it is a bog. Ironically after lots of fund raising the club bought a new roller this winter :->

That’s Robertsbridge Cricket Club, East Sussex. Our ground is in the flood plain of the river Rother. You can see the pavilion is on brick piles, so we do ok. We flood every winter, but drain remarkably well, with a great square and fast flat outfield in the summer. Par score normally about 250-270 in 50 overs.

That picture was a month ago, but we’ve since already cut and rolled the outfield twice, and the square has been prepped.

One year we flooded in August after heavy storms at spring tides. Underwater Tuesday, played on Saturday!!

I play for my village club, we’re in our 73rd year, my grandad was a founding member. Our groundsman retired last year so we’ll be looking after the ground by committee this year, most of the outfield is currently a bog, not helped by an apparently broken land drain under one corner. We have managed one cut of the outfield and square so far, but I can push my thumb in the square 2″ without much effort. Our ground situation is further complicated by being located on the village green/common, so although people respect the square the rest is dog walker central.

Our plan is to get the grass down ASAP and collect all the trimmings so the ground dries better when we do have some fair weather. First friendly has been pushed back to 28th April but I can’t see it being on.

In answer to the OP, I’ve had good results with scarifying on my own lawn, but was advised not to cut the grass too short for a while and let it shade out the moss.

Our plan is to get the grass down ASAP and collect all the trimmings

Ha! That reminds me of a tour story. We used to tour the west country, Somerset and Bath area and one year had a fixture up into Gloucestershire at Lydney. They were a decent team with an Aussie pro who took our tour-weary attack apart (as indeed, most sides did). To get around paid players they had taken him on as a paid assistant groundsman or some other such dodge….. and he’d taken his job very seriously and gone and asked the ‘curator’ at the local first class venue back in Australia for tips.

The Lydney skipper had arrived on the opening day of the season to find the square sodden with great clumps of wet grass sat all over it. On closer investigation, the pro (who it transpires, wasn’t the cleverest man alive) had taken the advice to cut the pitch a couple of days before, spread the cuttings out on a tarp, and then day before the match water the pitch and then roll the clippings into the surface which helps to bind it together. And leave the rest to the sun.

The sun in Gloucestershire in April is quite a bit different to the sun they get in Australia, apparently.

Sun??

Sun??

It’s been very sunny in North Tyneside. Its also been very windy and very wetty too 🙁