FA report

[fenman]

I've just been reading a report originating from the F.A.  regarding the sale of Wembley stadium . In it it says that some of the proceeds from the proposed sale would go into grass roots football . It says that 150,000 games were not played last season because the pitches were not up to standard  .  Most if not all leagues have minimum ground standards  so something is wrong there . I'm not very bright but I find that hard to believe , unless they are using games called off through waterlogged pitches in their figures .Almost as hard to believe that  money is the answer to all of grass roots problems unless of course the FA propose paying all players to play !!!!!!!!!!!

[TheolderIgetthebetterIwas]

It's all well and good bringing pitches up to a good standard, but you then have to maintain them .......who's going to do that (?)

No volunteers queueing up that I can see.

[Fanfare]

Ah marking the pitch before the game, many happy memories as long as the roller didn't have dry lime (or whatever the potion was) stuck to the wheels. Although anything was easier than the paintbrush!

[fenman]

I know that very few of you ( if any ) will be interested but I've discovered the reality behind this report . It was published to explain the reasons for the proposed sale of Wembley Stadium  and the ensuing benefits . It quite a clever bit of word and truth play

As I suspected a large number of the 150,000 games mentioned were not played due to the pitch being waterlogged as apposed to " not up to standard " . The FA justify this distortion of the truth by saying that the sale of Wembley would release enough money to provide grants to " grass roots clubs" to either improve drainage or use an artificial pitch . One interesting point is that there is some dispute over what is " grass roots football " within the FA . I don't think that some members of the national FA realise that by far the majority of football in the UK is played in small villages and is kept alive by idiots who give up their time and money to keep their team going  . No offence meant ! for 40 + years I was one of those idiots . My team has folded through lack of players and I've just realised that there is another world out there on Saturday afternoon , I'm free to watch Wolves , Plymouth and even Norwich City ( if I'm forced ) .

As the previous contributors ( who must be dinasours because they possess common sense )  have said , paying for an artificial pitch is one thing , maintaining it is another . I saw some figures for the yearly upkeep of a 3G pitch recently it was beyond the budget of a village team . 

 

[TheolderIgetthebetterIwas]

Yup, people think a 4g pitch is maintenance free, just as much work as a grass pitch if they are to be done properly.