Expert finds clue to turf problem

Problems surrounding the condition of the Queen Elizabeth Park Oval cricket pitch in Masterton are about to be solved.
Or at least that's the impression gained from a report prepared for the Masterton District Council's policy and finance committee by Garth Hathaway, parks and recreation services manager.
Backgrounding the situation, Hathaway says the council spends from $37,000 to $42,000 annually on cricket pitch maintenance, which is offset by $3935 annual rental income from the code.
This work is primarily turf management and in 2008 a report recommended work on the Park Oval outfield and the clay block.
The recommended outfield works included levelling the area previously used as a cycle track, and improving drainage at the southern end of the field.
Hathaway says that while levelling had been deferred, the southern end was gravel-banded which eased flood problems.
The sports turf report had also recommended resurfacing the clay block and Recreational Services Ltd (RSL) carried this out in 2008. The block had not performed as expected and the council, RSL and the Wairarapa Cricket Association (WCA) had been working on a solution.
Hathaway says that after a Hawke Cup game on the Park Oval in December, umpires noted variable bounce and pace with an overall rating of ''below average''.
Games played in January also drew critical reports. Hathaway said RSL had responded by bringing in a sports turf specialist, Warwick Sissons.
Sissons said the process of stripping and relaying a new soil profile appeared to have failed to knit into the existing base.
Hathaway says this is an issue which, fortunately, is relatively straight forward to fix and involves the use of an Air-o-Vator to combine the two layers properly followed by relevelling the block.
This work would be undertaken by the supplier of the clay material and RSL immediately after the cricket season, which ends this weekend. The cost would be shared by agreement between RSL and the supplier of materials with no cost being passed on to the council.