9th Oct 2020
Just 9 weeks after the groundbreaking ceremony at Westleigh Park, S&C Slatter were thrilled to officially hand over the new, state-of-the-art, 3G Stadia Pitch at Havant and Waterlooville FC, following a ribbon cutting ceremony with Chairman Derek Pope, MP Alan Mak and Mayor of Havant, Prad Bains.
The cutting-edge pitch marks the second installation S&C Slatter have delivered for Hawks’ Manager Paul Doswell, following our successful collaboration at Sutton United in 2015.
S&C Slatter were delighted to work once again with Paul Doswell on this project, a name known to many as the longest serving manager in English football’s top five divisions. Doswell knows all too well the benefits an S&C Slatter 3G Stadia Pitch can bring. Following our 3G Stadia Conversion at Gander Green Lane in 2015, Doswell took Sutton United through promotion to the National League – and a memorable 5th round FA Cup match against Arsenal – in the two seasons that followed.
It’s no surprise that when taking up the reigns at Havant & Waterlooville, Doswell entrusted S&C Slatter to deliver the very latest 3G Pitch technology for his new ground. Speaking to Portsmouth News ahead of construction, Paul commented:
“We have gone for the best one we could have had. We’re using the same company that we used at Sutton, S&C Slatter in Newbury. They are the best quality firm around.” – Paul Doswell, Manager, Havant & Waterlooville FC
A small, socially distanced celebration took place at the newly named Draper Tools Community Stadium on Friday 9th October 2020, with Club Chairman Derek Pope joined by The Mayor of Havant Prad Bains, local MP Alan Mak and representatives from S&C Slatter and Havant & Waterlooville FC.
Bains did the honours during the ribbon-cutting, opening the new elite-level surface with a speech that commented on the benefits of the new pitch for both Havant & Waterlooville FC and the local community.
“Not only does it provide a really great surface for the first team to play on, it engages people across the community. It looks really, really incredible, I’m looking forward to seeing the team play here!” – Prad Bains, The Mayor of Havant
Bains’ sentiment is echoed by many at the club, for whom engaging with the community has been an important factor in the Stadia Conversion. Ready to support the Hawks in their ambitions to progress as high as they can through the leagues, the new pitch is also set to be a focal point for the local community.
Alongside Havant & Waterlooville FC, Portsmouth Ladies FC will also call the stadium home, with youth football, disabled football and walking football now also taking place at the 3G ground, which is already booked out for an estimated 40 hours per week!
Our expert construction team have addressed the significant slope of the original grass pitch, its unpredictable nature causing significant issues last season. The new 3G pitch has been constructed to FIFA Quality Pro standards, with the very latest artificial turf carefully chosen to suit the Hawk’s league ambitions, produced by our exclusive turf partners FieldTurf, FIFA Preferred Producers.
“FieldTurf are delighted to be working with Havant & Waterlooville and S&C Slatter on this prestigious project. Replacing the grass pitch is a high performing FieldTurf Vertex CORE twin fibre surface engineered to provide a soft & resilient surface”. – Paul Fraser, FieldTurf Regional Business Director.
The new pitch marks our 11th 3G Stadia Pitch delivered to elite levels of non-league football, with Havant & Waterlooville becoming the 5th side in the Vanarama Conference South constructed by S&C Slatter with a FieldTurf artificial turf surface.
Our reputation precedes us, and Club Chairman Derek Pope, who was also in attendance, told us that Hawks’ manager Paul Doswell was a driving factor in the decision to work with S&C Slatter – but that the result speaks for itself.
“It’s really beautiful, we’re really pleased. He [Doswell] organised the pitch, brought S&C Slatter in to meet with us. I truly believe we’ve got the top grade of synthetic grass. Thank you very much to S&C Slatter, they’ve done a great job” – Derek Pope, HWFC Chairman
We had a wonderful time at the ribbon cutting ceremony and wish The Hawks the very best of luck in their season opener tomorrow, making their debut on the new pitch as they face off against Maidstone United on Saturday 10th October 2020, 3pm.
S&C Slatter are the leading contractor for non-league football 3G Stadia Pitches.
We have delivered more pitches to the highest levels of non-league football than any other.
We’re committed to providing first-class pitches for top performance, maximum use and longevity, with the certifications and success rate to prove it.
With in-house expertise across design, planning, construction and maintenance, get in touch now to discuss your needs. Call 01635 34521 or email info@sandcslatter.com
