The Future’s Bright, The Future’s Green
“All training ground pitches are subject to more wear and tear than stadium pitches due to the amount of time players spend on them. Because of this, it is imperative that they receive the same, if not more, attention as their stadium equivalents,” says Jason Griffin, Head Groundsman at Chelsea Football Club. “Here at Chelsea, regardless of which Phase a pitch is in, or which players are using it, it is kept in the best condition possible.”
Chelsea Football Club opened its state-of-the-art training facility in Cobham in 2003. Eight years later, and the £40 million, 152-acre facility is the largest and most advanced in Europe. It remains the envy of the industry and continues its commitment to remaining the most modern and cutting edge training site in the football world.
Despite being only 30 minutes away from London by train, the facility is located on a green field site. As such, during the initial pitch construction archaeologists had to survey the site before work could commence and Chelsea FC had to adhere to strict building regulations. Despite its size and the changes made, the site has retained its green credentials with woodland and a river surrounding most of the ground. Each player also bought a tree, which was then planted near the headquarters on its official opening.
“The aesthetics of the site have always been important, not only to be in keeping with the surrounding area but also to reflect the high standards and professionalism of the Club,” explains Jason. “It also provides a benchmark of quality, to which we all strive, and that mirrors the standard of the training facility itself.”
Pitch Perfect
The 152-acre site is home to 30 pitches and two separate state-of-the-art headquarters, one for the first team and the other for the academy. The first team copper clad headquarter building, which also has a grass roof to provide natural insulation, houses an indoor training area, a gym, trauma unit, dentist, optician, and swimming pool, some of which are below ground level. There is also overnight accommodation for those players unable to make it home after travelling back from matches. The pitches are located around these headquarters and are divided in to four Phases.
Phase One pitches are reserved solely for the first team and come complete with the Inditherm under soil heating system and automated irrigation. Phase Two pitches are also set aside for first team use but these have no under soil heating. All of these pitches are exact replicas of the Fibresand reinforced pitch at Stamford Bridge. Irrigation for the pitches is provided by an onsite lake which can hold up to 10,000 cubic metres of water. Jason has also just introduced a number of fish into the lake to help reduce the levels of algae in the water, and it is proving to be a successful scheme
“When we first moved to the Cobham site we did not have enough time to seed the 60,000 m² of first team pitches so we had to turf them with washed turf instead,” explains Jason. “This was not ideal, so once we were into the first close season we Koro’d off the turf and seeded the pitches which is always the best course of action.
“Due to the level of activity expected on the Phase One and Phase Two pitches, we required a surface that would be able to withstand sustained use and maintain its stability. Because of this, we decided to use Fibresand as a basis for the first team pitches as we had done at Stamford Bridge.”
Fibresand from Mansfield Sand Company, a developer and producer of sand-based products and pitch surfaces, is a unique polypropylene fibre reinforced silica sand that is incorporated into rootzones in order to provide extra stability to the surface. When integrated into a rootzone the fibres act as a mass of indestructible synthetic grass roots, reinforcing and stabilising the growing medium and producing a tighter, more divot resistant surface.
“We have a long standing relationship with Mansfield Sand Company, having worked with them since the mid-1990s, and have used Fibresand and Mansil Sands on previous sites with great success. Because of this we knew Fibresand would provide us with a long lasting surface, able to withstand the rigours of day-to-day training.
“We rotate the use of all our pitches to ensure each one gets regular use and respite, but the Fibresand pitches are proving to be durable, stable and easy to maintain,” adds Jason.
Covering an area of 60,000 sq metres, the Phase One and Phase Two pitches were completely renovated by White Horse Contractors this year. These pitches were Koro’d, and over 1,000 tonnes of new Fibresand ameliorated and then over seeded with R14 Grass Seed – the result was brand new pitches. The work was completed in minimal time and to the complete satisfaction of the club.
Alongside the first team pitches there are Phase Three pitches, used by the reserves team whose matches are streamed live from the training facility to Chelsea FC’s own TV channel; Phase Four pitches which are set aside for the Academy; and the Project Pitch used by the Chelsea Ladies first team. All of these pitches are natural grass. In addition, there are five artificial five-a-side pitches, one of which has a removable domed cover making it ideal for use in all weathers.
Practice makes perfect
Chelsea Football Club’s Academy is also based at Cobham, which is unique to the Premiership with most clubs preferring to keep the two sites separate. Each Academy group – the Girls, Boys and Disabled – have their own allocated training pitches and the Club is in the process of building the “Hub”, a purpose built facility for youngsters at the Academy. The “Hub” will provide them with an environment in which to carry on their studies whilst continuing their football training.
“Developing talent for the future is important to the Club and the Academy is imperative in achieving this. Having the Academy located at Cobham, alongside the first team training facilities, does make this a huge site – I can walk up to six or seven miles a day! But it does make it a lot easier to manage and maintain. It also means the students have access to the most up to date facilities,” explains Jason.
World firsts
To complement its other facilities, the training ground also has a running mound to help those players with calf injuries regain fitness, and a specific goal keeping area, as well as the world’s first “Footwall”.
“The Footwall really is at the cutting edge of football training technology,” explains Jason. “Cameras are installed within the goals of a five-a-side synthetic pitch and linked to big screens. These cameras record a player practicing a free kick which the player can then view on the big screens, helping to analyse his techniques. There is also a speedometer that records how fast the kick is.
“This type of technology is crucial to the continued development of our players and for the facility as a whole,” says Jason.
From the ground up
Jason has been with Chelsea FC for over 23 years, becoming Head Groundsman in 2003, a longevity of service that is rarely seen in the industry. Over this time he has seen 13 managers at Chelsea FC, seven of which have been in the last seven years. There are currently 10 people in Jason’s team at Cobham, including his son, and an additional two groundsmen based at Stamford Bridge.
“A club is only as good as its people, and the low staff turnover at Chelsea is testament to the excellent working conditions and the pride we all take in working for such a club,” concludes Jason.
“However, we have only been able to create and maintain such a high standard training facility by working with the best products and suppliers in the industry. From John Deere and Rigby Taylor, to Mansfield Sand Company, we know we are working with suppliers we can trust and who are giving us the best quality product and service. This has helped us to build an enviable reputation, with our peers visiting the site for inspiration for their own training grounds – there is no bigger compliment.”
For more information visit :
www.mansfield-sand.co.uk/products/sports/football-rugby/