Rugby pitch blunder (From Penarth Times)

Rugby pitch blunder

A PENARTH Rugby Club official is calling for better communication between the town's clubs and the council following what he calls the authority's "heavy-handed blundering" over the resurfacing of a pitch.

As reported last week, the rugby posts on the Penarth Athletic Field were taken down by the Vale Council so the pitch could be covered with topsoil.

Phil Beaman, the council's operational manager for parks and grounds maintenance, told the Penarth Times that rugby club officials had been made aware of these works - but this was vehemently denied by David Hughes, secretary of Penarth RFC.

This week secretary of Penarth Youth RFC Dave Moorcraft has hit out at what he sees as a "communication problem" with the council and users of the pitch.

Mr Moorcraft, along with other club officials, visited the pitch on Sunday, and feared that the condition of the topsoil - which they say contained "a large number of sharp edged chippings, flints and stones, on average about an inch" - would put the prestigious Good Friday Penarth Youth game against Crawshays Welsh Youth XV in jeopardy.

However, the club secretary says he has since been assured by the council that the pitch will be brought up to a "playable" condition by Friday, along with the re-erection of the rugby posts.

He said: "Who authorised the spreading of soil with sharp stones in it on a public playing surface?

"Any player in any sport falling on these would risk serious injury."

Mr Moorcraft added: "After 18 years as secretary of the Penarth and Mini and Junior Rugby Club and then Penarth Youth RFC, I am now stepping down.

"During that time I have seen some wonderful people give up huge amounts of their time freely to encourage young people from all backgrounds, girls as well as boys, to play sport just for the love of it.

"Clubs like ours expect and get very little back because many youngsters go on to other clubs or interests."

He said that over the years he has received "little or no help" from the Vale's parks department or from councillors.

"The changing rooms in the Athletic Field are Second World War bomb shelters, scarcely big enough or fit to keep a dog in," he added.

"Pitch maintenance has been reduced to a bare minimum.

"But we never thought that the council were capable of such heavy-handed blundering as to seriously threaten the one big day in the year for these young men."

Mr Moorcraft said that a Welsh Rugby Union referee is due to inspect the condition of the pitch before Friday's game.

"I really hope that communication improves and the council realises it needs to speak to us and the other rugby teams in Penarth," he added.