Jealousy ( our pitch)

[TG]

I was so incensed and frustrated by the article written in this weeks NLP by a Dartford club official i took time out to compose a response.
I might need a bodyguard any volunteers?

a copy of my email:-
Sent: 03 February 2014 11:24
To: '[e-mail]'
Subject: What an Own Goal

RE: Water perfect reason to stick with grass Sunday 2nd February 2014

I read with interest, the letter submitted by Mike Brett-Smith (Honorary Life President Dartford FC), and I was somewhat amazed that a person in office at a Conference football club would communicate in this manner his ill informed and grossly and factually incorrect opinion relating to what a 3G pitch could withstand.
Quote:
Grass can withstand everything that’s thrown at it (including and in his words an officially designated tornado) but a 3G surface couldn’t.
Unquote:
Do we need people like him in our game!!!!

Sorry, forgot to mention the last entry on the Dartford FC web site, states our match against Luton is postponed because of ......wait for it a waterlogged pitch.
Best Regards

Terence Graham
3G expert (living in Maidstone)

[ontheup]

One of the things that frustrates me is immediate blame individuals seem to place on 3G, if a player gets injured it's because of the pitch, if it's 0-0 (or 7-2) the pitch makes it sterile.

As if players never get injured on grass and every game on grass is full of incident and talking points.

So whilst Mr Brett-Smith is right in suggesting it was a great game played in terrible weather and points a figure downwards towards the pro 3G brigade he is forgetting a number of things:

On that very same day, not so far from where he was sitting, another game was going on at the Gallagher Stadium, a very sterile, flat 9 goal game in front of just 70 less fans.

Mr Brett-Smith, you've had a 3-3 draw, we've had a 4-4 draw, but 3G's not about choosing one match and deciding grass is much better, it's a much bigger picture than that.

[lowfatcustard]

It was such a strange (and poorly worded) letter in NLP; when I first saw it I thought it would be some sort of ironic joke as I'd seen plenty of pictures of the farmyard that Princes Park pitch has become over the last few days. How on earth he thinks he'll be taken seriously with that much mud on his pitch is crazy. I just don't understand why he would even write in to the paper.

It's clearly been a very difficult time for groundsmen up and down the country to keep their playing surfaces decent, but just because some clubs have the resources to do that should not stop others choosing 3G. Well done to Kingstonian (or should that by AFCW) for getting the pitch inspection passed on Saturday, but even that was cutting up badly in the second half and turning the game into more of a lottery (perhaps this played into our hands......).

[ontheup]

Well said LFC,

Am I reading this right? Dartford had less people turn up for a Conference Premier match against Barnet than we had for a Ryman League Cup match against Herne Bay?

[exiled]

Mores the point their game against Luton is the only game they got over 2000 and very much doubt this bloke as seen a game played on a 3g surface

[pmh]

Problem for them is its not just our pitch. They blame the pitch because its easy to do so.

They are Jealous of many things.

Dartford with pure irony get the biggest game of the season postponed, due to a swamp of a pitch.

A couple of days before they sign a forward from the Mangels who cant even make the team.

They would love the income and fan base that we have.

Dartford are Tonbridge with a nice ground.

I'm getting to like the green eyed comments ,from these little clubs .

it assures me that the Sleeping Giant is now wide-awake & MUFC ARE BACK.

TG with regards to you composing a reply to Mr Brett- Smith ,it would appear he hacks a report for some Local free paper.

www.thisislocallondon.co.uk/sport/football/footballnews/10838776.print/ 

[TG]

Pmh

its not worthy of a response and this maybe a bit strong but remember the old saying " never argue with an idiot because if anybody is watching they won't know who is who" 

[signalstone]

I think a lot of the negative comments I have heard or read over the last couple of weeks is either pure ignorance about 3g, or some long held dislike towards the Stones. All I would say to these negative, ignorant so called football fans is go and see a game on this surface and do a bit of research before you make yourself look a total buffoon like our friend at Dartford.

[stainese]

I do wonder is a lot of the anti 3G feeling really anti Maidstone feeling. They do not like the idea of a strong Maidstone United once more becoming a major force in Kent / Non league football

[nws]

If you get the arguments about sterile football and unfair advantage then point them towards the first ever league game. 4-5 to the away team

[moley]

I too e-mailed the nlp on sunday, I must admit to liking Mr Graham's letteras well, lets hope they publish both

Dear NLP

I would like to seriously question the motivation behind Mike Brett-
Smith’s letter in last week’s NLP. The anti-3G argument he made was not
just wide of the mark, it was completely wrong. There was actually a
match on 3G not so far from Dartford that day (Harlow in fact), where
the players were taken from the field to allow a lightning storm to
pass, but returned to complete the game once it had done so. Not only
that, Harlow played at home on a perfect surface (I was there) in heavy
rain the following Tuesday but the Darts game that evening, like most
others, was postponed. Or just ask my fellow Maidstone United
supporters about 3G pitches and torrential rain, or on second thoughts
for a neutral view ask the supporters of Lewes and Hendon who saw their
teams get draws on a great surface this season when most other games
were washed out (check out the footage on You Tube if you don’t believe
me).

Or maybe Mr Brett-Smith of Dartford is still bitter at events 22
years ago and is anti-Maidstone rather than anti-3G, because, like all
of the so-called arguments against 3G made in the past weeks, his is
based on ignorance not fact.

Darren Styles, Maidstone

Thing is, at no time are we either
a) Forcing other teams to install 3G, cost is actually such a disadvantage I predict only about a 1/3rd of Conf South/North teams will have one once they are allowed
b) Saying that 3G is better than a perfect grass pitch, it's just that such things are rare below Championship level