Greendown Community School takes up the Challenge

Greendown Community School celebrated their new TigerTurf Challenger Pitch with a special opening. The autumnal weather held out for a cut of the ribbon by Swindon Town Football players and Anne Snelgrove the local MP added her approval to the new pitch,
‘I am absolutely delighted for the school that this great pitch has finally come to fruition. It will be incredibly well used by the pupils and the local community. The difference between the old and new pitch is incredible.’

TigerTurf and Premier Partner White Horse Contractors were delighted to be involved in the opening of the latest Challenger Pitch.

Clive Zimmerman, Headmaster said
‘We’ve gone from a facility that was about to close to a state of the art pitch. We are a community focussed school and we now have facilities that the community can be proud of.’

TigerTurf Challenger is a texturised monofilament carpet, suitable for both football and hockey, making it an ideal solution for schools and clubs that demand a surface with more then one use. The surface is infilled with sand and recycled rubber granules, giving the finished pitch the perfect blend of true ball roll and bounce characteristics required for both football and hockey. The welfare of the players is also catered for by the Challenger surface, which absorbs impact from falls as a result of tackles, and thus reduces injuries.

Marcus Walker-Loveridge, Chair of Governors and the instigator of the new pitch said,
‘The pitch was well over due for replacement, the new TigerTurf surface has been funded by Swindon Borough Council. We have already had loads of interest from the community and both pupils and staff are delighted with the pitch. It is a fantastic asset for the school and the community. Throughout the period of construction, from conception through to completion, White Horse Contractors has provided us with a fantastic 100% service that I cannot fault in any way. During the time your company were on site here, each and every member of your staff acted in a very professional and friendly manner, to the extent that school staff actually came up to me asking when work on the pitch was to commence, as they could not hear any noise or were not being disturbed at all.’

Chris Dobbs, Director of Sport at Greendown Community School said,
‘The challenger surface is superb for enhancing both hockey and football skills. Curriculum hockey can now be taught on a safe, consistent surface, much safer than playing on concrete or boggy grass. The speed of ball roll allows hockey skills to be learnt and improved upon. For football it offers consistent bounce and the pupils absolutely thrive on being out here and playing and learning on the surface.’

The Challenger pitch is part of the development plan for sport at the school. The plan includes a fitness and dance studio and new 5 a side football pitches. The school will provide top class sports facilities for their pupils and the community. Swindon Town Football Academy will use the pitch next year for their training.

White Horse Contractors and TigerTurf have sponsored the school’s football teams and a raffle was held on the day for tickets to Wembley Stadium to see England play.