Most people don’t know, but to retain its integrity, a hockey asto needs to be resurfaced every 10 – 12 years. The City Lords Astroturf (officially opened in 2007) was already due, but Covid meant some delays to the process.
This is an enormous project for the College but a good quality Astroturf is essential for competitive hockey; for players looking to advance in the game, they must train and play on an artificial surface, making the maintenance crucial to retaining the high standards of play we’re known for.
SynSport are the synthetic sport surface specialists doing the resurfacing for us, and these photos show just the first step of the process – the taking off of the old turf, that will be repurposed in other areas on campus.
The next step of the project is to assess the state of the foundations and repair/rejuvenate if necessary, then only does the new turf get laid.
Where it all began
In 2007 the official opening of the City Lords Astroturf and Rugby Field took place on Saturday 7 July. This was an auspicious occasion and took place on the annual derby day between Kingswood and Woodridge College.
Our guests of honour on the day was Mr Stewart and Mrs Ann Thompson attended the opening. Mr Stewart joined the Kingswood family in 1950 as a teacher and was an extremely talented hockey player. It is interesting to note that Stewart is credited with starting hockey in earnest at Kingswood College. Mr Thompson went on to become housemaster in various houses on campus between 1959 and 1972. In 1982 he became Deputy Headmaster and they both retired from Kingswood in 1985.
