These playing surfaces can be used every day of the week and bring vital new income streams.
Before I analyse the advantages in detail with a couple of case studies, I want to address the fact that there is strong opposition to 3G from many people – particularly around the Football League.
EFL rules meant that Harrogate Town had to rip up their 3G and replace it with a grass pitch during the summer after winning promotion from the National League.
This is in spite of the fact that important World Cup, Champions League and FA Cup games have been played on 3G. So why do we have so much resistance to it in this country? I believe the reason for this is because football folk have very long memories! They can still vividly recollect the rumpus that arose when the first wave of artificial pitches were installed in England back in the 1980’s.
Queens Park Rangers were the notorious pioneers during the 1981/82 season. The first problem recalled is that QPR brazenly laid the ‘Omniturf’ pitch without seeking any approval or permission from the footballing authorities.
Terry Venables, who was manager at Loftus Road back then, once told me: “My chairman Jim Gregory had always been worried about the terrible problems we had with our original grass pitch. We couldn’t get the drainage right. Even on a fairly nice day, it would always be like a quagmire.
“Jim just didn’t know what to do. Whatever he spent, he couldn’t seem to solve the problem. So he said to me: ‘What about a plastic pitch?’ We chatted for a while and it was a big step forward. And he said: ‘There are no rules to say we can’t!’
Denne historien er fra November 29, 2020-utgaven av The Non-League Football Paper.
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Denne historien er fra November 29, 2020-utgaven av The Non-League Football Paper.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
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SHAKERS REVEL IN MAKING HISTORY
DAVE McNabb says Bury's FA Cup heroes are proud to be writing their own chapters in club history.
WILCOX: WE FEEL COMPLETE WITH WIN
RUSS WILCOX'S verdict after watching his Gainsborough Trinity side outmuscle and outplay their hosts was that it was \"probably our most complete performance\".
CRACKER BY KABIA TOPPLES TUDORS!
ASSISTANT boss Stewart Yetton said his Truro City side were good value for their win over table-toppers Hemel Hempstead Town.
BRAKES PUT STOP ON BORO BATTLERS
SEPARATED only by goal difference before kick-off, these sides remain neck and neck in the embryonic table after playing out 90 minutes in the October sunshine that was a great advert for the division.
BOSS COTT'S GOT A REALLY GOOD THING WITH ROVERS
STEVE Cotterill hailed Forest Green Rovers’ first class performance as they produced a spirited comeback to topple fellow high-flyers Eastleigh at the Silverlake Stadium.
SKIPS STEER HEED'S SHIP
GATESHEAD captains of the past and present are playing a lead role in helping the National League club move on from the departure of FA Trophy-winning manager Rob Elliot.
FA CUP PREVIEW: SWEET! 'DREAM' DRAW IS CHANCE OF OUR LIFETIME
DAVE NORTHFIELD says minnows Biggleswade FC were like 'kids in a sweet shop' when they drew out York City in what he describes as the 'draw of a lifetime'.
PARKER'S HEART IS STILL AT HOME
FORMER England right-back Paul Parker has revealed he would never completely rule out a return to management – but says he would only do so for one of his beloved local clubs.
LOCALS RALLY TO REBUILD BRIDGE
WHEN committee members at Bamber Bridge set out to raise £30,000 to protect the club's future, they were apprehensive about the response they'd get.
RUTHLESS BEES FIND THEIR FEET
ASTERLING second-half performance resulted in league leaders Barnet brushing aside a Boston United outfit that led at the interval through Keaton Ward’s early strike.