We are delighted to announced that Peter Ford has won our Grounds Team of the Year as part of England Football’s Grassroots Football Awards.

This Award seeks to recognise a grounds team who transform poor pitches to good pitches.

Without the dedicated grounds team at Rotherfield FC, the playing surfaces at the club would not be what they are today.

The small team of volunteers, led by Peter Ford, who co-ordinates the ground maintenance, undertake the vast majority of the ground maintenance, such as line marking, grass cutting, spiking, raking, and brushing as well as applying fertiliser seasonally.

As well as preparing the playing surfaces for match days, they erect Respect barriers, ensure changing areas, toilets and clubhouse are clean and safe to use and ensure regular maintenance of machinery and equipment is carried out.

The ground is not naturally conducive to winter sports being Wealden silt, so Peter, who is also the club chairman, has led applications for grants that have been awarded from the Football Foundation to install primary pipe drainage, to install secondary gravel band drains and to purchase suitable machinery.

Also, most recently, the award of the six-year tapered grass pitch maintenance fund will help to keep the playing surfaces in good condition.

Games are occasionally lost due to the weather but given how poor the natural ground actually is, these are minimal, thanks largely to the work Peter and the team do to keep the soil un-compacted to allow percolation of excess water through regular spiking.

Furthermore, the ground is a parish recreation ground used by many, many others and as is the case with all such spaces there are many incidents of inappropriate use that then require repairs to maintain a playing surface for football.

The club's philosophy is that the most important part of their facilities is the pitch the players play on, and Peter and the other volunteers deliver on this week in, week out.

To find out more about the England Football Grassroots Awards please contact:

Awards
E: Awards@SussexFA.com