We’re making good progress on the pitch project in conjunction with Newpark School. It was important we didn’t impact the leaving and junior cert exams so the project went into full swing early July.

Since then the majority of the fencing has now been removed for repair and upgrading.

The old carpet has been taken up and ready for removal with some of the cuttings being taken by members so they can practise at home in the garden!

The new pitch has been manufactured and is due to arrive next week which is very exciting! The contractor is currently preparing the surrounds and underlay in preparation for the new pitch to be laid this month!

We’ve also moved the blue container to help improve the viewing area on the left hand side as you walk into the pitch grounds.

We’ll be keeping everyone posted later this month and promise to post some more pictures when the new pitch goes down!

We are really excited to see the installation of our new high performance hockey playing surface at Newpark School start this month! There was a comprehensive research and tendering process, headed up by long standing member and past first team player Ian Keogh, with the support of outgoing club President Ben Geoghegan and project team. “Edel Grass” has been chosen as the surface of choice and we will be installing their premium and highest spec surface called “Edel ID”; special thanks to all the clubs we spoke to while doing our research – your insights and experience were invaluable.

Why is this good for players?
The “Edel ID System 15” surface is designed for the best players which everyone can enjoy! Players should look forward to a very quick pitch with outstanding playing characteristics such as being highly consistent with straight ball roll and bounce. We are also completely replacing the underlay and shockpad so the pitch should be soft and promote much greater 3D skills. The surface will be extremely dense which will add to the feel of the ball and not take the skin off fingers like some other pitches! An interesting fact is there will be more yarn in this pitch than any other laid in Ireland at 1.5 million filaments per square metre. It has a double backing to make it strong and long lasting.

For more information on the Edel ID pitch go here.

Why Edel Grass
Edel Grass has over 30 years of experience designing high quality surface systems for sports and leisure. They are a preferred producer of the International Hockey Federation (FIH) and continuously work with hockey professionals, coaches and top players to design the best pitches. Their core focus is around performance, durability and sustainability which aligned to our goals and requirements.

What colour will the pitch be?
The surface will be an “Olive Green” with a lighter “Summer Green” surround. There was a lot of debate about switching to blue however we had concerns how this might impact the residents that overlook the pitch and the potential of objections that could delay the project. It was agreed to keep the traditional green with the contrast of the surround to give players and spectators the best experience possible.

Who else uses this type of pitch?
This will be the only type of Edel pitch in Ireland! There are numerous installations at top clubs across Europe but probably the closet example would be Surbiton Hockey Club who recently laid two Edel pitches and recently hosted the England Hockey Premier Division finals.

Other great hockey clubs include: Wimbledon HC (England), TSV Mannheim (Germany), GHNC Haren (Belgium), Rotterdam HC, Kampong, Bloemendaal and Orange Rood (Holland), CD Terrassa and Real Club de Barcelona (Spain), and now Avoca HC!

Here are some pictures of the Rotterdam pitch:

Huge Thanks
Newpark School have been our very supportive partners as always in this redevelopment project and we hope more can be done in the future. Huge thanks to Headmaster Eoin Norton, Deputy Principle Andrew Adams, the board and everyone involved from the school.

Pitch updates!
Our plan is to post updates and pictures over the summer so you can see how the project is going! Once the junior and leaving certificate exams are over in June (and best of luck to all our younger members involved with that) our installation contractor will get started. The plan is to have the new pitch in place by the end of August and although this will slightly impact pre-season preparations, it will give players something really special to look forward to!