May 11 Friday marked the final day of my expedition in the United Kingdom. COLD was the theme of the day. With temperatures not rising above 45 degrees F, a breeze, and some rain showers; what a challenge to grow grass! Kudos to ALL the groundsmen in northern Europe. I have heard that it's cold in those areas and that is true!
solutely everything that is hyped. What a gorgeous and classic sta- dium. Thank you to Tony Sinclair, Head Groundsman at Old Trafford, for showing me around and sharing some absolutely fan- tastic ideas and thoughts on the success of maintaining such a wonderful pitch in the cold, wet conditions of the Manchester re- gion. Tony's professionalism and fantastic attitude towards the challenges they face were extra motivating to me as we look at tackling the challenges daily faced with 22 pitches and all the events at SoccerPlex. The very best of luck to Mr. Sinclair and his tremendous staff with those upcoming challenges, including sev- eral matches for the Olympics. Leaving Old Trafford, we headed over to Etihad Stadium, home of Manchester City. With both teams tied for the Premier League title going into the final weekend, it was absolutely amaz- ing the experience the intensity and anxiety and the anticipation
The day started with a stop at historic Old Trafford. It is ab-
>> Top: LEE JACKSON, head groundsman, Etihad Stadium, Manches- ter City, 2 days before Manchester City hosted and won the Euro- pean Premier League championship. >> Bottom: MOWING starting at Old Trafford.
www.stma.org
SportsTurf 15
