Within two weeks, the new artificial playing surface at the Marvin Lee Stadium, Centre of Excellence is expected to be ready for its first bit of action.
This was the word coming from project manager Gerard “Tex” Teixeira on the weekend as he and other workmen on site continued their duties while also admiring the look of the FIFA two-star artificial football pitch which can be described as high definition.
Teixeira explained that only the laying of the artificial grass on the ends of the field and the installation of the goalposts are needed for the completion.
“We have been having delays with getting in final set of material. The goal posts are still to be installed and of course we also started laying down the artificial grass from the centre so that we can leave room for the goal posts, most of the field is completed and we are hoping to have everything completed within the next couple of weeks,” Teixeira told TTFF Media.
“The weather conditions have been favourable to us because the sand cannot be applied when it’s wet and we hope we get more good weather over the next few days.
“What has happened over the past couple weeks is the grass has been put on, the surface has been sanded and rubberized. The lining of the field has been done and what we have to do now is complete the ends and put up the goals and then you can play all the football you want,” he added.
Teixeira accompanied a work staff comprising of workers from Domo, a European-based sports and leisure grass company as well as Terra Forma, the locally-based contracting company involved in the project which is an idea put forward by CONCACAF and CFU President Jack Warner who felt it would be a boost to the staging of games in the region.
The newest generation of artificial surfaces like the one at the Marvin Lee venue, combines the advantages of similar playing characteristics as natural turf, including increased player comfort and safety, with low maintenance and extended usage. The FIFA Quality Concept will identify those products of the newest generation specifically suited to football.
According to Domo’s Arnoud Fiolet: “There is a very limited number of pitches in the world that are FIFA two-star and Trinidad is the first country in the CONCACAF to receive this.”
The Belgium company Domo rated worldwide to be among the top three companies for artificial grass had been hired by FIFA to construct the pitch and have done similar jobs in Europe. The current one as a massive project as it will be the first of its kind in the Caribbean and parts of CONCACAF at a cost in excess of USD600,000.