properfin said:
Saw this in of all places, the weekly Rankings section of Yahoo.
Say goodbye to that awful field at Gillette Stadium now that the Patriots have been told by the NFL to revamp their surface. Field Turf should be in place by December. Coach Bill Belichick should shed a tear because in December and January, that torn up field used to be an advantage.
Thats not what I've read. The field will be resodded between the hash marks only in time for the Indy game in Nov. As a matter of fact the field in NE could cause changes on all the other natural grass fields.
By Mike Reiss, Globe Staff | October 18, 2006
FOXBOROUGH -- Plans to improve the Gillette Stadium playing field, which have been in the works for months, were finalized by the Patriots yesterday.
Article Tools
New sod will be placed in the middle of the field beginning Oct. 25, 11 days before the team's next home game, Nov. 5 against the Colts.
"We continue to look for the best short-term and long-term solutions and at this time, the plan would be to re-sod," spokesman
Stacey James said.
The long-term solution might be to install a synthetic grass surface at Gillette, but an NFL spokesman said there is a rule -- although not in the league's official rulebook -- that if a team's home field is grass at the start of the season it must remain that way throughout the season.
The league office has been monitoring Gillette, and NFL director of game operations
Tim Daley told the Associated Press he will oversee the installation of the sod to make sure the surface is up to NFL standards.
The Kraft family, which owns the Patriots, has long preferred natural grass. But maintaining a natural grass field in New England has been a challenge, even with special drainage and heating system s at Gillette designed to extend the life of the grass.
Ironically, installing a synthetic grass field at Gillette probably would have been a cost-saving move when the multi purpose facility opened in 2002. The Patriots are in the process of hearing proposals from various companies that install synthetic grass fields.
Linebacker
Don Davis, one of the Patriots' player representatives with the NFL Players Association, previously said he wouldn't be surprised if all fields are switched to synthetic grass in the future. Davis said the NFLPA has a recently created safety and welfare division that includes groundskeepers, as field conditions are a primary concern for players.
Earlier this month, coach
Bill Belichick vented his frustration with the field conditions. ``I don't think anybody in this organization is happy about it, or thinks it's in good condition," he said. ``Everybody in this organization would like to see that field in better condition than what it's in. Everybody."
