I was going to Gillette stadium, expecting a field that was going to look like a warzone. When I went to the stadium, what did I find? A feild that except for the very light football lines and the Patriots logo was in great condition. Better then the Metros have had all year, including the spring. Why are the Metros treated like such trash? Sure the Krafts could have screwed the Revs and painted the lines before the game to have it easier on their groundskeeping crew, but they didn't. Those guys must have work all night painting, and preparing the field for football today.
It would have been much easier for them to have painted the field before the Revs game as the Pats are playing today. However, they didn't. That's the point. They went the extra mile to help the team on the field. I admire that. The metros never had as good of a field in April. That's the whole point.
Giants are also palying on a Crap Field I just switched from watching the Patriots to watching the Giants on TV. If it is any consolation (for me, it is not), the same difference in field condition noted for the Metros v. Revs home field, also applies to Giants v. Patriots home filed. All that tells me is that the Krafts care about their products, NJSEA does not. Sad
Re: Giants are also palying on a Crap Field That is because the NJSEA is a government agency, organized for the purpose of providing patronage for the party in power at the moment. I can't even imagine what next year will be like, if there is a next year. Zoffinger and his NJSEA were screwing the Metro relentlessly. The thought was that we'd take because we were on the way out. Now there is no way out, it's only going to get worse and Zoffinger will only increase his efforts to humiliate and embarrass the Metro. I forget when the Metro lease ends, very soon I think. With nothing on the horizon, the Metro will have to negotiate a new deal with no leverage at all. It is going to be just horrible.
One thing to consider is that only the Revs and the Pat's play on that field. You have the Giants, Jets, Metrostars along with college games at the meadowlands. There is no comparison in usage.
Its not about the usage though. The field hasn't looked good in years. There is absolutely no upkeep at all.
Isn't the underlying problem with Giants Stadium (no pun intended) that it's an astroturf field with grass in trays? It seems that the grass tray solution to astroturf will only work if the Authority is willing to replace the trays frequently, and they weren't willing to spend that kind of money. The field doesn't hold up as well as other fields with multiple users (look at Denver, KC, NE and compare) in part because, unlike other newer grass fields in cold climates (e.g., Denver and NE), it doesn't have underground pipes that heat the grass to keep it from going dormant in the Fall. It also seems that the field never recovered from its use by the XFL team. Going from use by two NFL teams to use by the XFL in late winter wrecked the field, didn't it?
were any of the grass trays replaced at that time (when the XFL ended)? In Chicago, new sod was put down 4/1/01, very close to the end of the XFL season. And they usually re-sodded Soldier Field in August, after the Dave Matthews concerts had taken their toll. Just how often are the trays replaced?
All I know is this. The field was in absolutely dispicable conidition at the start of the season. That must have some effect on how it is right now. The field does not go through that much use over the summer. Sure soccer, but that's mainly it. A concert every now and then, nothing compared to the football games in the winter. Now my point is, that if the field sucks then, what do they expect to happen once the Giants and those 400 pound monoliths start playing?