Bath grounds staff visit the Home of Cricket
7 August 2021
All the staff at Bath Cricket Club commit to personal development plans and Objectives with the intention of driving the club forward. The management team at the club are always looking at how they can improve the experience and product which we deliver to our members and to the people of Bath; none less so than our Groundstaff. This week our assisstant groundsmen, Darren Ball and Alex Woodward, spent the day at Lords with Karl McDermott,the Head Groundsman, at the home of cricket. Credit must go to Darren and Alex for reaching out to Karl and organising this learning experience and huge thanks to Karl for being so generous with his time. Below is an insight from Darren into the day they had and what they learned.
'We were very warmly welcomed by Karl who began our visit by showing us around the outfield. Lords Cricket Ground have recently spent over £1,000,000 just on renovations and this included creating a sand based outfield with a 1 metre centre drainage and an automatic water system. The outfield at Lords genuinely looks and feels like a bowling green. It is difficult to explain how impressive it is. Next we were shown the magnificent square and Karl spoke at length about how he prepares the wickets for test matches and for one day games. He also taught us how the slope on the square affects and influences how they water it and the challenges this brings. This is something that we can take away and apply at Bath.
We also learnt a huge amount about the new technology involved in hybrid pitches that Lords also have in their square, and again, something that we can aspire to having at North Parade one day.
Karl then showed us the nursery ground where there are 150 practice wickets for him and his team to manage and prepare. Karl was incredibly generous with his time swapping insights and stories about our working backgrounds and how we found ourselves in the trade we're in. He explained that he lives just outside the ground so that he is available 24/7 should there ever be any emergencies or sudden changes in the weather or climate. We were very fortunate to also see inside the player's changing rooms, the Pavillion, the Long Room and the new media centre; experiences we will never forget.
Alex and I learnt a huge amount and this trip exceeded all our epectations. We're incredibly grateful to Karl who gave us more than double the time he had scheduled. It was a wonderful experience to see how the home of Cricket is in reality and so worthwhile to share useful hints and tips with such a down to earth master of the trade".
