Pitch to be Fixed

By Nick Raynor
January 18 2005

Newcastle United have started work on the poor-quality pitch at St. James Park today ahead of the FA Cup clash with Coventry.

Bulldozers were out before the break of dawn and they have until a week on Saturday to re-lay a brand new playing surface.

 

Newcastle refused to comment on how much it would cost but it is believed to be a 6-figure-sum along with the £0.5 million paid earlier on.

 

The pitch does not match the quality of the 52,000 seater stadium and Craig Bellamy had an outburst after he claimed the pitch was not helping matters after he has shots scuffed due to the ball taking an awkward bounce.

 

A Spokesperson said:

 

"The board and the management did not want anyone using the pitch as an excuse and they have acted quickly to sort it out."

 

After Saturday’s match with Southampton, Souness said:

"The problem with the pitch is that it was turfed at the start of the season but it's now coming up in big lumps and it's not good for us.”

"That pitch suited Southampton because they bypassed a lot of it by launching the ball towards Peter Crouch, and it was very effective, so give them credit for that.”

"But it's a nightmare for us as we try to get the ball down and do things quickly by playing one and two-touch football - it's a stinker.”

"I know it's a few quid but I think we're going to have to invest in it. At the end of the game that was the topic of conversation, more than the chances we missed.”

"It's difficult to play on. Maybe we should take a leaf out of Southampton's book and bypass a lot of the pitch by launching it more, because as it played in the second half it was difficult for us to play the game we want to play and the game the supporters want to see, which is slick passing and fast movement.”