With all the dissatisifaction (Metro, Jets and Giants) over the grass field's playing condition, it is rumored that the NJSEA may switch to turf. Do you think that the NJSEA's interest in promoting international matches might influence this decision?
If NJSEA is smart, they'll put in FieldTurf or another semi-artificial surface that has been approved for use by FIFA. Major Euro and SA clubs would be more, not less, likely to play on such surfaces because they will want to try them out. If you're Real or Bayern and you think that other teams are going to install the stuff, you'd rather get a feel for how it plays in person during a friendly than in a competitive match that means something.
Since we have Bradley as a coach, it really shouldn't matter. If Chicago did so well playing in plastic, we should have no excuses.
In the news a few days ago a guy name Gilman was at Giants Stadium. He was the founder of Fieldturf he sold it to Nike, but still works for the company. He has been trying to get fieldturf in the stadium for years. There is enough good reviews on fieldturf to get it put in. It is a good surface to play soccer on. Check out Met Oval.
I guess I was hoping that somehow the grass tray system would continue to be used (as bad as it may be). I will actually hesitate renewing my tickets for next season if they are going to be playing on turf.
I would rather they play in the parking lot instead of on the same field as this past season....bring on the field turf...too many tenants to make the real stuff work.
I believe field turf is being used in the new Seattle stadium. the sounders have already played there, and will play 14 matches there during the next A-Leage season. Evidently the stuff drains well (important in Seattle, certainly) and at least has a convincing, 'natural' feel to it. It would be an improvement over what we have, and natural grass is out of the question, given the extensive pounding the GS surface is bound to get every year.
now, if the NJSEA is serious about international soccer at GS, the won't have the gridiron lines permanantly(like in Craperville).....
am i missing something...wasn't the field acceptable, until the xfl came around. then due to the cheapness of njsea and not resodding the turf after that abortion, the field has never recovered
THANK YOU. Someone's following the facts. Pay attention everyone 1. NJSEA is cheap. the tray system works when properly maintained, which it is not. 2. There is no replacement for natural grass - see injury list for the Fire this year at Naperville. If you're not wearing cleats, it ain't natural. I'd rather see them play on a dirt field reminiscent of a Wolverhampton game at Molineaux circa 1922 than see that plastic ACL/MCL shredding crap out there. I'm not bitter...
They are completely removable. In fact, it's amazing how well it works. I've seen the Sounders, Seahawks, & a Washington State game there, each with a different looking field, and there wasn't even a trace of the lines or graphics that were removed. More importantly, the ball acted like it should. No high bounces or ridiculous rolls like on astroturf. All things being equal, grass is better. But if for some reason you can't use grass, I think FieldTurf is perfectly acceptable.
I'd desperately like to believe that this would be the case. It isn't. The highprofile teams that Zoff and Chuckie will bring in for their carnival shows won't be bothered by the gridiron lines. These teams will be here for an interesting working vacation of sorts and the abomination of the field markings won't bother them one bit. Were they in serious competition, they would not tolerate it. The NJSEA never really gave the grass system an opportunity to work and that much was clear from simple observation. They overused it, were unwilling to replace trays as frequently as necessary given that use and the drought did not help, which cannot be blamed on the NJSEA. The sad truth is that a more modern artificial surface would be better than the existing grass system as maintained by the useless patronage driven bureaucratic goldbricking no-show NJSEA.
Maybe the stuff looks okay initially, but OVER TIME, how do ankles, knees and joints respond to FieldTurf? That's an important question to the athletes who play on it, and as you must know by now that artifical turf has been responsible for many serious injuries. Oh yes, FieldTurf is "different", but how often have we heard those words in the past?
I have played on FieldTurf. Sure it's better than the traditional place mat you call astroTurf. However, the ball does play much quicker and springer on Filed Turf than grass. Also you don't want to try to nmay slide tackles on Field Turf. I think the best solution is to keep the grass down and really commit to changing the trays more frequently. As a soccer fan you must admit that playing on a grass pitch(any grass pitch) is better than the most advanced means of plastic. I was watching the Roma vs. AC Milan matcg on tape the other day, and the Giants Stadium grass pitched looked excellent. Hey let the Filthy rich NFL teams contribute more for the grass pitch. As it stands now the Metros and The NJSEA fork over most of the bill.
Problem is not what they presently use ( tray system) but how it's been used , or abused and not maintained. Not sure what the problem was, why didn't they change the trays when needed, why did they allow the field to get crap and damaged. Seems like they don't have enough replacements , seems like it's time consuming or maybe to costly to change, take your pick. Anything else beside natural grass is fake and will always be. I am certainly not willing to watch an entire season of soccer being played on plastic.
Remember that it's not just pick up tray, put in new tray...it's not that simple. First they weight a lot, second theyt have to make sure all the stuff below(Drainage, heating, etc.)is hooked up and working. It's a real time consuming deal
In theory the trays shouldn't even be necessary. If the NJSEA and the three teams simply put the money into hiring a competent and professional grounds crew, the grass can be kept in decent condition, even with two NFL teams.
I'm gonna have to agree with the Rex Plex turf theory, although i suffer cramps after playing, at least it's not during the game
It sounds like turf is a definite for next year: http://www.nj.com/sports/ledger/index.ssf?/base/sports-0/1035898114184380.xml
Oh boo-frickin-hoo. I love to hear the Jets place kicker blaming his missed field goals on the turf. Can anyone tell me that kicking a ball held still by someone is more dependent on the quality of the grass than kicking a rolling bouncing ball into a guarded goal mouth? Anyway, the story I heard is that one of the reasons the turf system didn't work as well as expected is that they didn't put the money they needed to into the underlying surface... drainage, heat, water. Given the choices, sounds like a field turf is better than the current surface given the traffic. And with any luck, we'll only have to put up with it for a few more years. I'll let you know in 60 to 90 days.