v Portsmouth (h) - 15/1/2025 - 19:45

[Forever Blue]

1 hour ago, Upside Down said:

Head pressure.

That certainly makes me burst my banks. 

[arbitro]

13 hours ago, only2garners said:

Whilst I can imagine that delaying a kick-off could be a viable option for many games and different conditions I can’t see that it would have worked today. To get to Ewood for 3pm today a Portsmouth fan would have needed to catch a train at 6.45am and would not be home until after midnight with a normal finish. I imagine by road it would be much the same.
 

So even with a breakfast inspection 2,000 fans would also be well on their way and it would have been tough to make a clear decision then anyway. Delaying the kick-off would mean that anyone on the train would not be able to get home tonight.

Clearly distance would be one of the overriding factors in such a decision. My comment was more of a general one that it doesn't seem to be a consideration in England as opposed to Scotland.

[Norbert Rassragr]

I watched Coventry vs. Northampton in the standing area yesterday. The weather was horrendous, and we were supposed to have the best of it in the Midlands. 

[rigger]

11 hours ago, tomphil said:

It's getting noticed now quite a few fans of other clubs moaning that 'it's a regular thing with Blackburn this it needs looking into'

We'll probably end up coping a fine before long.

Where Coventry fined when they couldn't play home games, because they had played rugby fixtures on their ground ?

[rigger]

10 hours ago, den said:

I’m not a civil engineer but if the drains were feeding into a fast flowing river in the same direction as the current, the drains wouldn’t back up. The drainage has been great for over 30 years now.

Venturi Effect. It would make it more efficient.

Edited November 24 by rigger

[den]

6 hours ago, rigger said:

Venturi Effect. It would make it more efficient.

Water analogy. Ohms law.

[DaveyB]

Should have had a cover on that pitch!!

[Tugayisgod]

Timeline on the pitch situation from Trevor Wilkins. The last comment from him is pretty telling .....

 

Rovers’ head groundsman Trevor Wilkin has provided a timeline of events and the reasons leading to Saturday’s fixture postponement against Portsmouth.

The game was called off at 11am by referee Farai Hallam, who deemed the Ewood Park surface unplayable following torrential overnight rain caused by Storm Bert, with further wet weather forecast right through until kick-off.

Trevor, who has worked for the club for over 40 years, said: “The week leading up to the fixture had given us a mixture of rain, heavy snow and sub-zero temperatures, all of which were dealt with effectively.

“The forecast was for a storm to arrive Saturday morning, with strong winds and heavy rain clearing as the day progressed. In readiness for the storm, the pitch was cut on Thursday, then we spent all day Friday punching holes into the surface at a depth of five inches, giving the pitch a fighting chance of draining.

“Today’s pitches are designed to accommodate vast amounts of rainfall, but unfortunately ours cannot cope with the rainfall that fell on Saturday, which was in the region of 35ml.

“Another major factor, which has historically troubled the drainage of the pitch during heavy rainfall, is the outlet for the pitch drainage that runs directly into the River Darwen, which is clear for all to see by the side of the footbridge at the Blackburn End.

“On Saturday, the river rose to just below the level of the footbridge, leaving the outlet for the pitch totally submerged in water, thus not allowing any pitch water to escape. The club will address this issue shortly with the Environment Agency to discuss a plan of how to address this issue once and for all.

“Following discussions with Steve Waggott on the morning of the game, we met with both managers and the referee on the pitch at around 10:50am. Given the forecast and the fact that you could see all the holes full of water, it was unlikely to improve and the game was called off by the referee.

“I stayed at the stadium until after 3pm to see what the pitch would have been like at kick-off and it was indeed waterlogged. I checked the river and the level was nearly above the footpath.

“Another issue we face is we are restricted to the depth that we can aerate the pitch in fear of puncturing the undersoil heating pipes. We will use a machine leading up to this weekend’s fixture against Leeds United that injects compressed air below the surface to alleviate any deeper compaction.

“Days like Saturday are few and far between, but when they arrive we are at the mercy of the weather. In my 43 years at the club, this is still the best surface that I have worked on.

“I am confident going forward that if we can address the River Darwen issue, in conjunction with the AIR2 machine, we will find ourselves in a much better position until a reconstruction of the entire pitch can be signed off, which of course would require significant investment.”

Edited November 26 by Tugayisgod

[Upside Down]

1 hour ago, Tugayisgod said:

Timeline on the pitch situation from Trevor Wilkins. The last comment from him is pretty telling .....

 

Rovers’ head groundsman Trevor Wilkin has provided a timeline of events and the reasons leading to Saturday’s fixture postponement against Portsmouth.

