With their playing surface continues to suffer from waterlogging, which has resulted in two postponements so far this season, Rochdale are looking for alternative grounds to play on as they attempt a mid season relay of the pitch
The pitch,say the club,The pitch has performed worse than expected, sooner than expected, to such a degree that the Club has no confidence that we would be able to complete our scheduled fixtures this season without taking immediate action.
The Club has sought, and received, permission from the National League to undertake a mid-season full rebuild of the pitch at the Crown Oil Arena.
With advice from technical consultants, OBI, this rebuild will involve removing the entire profile of the pitch down to the drains.
The club will install new drainage and a gravel bed, which will be crucial in ensuring adequate drainage for years to come.
The new pitch profiles will then be laid, and finally, a HERO hybrid carpet will form the playing surface, which will then be immediately playable.
“Undertaking a pitch rebuild mid-season is not a straightforward process and does place an unwelcome financial burden on the club. We would like to thank all of the third parties involved who have enabled us to get to a position where we can even contemplate carrying this work out.”
The build process will take approximately 4-5 weeks. Works are scheduled to commence on Sunday 7th December, immediately after the rescheduled match against Southend United.
There are two matches which will be affected by the rebuild, against Hartlepool United (Tuesday 30th December) and Brackley Town (Saturday 3rdJanuary).
The Club is in advanced discussions regarding an alternative location for these games to be played. We intend to update supporters with details of the alternative arrangements prior to the pitch works commencing.
Our planned return to the Crown Oil Arena is for the match against Truro City on Saturday 24thJanuary.
