13th December 2000  

Remedial pitch work begins

ATHLETIC are to splash out another £24,000 on their problem pitch in a bid to stage their FA Cup second-round replay with Peterborough on Tuesday. Work started today following a meeting of senior club officials and the pitch experts who carried out renovation work last summer. The contractors have promised that the pitch will be ready for Tuesday’s big tie which, hopefully, will provide Athletic with a dream third-round tie at Chelsea and a cash windfall of £200,000. The restoration work will include the laying of 280 square metres of fibre-reinforced turf on troublesome parts of the pitch where the drainage will be improved by the use of gravel slits. Top-level talks yesterday were attended by the contractors, John Mallinson of Ormskirk, and turf consultants, Professional Sportsturf Design of Preston. All parties expressed their disappointment in the deterioration of the surface. 

But Athletic chief executive Alan Hardy put things in perspective when he said: “No one could have envisaged the level of rainfall we have had in the past few weeks. The pitch would have performed much better if we had not experienced record rainfall. “The work we did in the summer would have done the job in the short term, but the amount of rain has caused major problems which are also being experienced at other grounds throughout the country.” In a statement, Athletic said Oldham RL Club chairman, Christopher Hamilton, was a party to the talks and was fully supportive of the action being taken. With Athletic at Bury on Saturday and Oldham RL Club at Workington on Sunday, the contractors will work all weekend in the race to finish the job. “Like every other club in the land, our prospects for next week will depend on the weather, but the work will be finished and we will have done all we possibly can,” added Mr Hardy. 

He said the problem area was just outside the centre circle on the Lookers Stand side of the ground. Water had been running into a “depressed” part of the pitch where it had become trapped, thus causing waterlogging. The job involved raising the “dip”, returfing it and aiding drainage by the use of new gravel slits, running for a total of 25 metres through and beyond the problem patch. 

LEE DUXBURY could lead out Athletic at local rivals Bury on Saturday. The influential midfield player is making better than expected progress from a hamstring injury, and could be in line for a quick return. Duxbury lasted only 22 minutes of the 3-2 win against Oxford United on December 2. Athletic boss Andy Ritchie was expecting to lose Duxbury’s services for around three weeks, but is now keeping his fingers crossed for Saturday. Duxbury (31) was an ever-present this season until missing last Sunday’s second-round FA Cup clash at Peterborough United. Said Ritchie: “Lee has stepped up his training and might have a chance of making the Bury game. He’s responded very well to treatment. It may not have been a strain, it was probably cramp or a spasm. “It would be a big boost to have Lee back in the reckoning for the start of a busy spell of games.” 

Athletic’s hopes of giving John Sheridan a reserve-team run-out at Port Vale tonight have been dashed by the weather. The game has been postponed after an inspection found the Vale Park pitch in a waterlogged state after last night’s heavy rain. Said Ritchie: “It’s a nightmare. Some players need a game, but the weather keeps intervening. We haven’t been able to get on an outside training pitch for the past two days. We’ve used the indoor JJB Soccer Dome, which is an excellent facility. “We’ve even tried to arrange practice games, but there is nowhere fit to stage them.” 

Sheridan has recovered from surgery to his knee and was a late substitute in Sunday’s FA Cup tie at Peterborough, his first senior appearance since the opening day of the season. Sheridan is one of the players to suffer as a result of the spate of postponements which has seen the reserves play only two matches in the last seven weeks. The 36-year-old is badly in need of matches after such a lengthy lay-off as he strives to regain match sharpness. Ritchie is anxious that his fringe players - Sheridan will no doubt soon be challenging for a starting spot - are in prime condition for the hectiic period coming up. 

Andy Holt, Mark Hotte, Phil Salt, Ryan Sudgen and Matthew Tipton were all expected to feature at Vale Park. They could all be needed with Athletic having six first-team games in a 17-day spell starting on Saturday. The Athletic manager goes into the holiday programme without Neil Adams, Paul Jones and Barry Prenderville, who are ruled out through injury. Athletic remind fans that tomorrow’s reserve-team match against Manchester City in the Manchester Senior Cup has been called off because repair work is being carried out to the Boundary Park pitch. 

