AstroTurf: The root of the problem for poorer football clubs

Two decades after their disappearance from English football stadiums, 2015 will see the surprise return of the artificial pitch.

Acknowledging the development of third generation AstroTurf, the FA’s decision to re-allow synthetic grass to the Conference Division comes with the promise of universal accessibility to year-long pitch consistency; the Holy Grail of the non-league winter.

But after the notoriety of their brief appearance in the mid-80s, and with the impossible issue of funding in lower-league football, questions will be asked as to whether the vision of a perfect playing surface is still just a mirage.

For football fans of a certain age, any mention of artificial grass will undoubtedly bring back images of grazed knees at Loftus Road. As novel and cost-efficient as they may have been at the time, the derisively dubbed ‘plastic pitches’ were met with unreserved distaste both on and off the field.

The cutting-edge invention of AstroTurf was not only notoriously serrated (players risked excruciating carpet burns with every slide-tackle), but also possessed uncanny – and generally unwanted – rubber-like qualities.

Unsurprisingly, the incalculable bouncing and increased risk of injury made poor viewing for the spectator; an issue worsened for travelling fans by the distinct and seemingly impenetrable home advantage.

It is thus understandable that if next year’s implications are to work, mistakes will have to be learnt from. Since it’s last appearance at Hyde in 1995 the rest of the world may have seen evolution of the Internet; the re-rise of Apple; and the invention of ref-spray, but that it not to say that the old plastic pitch hasn’t undergone some advancements itself.

The latest technology in sporting surfaces, the FA claim that the proposed third generation AstroTurf (or 3G for short) will be “significantly closer to real grass” than the synthetic grass introduced at QPR for the 1981/82 season.

The so-called “hybrid grass” combines expanded polypropylene, silicone fibres and multiple layers of rubber granules to create a formula as naturally accurate as it is linguistically excessive.

Having been given the go-ahead by the elevated powers of UEFA for both Europa and Champions League matches since 2008, and with dozens of equally competitive local 6-a-side divisions already being played on 3G every week, it is interesting that the FA – the first league governing body to use goal-line technology – have prolonged such a return until now.

However, following a string of nasty winters responsible for administrative mayhem up and down the fixture ladder, it is not hard to understand why the announcement has finally been made. On January weekends, seeing the classic P-P in place of a scoreline is an all too common occurrence, but 3G seems to offer a final solution to this disruption.

When the old rubber pitches were first introduced, they were hyped for their cost efficiency and year-long vigour, but it soon became clear they were not the finished product. With this generation of AstroTurf, clubs are essentially being offered flawless grass conditions with the vitality and climatic stubbornness as the pitches seen at Loftus Road, Preston’s Deepdale and Oldham’s Boundary Park.

An end to the trials of 9 am pitch inspections, sodden centre-circles and frozen touchlines is an attractive prospect to every team in the country – let alone those worse hit in the Conference – and if this experiment proves successful it may not be long until we see it make an impression on the football league.

But while the FA are keen to showcase the benefits of 3G, it is the issues they have preferred to keep silent that will ultimately decide the prosperity of synthetic pitches.

Although the replacement of grass with 3G would idealistically see an end to the routine winter match-day uncertainty, the unfortunate truth is that for the majority of Conference sides this will firmly remain only a dream.

The financial imbalance within the Conference is by no means a secret, but the introduction of artificial pitching is the latest prospect to expose the more unsavoury side of the league.

Following the big money investments that saw Chelsea and Manchester City showered in success, an exclusive number of Conference sides have also seen considerable investment headed their way. While this cash may not have contributed to fulfilling aims of Champions League glory, the money paved roads to the Football League forged by Crawley and others has instead left a gaping hole of inequality across all three divisions.

For all the labour costs that an abolition of grass would save, in a league of lacklustre attendances, sky-high running costs and heavy-handed tax men, the prospect of 3G is still widely unobtainable. According to AstroTurf installer McArdle Sports, the instillation of a 106.00 x 71.00m pitch would cost a Conference side £360,000.

Consider that my local club Dorchester Town achieved a mid-table Conference South finish boasting a total wage bill of under £1500 in 2013, and you can imagine how much of an unrealistic commitment 3G would be.

But while Dorchester will continue to see their pitch face inevitable late-season deterioration, Whitehawk FC – with an individual rumoured to be on wages exceeding £2000 – may very well relish the opportunity in the coming seasons. Earning back-to-back promotions in 2012 and 2013, their money-fuelled rise from the Isthmian Division One South contrasts starkly with Dorchester’s struggles since becoming fan-run in 2013.

Despite the extravagant costs, the providers still believe that for the relief of all nature’s needed work, purchasers will end up with a “turf pitch maintenance saving” of £10,000. Cutting back money is a necessity for every club at Conference level, but not when it’s a side note on a wholly avoidable and unmanageable £350,000 bill.

For the minority rich enough to afford it, though, 3G offers a future of wealth. Maidstone United – who pressed notably for this change in customs from FA – have benefited hugely from the 3G pitch they have played on since the construction of Gallagher Stadium in 2012. In their first year at the new ground, Maidstone learnt not only of the infamous home advantage – they won the Isthmian League to gain promotion to the Conference – but also of the financial benefits stated by McArdle.

Relishing the pitch’s ability to be used without financial or physical expense throughout the week, Maidstone hired out the turf extensively, bringing in a profit of £150,000. Seeing the overwhelming positive effect of artificial turf, and knowing that the likes of Dorchester will never be able to afford it, is once again a reminder of the frustrating nature of the Conference.

Shaking off preconceptions may have been the FA’s reason for AstroTurf’s delayed return to English football, but on reflection it is the least of the issues facing a proliferation of plastic pitches.

Drip feeding from the bottom up may have appeared a logical method if turfed grounds were ever to become customary at top-flight, but at this time it appears the collective non-league groundsman’s dream of season-long consistency won’t be totally satisfied anytime soon.

Eleven clubs have signified their interest of replacing grass with plastic – tantalised by the the success story of Maidstone – while the other 57 teams will likely remain victims of the non-league financial fiasco. Those that can afford it will hope that buying into the FA’s plan will reap them the rewards, but at £40 per metre squared, the price of success will always be too high for some.

As was the case in 1981, as good as the new pitches look on paper, the plans seem to have fallen short again.

That is because football isn’t played on paper. Football is played on grass.

And for many, that doesn’t look set to change.