The game was called off at 11am by referee Farai Hallam, who deemed the Ewood Park surface unplayable following torrential overnight rain caused by Storm Bert, with further wet weather forecast right through until kick-off.

Trevor, who has worked for the club for over 40 years, said: “The week leading up to the fixture had given us a mixture of rain, heavy snow and sub-zero temperatures, all of which were dealt with effectively.

“The forecast was for a storm to arrive Saturday morning, with strong winds and heavy rain clearing as the day progressed. In readiness for the storm, the pitch was cut on Thursday, then we spent all day Friday punching holes into the surface at a depth of five inches, giving the pitch a fighting chance of draining.

“Today’s pitches are designed to accommodate vast amounts of rainfall, but unfortunately ours cannot cope with the rainfall that fell on Saturday, which was in the region of 35ml.

“Another major factor, which has historically troubled the drainage of the pitch during heavy rainfall, is the outlet for the pitch drainage that runs directly into the River Darwen, which is clear for all to see by the side of the footbridge at the Blackburn End.

“On Saturday, the river rose to just below the level of the footbridge, leaving the outlet for the pitch totally submerged in water, thus not allowing any pitch water to escape. The club will address this issue shortly with the Environment Agency to discuss a plan of how to address this issue once and for all.

“Following discussions with Steve Waggott on the morning of the game, we met with both managers and the referee on the pitch at around 10:50am. Given the forecast and the fact that you could see all the holes full of water, it was unlikely to improve and the game was called off by the referee.

“I stayed at the stadium until after 3pm to see what the pitch would have been like at kick-off and it was indeed waterlogged. I checked the river and the level was nearly above the footpath.

“Another issue we face is we are restricted to the depth that we can aerate the pitch in fear of puncturing the undersoil heating pipes. We will use a machine leading up to this weekend’s fixture against Leeds United that injects compressed air below the surface to alleviate any deeper compaction.

“Days like Saturday are few and far between, but when they arrive we are at the mercy of the weather. In my 43 years at the club, this is still the best surface that I have worked on.

“I am confident going forward that if we can address the River Darwen issue, in conjunction with the AIR2 machine, we will find ourselves in a much better position until a reconstruction of the entire pitch can be signed off, which of course would require significant investment.”

I swear down that I didn't write this and that I am not Trevor Wilkin.

[rigger]

Still no date for the Pompey game?

[JHRover]

'Until an entire reconstruction of the pitch can be signed off, which of course would require significant investment'

Good job we've billionaires owning us who never refuse to sign a cheque and facilities investment isn't restricted by FFP rules then.

 

[Ghost7]

Ultimately what you can choose to take away from this is that a lack of investment is the reason we were the only top flight game cancelled on Saturday.

Has anyone seen Venky's??? Are you out there? 😱🥸🧐

[Ghost7]

But but... there's a court case. OK what about the other 12 years? 🤣

[MarkBRFC]

1 hour ago, rigger said:

Still no date for the Pompey game?

I imagine it will go in the week commencing 16/12, failing that there's a few midweeks free in Jan.

[tomphil]

1 hour ago, JHRover said:

'Until an entire reconstruction of the pitch can be signed off, which of course would require significant investment'

Good job we've billionaires owning us who never refuse to sign a cheque and facilities investment isn't restricted by FFP rules then.

 

Yes not like it's probably THE most important aspect of a football club or anything.

Like trying to run a car on bald tyres then when it keeps skidding just replacing them every few months with cheap remoulds.

Sticking plaster Venkys should be their new nickname, never mind the next big transfer will cover it, er oh sorry forgot that'll be paying a few months running costs instead !

[roversfan99]

So there we are, black and white, it could have been avoided had the owners not decided against the necessary works on the pitch.

[Mattyblue]

So when I was being patronised by a few on here on Saturday for even merely suggesting that us being the only game in the top 3 divisions to be postponed may have just a little to do with having our drainage facilities being long overdue for replacing has now been corroborated by the head groundsman…

[K-Hod]

Let's be honest, they don't wanna spend the money....

There was me thinking they never refuse to sign a cheque. 😅.

[Forever Blue]

I think they meant Czech

[DeeCee]

Trevs a good lad and you can almost see his frustration in the end comment.

[SIMON GARNERS 194]

They are just waiting till the Riverside Stand collapses into the River...save money on demolition and removal.

Edited November 26 by SIMON GARNERS 194

[Herbie6590]

https://x.com/rovers/status/1862436343017873664?s=61&t=YzghmFC1hBTxrcVJBu1kGQ