Teamtalk Oldham

The Latics are spending £24,000 on repair works to their problem Boundary Park pitch. Work got under way on Wednesday and the contractors have promised the playing surface will be ready in time for next Tuesday night's second round FA Cup replay against Peterborough. The restoration works include gravel slits and slab turfing in the troublesome areas. Around 280 square metres of fibre reinforced turf is being used. Senior club officials met on Monday with the experts who carried out renovation work during the summer. The high-profile meeting was attended by consultants, Professional Sportsturf Design of Preston, and contractors John Mallinson of Ormskirk. All parties expressed disappointment in the deterioration of the playing surface and Latics Chief Executive Alan Hardy said: "Naturally we are extremely disappointed at the way the pitch has deteriorated. But the fact is that no one could have envisaged the level of rainfall we have experienced. "There is no doubt that the pitch would have performed much better but for the record rainfall. "The work we undertook in the summer would have done the job in the short term. But the sheer amount of rainfall has caused major problems which are also being experienced at other grounds throughout the country."
Oldham rugby league club, who are ground-sharing Boundary Park - their first game was postponed on Sunday because of a waterlogged pitch - were party to the talks. And chairman Chris Hamilton said he fully supported the action being taken.

John Sheridan's progression along the comeback trail has been hit by the news that tonight's reserve clash at Port Vale has been postponed. No date has yet been re-arranged for the fixture but it won't be until the New Year. The postponement was a big blow to veteran midfielder Sheridan. The 36-year-old is desperate for games as he battles his way to full fitness after being out four months following surgery on an old knee injury. It has been the same story over the last few weeks for Sheridan and he has so far managed only three comeback appearances with the second string. He played the last 15 minutes in Saturday's FA Cup tie at Peterborough after coming on as a sub, but boss Andy Ritchie said: "He still needs a couple more games in the reserves, but I am sure he will soon be back in contention."

Teamtalk Bury

Bury could be without the services of Adrian Littlejohn and Danny Swailes for this Saturday's big derby clash against Oldham. Top scorer Littlejohn is struggling to recover from the effects of a flu virus while Swailes, one of the few success stories so far this season, has not trained all week with a knee injury. Bury are already without Steve Halford and long-term victim Matt Barrass who faces three months on the sidelines after knee surgery. And the latest setbacks could mean one of the youngsters who ended a 10-game winless streak in the LDV Vans Trophy against Mansfield on Saturday will keep their place. Preece admitted: "It gives us one or two problems and I'll have a look at things before the Oldham match. "Maybe we'll have to change things round a bit. But the players that came in against Mansfield did well and they have given themselves a good chance of staying in the team." 

Bury Times

BURY have been rocked by two injury blows ahead of Saturday's crucial local derby against Oldham Athletic. Top scorer Adrian Littlejohn is battling to overcome a flu virus while young defender Danny Swailes - in terrific form in recent weeks - can't train because of a knee injury. It is a blow for Preece who is already without Steve Halford (ankle) and long-term casualty Matt Barrass, who has now had surgery on his leg problems and will be out for a further three months. "It gives us one or two problems and I'll have a look at things before the Oldham match," said Preece. "Maybe we'll have to change things round a bit. But the players that came in against Mansfield did well and they have given themselves a good chance of staying in the team."

Preece was watching his reserve team play Scarborough at Gigg Lane today. He has picked 11 different players to the ones who beat Mansfield on Saturday and he insists there is still time for players to force their way into the first team. "I will be looking at a new system and at different players because there are still places up for grabs," he added. "There are still things I'm not 100 per cent happy about and the chance is there for players to force their way in and to make it difficult for me to leave them out."

Preece faces a real selection dilemma ahead of the Oldham clash. He has to decide whether to stick with the kids like Jason Jarrett and Chris Armstrong, who did so well against Mansfield and ended the club's sequence of 10 games without a win, or bring back the established old guard like Darren Bullock and Chris Billy.