East Fife pitching in as SPFL club begin Bayview pitch resurfacing work
A new artificial surface is now in the process of being laid at East Fife’s Bayview Stadium in preparation for the new SPFL season.
The pitch resurfacing work, carried out by popular Scottish FA-recommended firm Sportex, got underway last week and is expected to be completed before the Fifers’ first competitive outing home against Greenock Morton in the Premier Sports Cup on Tuesday, July 14.
Dick Campbell’s Scottish League One side had no choice but to put down a new artificial surface due to the timeworn pitch reaching the end of its lifespan. The club confirmed in a website post that the old pitch would likely to not have passed Club Licensing requirements, and that they managed to pull together funding in conjunction with Fifers for the Community via the Scottish FA’s Pitching In programme.
“The new surface will be a Greenfields MF Elite 50mm 3G synthetic turf system to comply with FIFA Quality Pro certification,” the website post read. “The main visible difference will be the use of green coloured infill which will remove the black patchiness of the original surface.
Liam Anderson, club chairman, added: “To see work starting is a huge weight off everyone’s shoulders. The current pitch was not expected to pass the required Club Licence tests which could have seen the club being sanctioned by the SPFL.
“My thanks go to everyone involved in the funding process including the SFA, SPFL, Sportslabs and FFTC as well everyone involved through the club.
“We can now look forward to the next eight years with the confidence that we have the best synthetic playing surface possible.”
“We have previously had enquiries from fans asking for offcuts of the old surface but due to the contractor’s stringent recycling regime, we cannot offer this. However, offcuts of the new surface may become available, we will keep you informed.”