There is much spoken in hindsight of expensive errors and the manner in which they could have been avoided. They say 'Hindsight has 20/20 vision' and yet when opportunities show themselves to make major improvements to facilities, clubs still make costly miscalculations by taking the DIY approach to these projects. It is with specific expenditure in mind we refer to - the construction of Synthetic All Weather pitches.

There is an incredible and increasing interest in Synthetic surfaces among GAA clubs and counties and yet there is still in real terms very little known about them. Very few engage the services of a professional, someone who has the experience and knowledge in such matters to design their facility and oversee its construction, making sure that it is built to specification, on time and within budget.

There are several contractors who will offer their services and will indeed engage with the client on a one to one basis, this is not an altogether bad thing, as it keeps costs down, however who keeps an eye on the job to make sure it is in fact what it is supposed to be?

With sums well in excess of six figures being the common starting point, surely a small percentage would be considered a sound investment to guarantee the project is an overwhelming success. There are a number of reputable consultants available who have considerable experience in this field and have overseen several such projects in fact some concentrate solely on synthetic sports facilities.

Thornton Sports specialise in the construction of All Weather pitches and have built a number of full size synthetic GAA pitches such as Mallow GAA in Co Cork, Meath County Board's Centre of Excellence in Dunganny and at Belfield Campus UCD Dublin. They are currently working on projects for St Saviour's in Waterford, St Vincent's in Cork and Scariff GAA in Clare.

"I feel that as an industry we have grown substantially over the last few years and the advancements in materials and the manner in which they are installed is a continual process of development," explained Paul Copage of Thornton Sports.

"The interest we receive from GAA clubs is remarkable and with the dimensions involved it is easy to calculate the value of the market to us. We have in the past worked with a number of accredited and very professional consultants, who have been employed by the client to oversee the construction on their project; we are very comfortable with this type of arrangement and would encourage any club considering an all weather project to engage similar professional services."

What are the benefits to the client? Peace of mind springs to mind straight away, the satisfaction of knowing that a specialist in this area will be safe guarding your project. A professional who will prepare a contract and a schedule of works that will have testing regimes in place to ensure that the facility once completed is built fit for purpose.

Agronomist Mr James Healy from Ennis Co Clare has seen firsthand the changes over the years, James has personally advised and supervised the development of natural sports pitches for years and has been directly involved in the introduction of variations to natural turf and sand based All weather pitches. He too is mindful of the developments in the Synthetic grass industry.
"I am dealing with numerous clubs, all with synthetics in mind, there is definitely a place in the games for such facilities, synthetics offer so many options, some clubs are interested in using these surfaces in conjunction with their skills wall, others to replace goalmouths," explained James. "I have worked on full size pitches and smaller training pitches, It has been a great learning experience for me, a club who potentially will only ever build one pitch, really cannot be expected to have the knowledge to take on such a project without some assistance."

Frank Murray of Horgan Lynch said: "I work in a main stream Engineers office, in the early days we were heavily reliant on sports contractors to advise and educate, however such is the demand for top quality facilities in the country that Horgan Lynch have established our own research and development team who are continually seeking out the latest developments and systems in use in the construction of synthetic pitches, it is only with this data bank and knowledge base that we can best advise our clients."
STRI, the firm associated with the Croke park pitch improvements are also involved in synthetic consultancy. Kilkenny native Richard Hayden heads up the firms sports surface consultancies in Ireland and said: "The development of synthetics surfaces requires the disciplines of engineering and science. It is important that surfaces conform to recognised, proven performance criteria to ensure deliverables. A good contract is essential."

All around the country there are shining examples of fantastic facilities which have been fully supervised by sports surface consultants another company establishing themselves in the GAA market are Sports Labs, the company is a testing house and are licensed to test and certify sporting facilities ensuring they fully comply with their respective codes. Based in Edinburgh with a permanent Office in Dublin, Managing Director of Sports

Labs Mr Eric O Donnell explains why he feels it is so important for clubs to take on someone with his experience.

"It is truly amazing the genuine level of interest in the development of club grounds and facilities here in Ireland, all clients that I talk to have at least one thing in common, they want the best, they also want to be sure they get it," explained Eric. "Sports Labs offer a full design package, guiding the client through the design, planning process, specifications, contracts and overseeing and signing off on works periodically at land mark stages. We feel it is the knowledge that there is a link from plan and design to project completion that attracts client interest in SportsLabs"


Contact details:


Horgan/ Lynch - Mr Frank Murray - Dublin. 01 6770366

Mr Ger Neff - Neff Design Cork- 021 4241098 / 086 8116443

Mr James Healy - Healy and Co. Ennis Co Clare. 065 6820119

Sports Labs - Mr Eric O Donnell- www.sportslabs.com

STRI - Mr Richard Hayden - Ireland 01 4973560 - www.stri.co.uk

All the above have had several years of experience in the construction of sports facilities, their work is a testimony to their success and their contribution ensures that a very high standard of Sports construction is maintained.

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