On Sunday 20 September Dutch soccer club Vitesse will play its match against De Graafschap on a new, hybrid pitch, on which the natural grass has been reinforced with synthetic fibres in a woven backing. Both players and coaches are enthusiastic about XtraGrass™, on which they are already training at their training facility, Papendal, in Arnhem, the Netherlands.

The patented XtraGrass™ was developed by material technology company TenCate and supplied by its subsidiary GreenFields. In this system the natural grass grows in a – partly biodegradable – backing, consisting of woven clumps of synthetic fibres. This enables the natural grass to become stronger, better and to be played on for longer: 800 to 900 hours a year, as opposed to 200 to 250 hours for a traditional natural grass pitch. A number of Dutch amateur clubs are already playing on this hybrid surface. XtraGrass™ has already been installed in the Ricoh Stadium and the Kassam Stadium in England and can also be found in countries such as Germany, Japan, the United States, Australia and New Zealand and in Scandinavia. Apart from football, this hybrid pitch is also used for other sports that are played on natural grass, such as rugby.

Vitesse’s fast game

Head coach Peter Bosz of Vitesse comments: “We have our own way of playing and a good pitch is important for this. In the past year the pitch in GelreDome left something to be desired. We hope that the investment in this pitch will produce great sporting results.” The captain of Vitesse, Guram Kashia, says about the new pitch: “The new pitch is fantastic and it suits our style of football perfectly. It’s a very fast and even pitch, which is exactly what our game is all about, holding on to the ball and playing as fast as possible. I like playing on a really fast pitch. The ball then moves around faster, the game itself becomes faster and everyone knows that I really enjoy tackling. The new pitch is ideal for this.”

The best of two worlds

Ton Raaphorst, director of TenCate Grass and GreenFields, says: “With XtraGrass™ GreenFields and TenCate deliver a strong, durable, even and stable natural grass pitch that combines the best of two worlds. According to reliable sources, it is not only more Dutch professional clubs but also clubs in the Premier League, the Bundesliga and other international leagues that want to switch over to XtraGrass™.” In Germany, 1. FC Köln already has XtraGrass™ on its training pitch.

Eredivisie club Vitesse has been training for several weeks on the hybrid grass surface, after its training pitch at the training facility at Papendal near Arnhem was sown with grass seed at the beginning of June. Meanwhile the integrated grass sods for the pitch in GelreDome were growing at a nursery in Limburg in the south of the Netherlands; they arrived in Arnhem by truck in large rolls some ten days ago, and here they were installed at the stadium using special equipment.

XtraGrass™ satisfies stringent requirements. The synthetic fibres are not visible in the natural grass, as they are below ground level, so will not be seen unless the natural grass on parts of the pitch wears away. In winter periods too the pitch thus remains eminently playable, appears green, even and stable and has excellent drainage.

Pre-season preparations are well under way. By mid-July, the clubs’ pitches need to be ready to host SV Spakenburg and VV IJsselmeervogels’ first Topklasse Zaterdag home fixtures. This season, both teams get to enjoy the benefits of a new GreenFields® MX pitch. GreenFields® MX is a woven synthetic turf system that is constructed with the synthetic turf components of TenCate Grass. The two renowned football clubs, stemming from a fishing village situated on what was the Ijsselmeer lake, have been competing for decades now at the very top of Dutch amateur football: both sides have won their division’s title numerous times, with VV IJsselmeervogels winning the crown of overall (Topklasse Zaterdag & Zondag) champions seven times. SV Spakenburg has also won the title, twice over.

Legendary rivalry

The rivalry between ‘the blues’ (VV IJsselmeervogels) and ‘the reds’ (SV Spakenburg) is deep-rooted and has historically caused some friction. These days, the rough edges have been smoothed out, but the rivalry remains just as healthy. Derby games between the two are still the highlight of the season and attract around 8,000 spectators. Although both sides have the title race in focus, rising from the derby battle victorious is just as important.
At half time, supporters from each side have a beer or a coffee in their own club houses, which are located directly adjacent to one another as part of the same sports complex – as they have been since 1970.

