3G Football Pitch News

Derry City use St. Columb’s College’s new 3G pitch

DERRY City have opted to take full advantage of the recent opening of St. Columb’s College’s new 3G pitch, the club having trained on the new facility this week. ARTHUR DUFFY reports Given that tonight’s opponents at Oriel Park (7.45 p.m.) play on a similar surface, Brandywell boss, Declan Devine has left nothing to chance. Interestingly, Devine is looking forward to watching his players perform on the astro-turf pitch, suggesting that the surfaces he has encountered at UCD and Bohemians, in particular, this season have been far from perfect. “I’ve no problems whatsoever travelling to play on the artificial surface at Dundalk,” claimed the Derry boss at yesterday afternoon’s training session at the Buncrana Road venue. “I’m actually looking forward to it and while it may be considered an unnatural surface, I believe it will lend itself to a very attack-minded game and that suits technically-gifted players. “Yes, it can take a bobble or an awkward bounce but given the quality of the pitches we have played on at UCD and Dalymount, I don’t mind us playing on an artificial surface this weekend. “In fact, I’m very pleased to be going to Dundalk at this time of the year as the vast majority of pitches up and down the country are in very poor condition at the moment,” he added. “It’s great to see that St. Columb’s College have invested in their facilities and while similar pitches in the Derry area - at Magee, Creggan and at Leafair - are all different, St. Columb’s is a split new facility with a magnificent surface and it’s great for Derry City to be able to train on it and prepare for the Dundalk match. “I think it’s a fabulous facility for the school to have at its disposal and I’ve no doubt that members of the general public will also be in a position to use it in the future.”