Groundskeeping Journal Issue 2 2020 | Page 19

SPORTS GROUND EQUIPMENT requirements and form part of a package of provision for the Midlands club that includes goals and ancillary equipment at the training centre, which has just trumped Molineux with a football first. “Sean and his colleague Matt Page had developed the concept of a goal designed to use on synthetic pitches and wanted to trial it. He approached us and we were delighted to put the product through its paces, as I believe that latest generation synthetic pitches deserve latest technology goals.” A DevoShift training goal was delivered earlier in 2019 and Wayne trialled it for eight months on the training centre’s Desso pitches. His verdict is decisive. “For groundsmen, this goal is a no-brainer,” Wayne concludes. “The concept is beautifully simple and highly effective. Traditional wheeled goals are tricky to turn on grass and artificial surfaces and require large gateways to remove them from the pitch. “Two people can quickly and easily swivel and push the DevoShift goals in any direction, not just forwards and backwards, as with current equipment.” Full-sized DevoShift aluminium goals, designed to conform to the latest British and European standards, turn sideways and can be pushed/pulled through an access gate only 2 or 3m wide,” he adds. The goals break new ground in another way. Stylishly fashioned, with no wheels visible, thanks to the unique moulded enclosures, the DevoShift posts appear to float across the ground. “They certainly look, as well as feel, a world away from traditional designs,” Wayne states. Universal-style jointed wheels allow two people to manoeuvre them 360 degrees and push them on to and around a pitch quickly and easily, which will save time and money for grounds managers, operators and clubs alike. Known for innovation, Mark Harrod Ltd developed the first wheeled goals, now widely adopted across sport. Fourteen years ago it launched the Easylift, which allowed frames to be pushed and pulled around sites after raising them above the playing surface. The latest advance in training goal design marks a further quantum leap to create a goal featuring multi- directional mobility. Two years in After deciding the goals would form a permanent fixture at the training centre, Wolves have become the Premier League’s first club to take custody of goalposts tailored specifically to the demands of synthetic turf and high-quality turf. GroundskeepingJournal.co.uk | Sept/Oct 2019 19