Promotion ambitions

A local authority tender for new SV Spakenburg and VV IJsselmeervogels pitches resulted in GreenFields being chosen as the preferred supplier. The superb GreenFields® MX artificial grass system with 3-D fibre weave is setting the standard in the Jupiler league, where it has been installed at a number of clubs already.
Both SV Spakenburg and VV IJsselmeervogels are said to have their sights set on a promotion to the new Dutch Second Division, which, as of 2016, will become a part of the Jupiler League. The Dutch Football Association (KNVB) is hoping that the revised structure will help improve the quality of the game, facilitate the progression from amateur to professional level and make for more thrilling competitions.
The new GreenFields® MX pitches, commissioned by the Spakenburg Council, will provide both clubs with excellent facilities on which to build their technical skill and deliver the level of performance they are striving for.

Dutch football club, Vitesse, is having a new pitch laid at its home stadium, the GelreDome, as well as at its Papendal training facility. The prestigious Arhnem club came fifth in the 2014-15 Dutch Eredivisie. The club elected for revolutionary hybrid natural grass pitches, XtraGrass™, which will be laid during the season’s Summer break.

XtraGrass is a natural grass pitch, enhanced with a woven artificial grass backing. The proportion of natural grass to artificial grass in the pitch’s composition is 90 percent to ten percent, respectively. The hybrid XtraGrass system is an innovation by GreenFields, part of Dutch materials technology enterprise, Royal Ten Cate NV.

This latest generation of hybrid natural grass pitches is distinguished by its durability, evenness and stability, while successfully meeting the high standards of playability expected from natural grass football pitches at the game’s highest level.

XtraGrass means durability, evenness and stability
Joost de Wit, general manager at Vitesse comments on the club’s investment in the new professional sports surface: “To be able to compete in elite sports, you need to have the very best facilities available. Our pitch at the GelreDrome last season left something to be desired. As a leading club, we can benefit hugely from a world-class natural grass pitch. GreenFields will now provide us with that pitch, which represents an important step towards securing our future and achieving our ambitious but wholly realistic objectives as a professional football club.”

In addition, Vitesse’s training facility, Papendal will also receive an XtraGrass™ pitch for use by the first eleven. Preparations are already under way on the main training pitch at Papendal for the laying of a GreenFields® MX artificial grass pitch; the newest edition of the woven artificial grass system.

Agterberg is the company overseeing this project and is also in charge of the overall maintenance of the Vitesse training complex.

In the current football season twelve clubs in the Jupiler League (Dutch First Division) will play their home matches on synthetic turf, eleven of these on synthetic turf fibres from TenCate Grass. Six clubs in the Dutch Premier League also have synthetic turf, five with synthetic turf fibres from TenCate Grass.

SBV Excelsior is already familiar with playing on synthetic turf at home as there has been synthetic turf in the Woudestein Stadium since 2010. ‘We have now opted for a new turf surface,’ explained the general director Ferry de Haan earlier to a local news station. ‘It will be a faster field, without the black rubber granules that you saw flying up every time.’ The choice fell on GreenFields® MX Trimension, a woven synthetic turf system that utilizes the synthetic turf fibres of TenCate Grass. It has been approved according to the FIFA 2 Star standard. The infill consists of green coated granules of synthetic rubber (SBR). As the grass yarns are packed closely together, less infill is necessary.

The first kick-off was on Saturday 28 June and introduced players and trainer Marinus Dijkhuizen of Excelsior to the GreenFields® MX Trimension system. They are well pleased with the attractiveness, evenness and natural appearance of the surface. The colours are brighter and the (sprayed) white line markings look fresher than before. That Saturday general director Ferry de Haan, head of communication Vincent Wernke and mascot Woutje praised the new playing field in similar terms.

Not only do the first team and the youth teams train and play on the field, but social activities also take place. ‘There is something to do nearly every day,’ says Vincent Wernke. And just as in the Polman Stadium in Almelo, towards the end of a match the youngsters are already dreaming of kicking a ball around on the field come the final whistle.

Talks about replacing the existing synthetic field in Woudestein Stadium began even before promotion to the top division was an fact. ‘Nothing beats a perfect natural grass surface, but where can you find one of those nowadays?’ says general manager Ferry de Haan. ‘We are a progressive club that’s keen to develop talent. We got talking to one another through the tender. The advance of synthetic grass is a good development. The conditions are always the same for everyone. We want to go along with this and contribute to the development.’