Natural turf stadium pitch renovations for Luton Town FC

Key Achievements

• Successful completion of renovations to specification and handover date


• Collaborated with Head Groundsman Richard Bird, to deliver his and the Championship club's preferences on site


• Overcame bad weather by working evenings and weekends to deliver renovations on time

Challenge

With Premier League aspirations Luton Town Football Club has ascended the football league. The Bedfordshire club achieved successive promotions in 2017 and 2018 from the EFL League Two and One, to reach the EFL Championship, where they ply their trade at the time of writing.

The club’s ambition is evident in their investments to provide their players with the best possible playing pitches.

This includes multiple pitch reconstructions at The Hatters training ground, situated 2.5 miles from the Kenilworth Road stadium, successfully delivered by White Horse Contractors in 2018.

As the Luton grounds team considered options for the renovation of the natural turf stadium pitch at Kenilworth Road, they required a reliable partner with the specialist expertise and machinery to deliver against detailed specifications and tight deadlines.

Solution

Thanks to our workmanship and quality of pitch constructions at their training ground in 2018, Luton Town FC selected White Horse Contractors to undertake renovation works on their stadia pitch at Kenilworth Road.

“The Kenny” as it’s affectionately known seats 10,356 spectators and was built in 1905.

Over the course of a five-year relationship, our in-house agronomist Dr James Welsh has continued to work closely with Luton’s Head Groundsman Richard Bird. Ensuring that our works meet the football clubs requirements and performance standards.

As a result of this relationship, built on trust, we agreed with Luton’s request to seed before sand spreading. The club’s preference was to have the seed completely covered with a layer of sand so that the seed would not be disrupted during the growing in period.

During the renovation works, the pitch was subject to significant rainfall and the lack of wind within the stadium limited any drying out periods. Flexible and adaptable our team looked to the weather forecast, not the timesheet, to plan the renovations. Evenings and weekends offered the best conditions and the team worked during these periods to guarantee the successful delivery of two passes of koroing, seeding and sand spreading at the stadium.

Results

Overcoming difficult weather conditions, White Horse Contractors successfully delivered a comprehensive natural turf stadium pitch renovation for SkyBet Championship club Luton Town FC.

Working closely with the grounds team we utilised our expertise and experience to meet the club’s detailed requirements, to ensure this elite level club has a high-quality surface for their first team at Kenilworth Road.

We would like to thank the club for their hospitality throughout the renovations process.

Find out more about our natural turf sports pitch renovations services.