Life’s A Pitch – looking after the grassroots in the Northern League with Ashington AFC.

Scott Robson describes a life at the true grassroots of NE non league football - an article that first appeared in TF 159.

Ashington opened the season with a 2-2 draw away in Cumbria v. Penrith. However on Tuesday 3/Aug/21 much excitement was abounded as The Colliers played our first home game in around 280 days v. West Auckland.

The last game was October last year, a 6-1 home defeat to Champions Hebburn. That followed a 3-0 loss to Consett. It rained both days. Misery on and off the pitch!

The top teams showed Ashington they had a lot to do. Hard work is ongoing by the coaching but my job was to get the pitch good as it could be.

The last time I did this, the summer maintenance had been done and we were battling the dreaded drought. I was desperate for moisture to keep newly sown seedlings alive.

Things were reaching desperation as a metre from the touchline was discolouring.

Watering was incessant and took up my time. Things changed at the end of June with a welcome week of rain.

After this lucky escape, fellow volunteer Gav (officially secretary, but does most things) had time on his hands and set about marking the pitch.

It’s an arduous task made trickier by the decision to move the pitch a metre over. We recently purchased movable goalposts so we were not tied to the old posts’ sleeves in the ground.

This is really based on A, we could. And B, the more we get the pitch away from the main stand the better as it gets no sun or air and on a frosty day can mean a game is called off despite 90% of the pitch having thawed.

Gav did a great job and the pitch was ready. Two friendlies on successive Saturdays v. Edinburgh and Jarrow were our practice.

The pitch for years suffered with a quaint thing called fairy rings. Sounds weird I know, but it’s a turf disease so-called because in central Europe it’s said fairies danced on the grass, hence the deep green marks.

The worst case is a total wipe-out of the grass which needs digging a metre down and starting again, the second appears with mushrooms and the third, less troublesome is a real growth spurt and lush green grass in a half moon shape.

Anfield, Windsor Park and Lords suffered with it last year. I haven’t got their budgets so I just suck it up and cut it.

Not ideal but could be worse. If anything, the hot weather delayed the inevitable.

Cutting at 27mm continues twice weekly. Our games are Tuesday and Saturday so that’s when it’s cut so the turf knows the crack.

Cutting is varied to try and push lateral growth. Up and down, cross ways and left to right and right to left. The result is good to see.

The friendlies went off ok but temperatures went off the scale again. The Jarrow game was played in 30o heat and brought discolouring and indeed the sprinkler.

The pitch suddenly went on a knife-edge. Growth went back and that worry for any grounds-man came …disease.

The pitch basically has a cold and invites disease like fusarium and red thread which can look awful. I thought it was on its way.

Loads of weed-killing as weeds took advantage of slow growth but luckily rain returned fairly quickly and it has turned the other way.

Not much non-chemical help for this, which I’d rather not do. We can’t afford it anyway, so phew.

With the West Auckland game upcoming my preparations started on Saturday. The team bus for Penrith left as I remarked the lines with string.

The original lines done by Gav, waver as you over-mark. It’s only natural. I over-mark for three of four weeks before dragging the wobbles back. This continues all season and though a bit of a pain it’s no good having wavy lines.

Tuesday would be hell for leather so this hour and a half job was done on Saturday. Outside the ground cut for the same reason and more spot weed-killing to kill dandelions and plantains.

That’s me with a knapsack sprayer and it’s hard going. The pitch was cut in the rain crossways and post to post, meaning match-day was criss-cross, leaving it smart with diamonds.

At this level you can still be creative, though linesmen prefer the straight lines

Tuesday came then. I was at work until half three. I got there as quick as I could to the ground and started.

This is the timeline.

15:45 - cut the pitch corner to corner left to right.

16:30 - cut the pitch corner to corner right to left.

17:15 – over-mark the lines, double mark to get the deep white look under floodlights.

17:35- Mark penalty spots

17:45- Put goalposts in place making sure they are ok, these are new so should really be.

17:50- Coach puts cones down for warm up

18:00 - Players arrive and I put the gear away and get out without fuss.

This is all the more harder as I can’t drive at the minute, so I then had a 35 minute walk home to see partner and have a shower. I’d been out the house since 6:30 am so stank.

This was also my first game since last September and really enjoyed seeing people again and with a crowd of nearly 350 coming in on a gorgeous night.

What wasn’t normal was perennial let downers Ashington having the first half of going in 4-0 up at the break after two brilliant Cowburn free kicks and goals by Briggs and ex-Toon lad Ryan McGorrigan. Dream-land.

We managed to avoid losing 5-4 as was predicted at half time and won 4-0 against a team tipped for promotion.

The circus moves on to Saturday and the FAC and rain predicted. Relief doesn’t last long.

SCOTT ROBSON