SPORTS & PLAY
WOLVES ROLL OUT
`WHEELIE GOOD`
TRAINING GOALS
UNDER TWIN-SITE EQUIPMENT PACKAGE
Wolverhampton Wanderers
FC’s head groundsman Wayne
Lumbard is in charge of the club’s
turf facilities at an exciting time in
Wolves’ history.
Coming into post in 2005, Wayne
has seen the club rise to footballing
prominence again as it seeks to
secure a permanent place in the
game’s top drawer.
After promotion to the Premiership,
Wolves had to step up its grounds
provision, both at its Molineux
Stadium and the Sir Jack Hayward
academy base and training centre,
where major investment in
synthetic pitches is now complete.
“We gained budget to improve the
training ground two years ago,”
recalls Wayne, “and have installed
three new Desso Grassmaster
pitches, including a show pitch
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intended for U23s training and
staging U18s Premier League games.
Wayne splits his eight-strong team
between the training base (five) and
Molineux (three) to ensure the fresh
facilities at the Sir Jack Hayward
base are tended to the standards
required.
“Once in the Premiership, we also
began upgrading various elements
at Molineux to meet higher-level
requirements ready for the new
season,” he continues.
“Every Premiership club has to
conform to set criteria for stadium
provision,” Wayne explains. “Goal
nets have to be uniform white and
grounds teams can only mow match
pitches from goal to goal or across
their width, for example.”
The match goals had passed
their sell-by date and needed
replacing, he says, and turned to
goals manufacturer Mark Harrod
Ltd for advice. “We’ve enjoyed a
longstanding relationship with the
company and knew they could
deliver a solution tailored to our
requirements,” Wayne says.
After talking over things with
managing director Sean Wallett, the
company delivered and installed
socketed goalposts, nets and net
support posts ready for Wolves’ first
home game of the 2018-2019 season,
against Everton FC.
The white aluminium powder-
coated 24ft x 8ft match goalposts
conform fully to home and
European league 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.
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