'Elton John concert will not damage Vicarage Road pitch'

The whole of the pitch has been covered with a plastic flooring called Supatrac and tractors and cranes have spent considerable time on the surface this week.

However, the groundsman is not planning to start preparing the pitch for next season until after Saturday’s event.

Paddy Flavin, project manager for the concert, explained: “As far as the grounds staff are concerned, they are not worried about the usage of the pitch because their work will start afterwards. To that extent, we are very lucky.”

Supatrac are plastic grids which clip together and have holes in them to allow the grass to ‘breath’. The seats for the pitch area will then be clipped to the temporary flooring.

The Vicarage Road surface suffered after the 2005 concert but this time most of the grass has been cleared off the pitch and the event is taking place three weeks earlier.

Glyn Evans, head of operations at Watford, said: “In 2005 the grass had already been sowed and it did suffer as a consequence. But because the concert is earlier, the intention is to take the grass off the pitch, give it a rake, put everything down and as soon as everything is out, they will start all the work to the pitch.”

Watford have a ‘Desso pitch’, which is where the grass is reinforced with synthetic fibres.

Desso surfaces are supposed to be replaced within ten years but Watford’s financial problems has meant the club cannot afford to relay the surface despite being set to enter a twelfth season.

The Vicarage Road pitch has been criticised by opponents on a number of occasions this season but the Hornets are hoping Saracens will help pay for part of the new surface.

Watford have extended negotiations with them, over a new deal, for another three months after activating the break clause in their agreement on Wednesday which could see Sarries leave next year.

Last week chief executive Julian Winter reiterated the pitch would not be relaid this summer and added that the Elton John concert was also another factor.

Winter said: “The annual work will be done to it as always. If we are playing rugby and football on it then it ideally needs to be replaced but it would have been difficult this year because of the Elton John concert, so even if we did have the resources to start again, we probably wouldn’t have the time.

“If we were going to do it then we would do it the summer after on the basis that Saracens would agree to stay and the relationship is a stronger one with some commitment from them to help.”