Soccer, Lacrosse & Hockey

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Soccer, Lacrosse & Field Hockey Designs

Soccer fields very in size, and field dimensions are typically stated in terms of ranges, rather than of absolute values. Perhaps the most common size for high school soccer fields in the United States is 120 yards long by 55 to 60 yards wide, because that is close to the size of American football fields which are adapted for soccer competition (frequently by extending the field beyond the football sidelines). The specifications for World Cup competition call for fields up to 150 yards long by 100 yards wide, but this size is probably impractical for most schools and public facilities. Children play on smaller fields, typically 60 to 80 yards long, but sometimes even smaller for the youngest players.
 
In planning the field, begin by determining that there is sufficient space for the facility. Ideally, 50 to 60 feet of free space should be left on all sides of the field. Survey the entire space to learn the contours of the terrain and the natural direction of runoff.
 
Lacrosse
A regulation lacrosse field is very similar in size and proportion to a soccer or football field. The field is meant to be 110 years long and 60 yards wide.
 
Field Hockey
A regulation field hockey field is 100 yards long and 60 yards wide.
 
(Field layouts for all three sports are provided in this chapter as Figures 13.3 through 13.5.)
 
13.2b Design Criteria for New Construction
 
Most fields are crowned down the longitudinal axis of the field to promote positive surface drainage, although flat fields sloping toward one touchline or sideline are not uncommon. A slope of 1.5% to 1.75% will normally provide adequate surface drainage, although some perfectly serviceable fields have as little as 1% slope, which is more desirable from a competitive standpoint. In most cases, however, slopes at 1% or less will need installed drain systems to keep the field fully playable during wet weather.
 
Probably the best overall design is a side-to-side sloped field with 1% slope and an installed drain system.
 
If the field being designed will also be used for football, several considerations need to be kept in mind. Since soccer players usually do not require the same large stopping area s football players, placing the touchlines outside the football sidelines usually does not present a safety concern. But extending the touchlines often means that the football bench areas become part of the playing surface of the soccer field. These areas are usually badly damaged by compaction and mechanical stress, and bad weather can turn them into slippery quagmires. In designing a field that will be used for both sports, it's important to keep an even slope through the football sideline area all the way to the soccer touchlines.
 
Some planners also forget that soccer players must leave the field of play to retrieve the ball when it crosses the touchlines, and throw it back in from outside the line. If the field is surrounded by an all-weather track, players may be end up having to run across the track in cleated soccer boots, which many field managers try to avoid.
 
13.2c Field Designs with Preferred Contours
 
As with football fields, soccer fields (and fields for related sports) are usually designed according to one of two general schemes: a crowned field with level touchlines (sidelines) as illustrated in Chapter 12, Figure 12.2, or a flat field sloped side-to-side, Figure 12.2.
 
The crowned field with level touchlines is relatively easy to design and build, and drains fairly efficiently away from the middle of the playing area. Remember, the area where the crowned field meets the level touchline can easily turn into a wet spot. That condition may cause the ball to slow or stop as it approaches the touchline, and may lead to unnecessary falls by players as they maneuver to keep the ball in bounds. What's more, unlike football, in soccer the ball is sometimes put into play from outside the touchline. So players executing throw-ins from outside the touchlines will place a substantial amount of mechanical stress on the turf at that point, and may aggravate the problem of sloppy footing.
 
In order to overcome this limitation, the slope of a soccer, lacrosse, or field hockey field should extend at least 10 to 15 feet outside the touchlines or sidelines, to provide an expanded area of solid footing.
 
Where the terrain permits, side-to-side sloped fields can work very well. Side-to-side fields should have a slope of 1.5% to 1.75% to provide adequate surface drainage. If an installed drain system can be provided, a flatter field with a 1% slope is preferred.
 
13.2d Multiple Field Layouts
 
Multiple field complexes for soccer are becoming widely used throughout North America as the sport increases in popularity. When designing such a complex, it's wise to leave at least 30 feet between fields that are laid out side-by-side, and 50 feet between fields laid out end-to-end. If there are grandstands between the fields, the distance should obviously be increased by the width of the grandstand structures.
 
In laying out multiple field installations, it's important to remember that each field must function as an individual drainage unit. It's virtually impossible to keep a field playable if it has water running across it from adjacent fields. If necessary, leave enough room outside the playing areas to allow for cuts and fills, catch basins and swales.
 
13.2e Turfgrass Selection
 
Experience has shown that for most warm season soccer, lacrosse, and field hockey fields, bermudagrass is the turfgrass of choice. In additional to its durability, bermudagrass can be a fast, dependable surface, and tolerates the close mowing that improves ball response. In the transitional zone, as in the warm season zone, the preferred turfgrass for soccer and related fields is bermudagrass. Bermudagrass fields need to be overseeded with perennial ryegrass fairly early in the competitive season, late August or early September. This combination of turfgrasses can tolerate both mechanical stress of competition and temperature variations, and the bermudagrass serves as a good base for traction.
 
In the transitional zone, as in the warm season zone, the preferred turfgrass for soccer and related fields is bermudagrass. Bermudagrass fields need to be overseeded with perennial ryegrass fairly early in the competitive season, late august or early September. This combination of turfgrasses can tolerate both mechanical stress of competition and temperature variations, and the bermudagrass serves as a good base for traction.
 
In the northern zone, Kentucky bluegrass/perennial ryegrass mix is probably the ideal choice for soccer and related fields. The aggressive recuperation characteristic of Kentucky bluegrass helps the turf respond strongly to mechanical stress, and the Kentucky bluegrass thatch protects the root structure. In wet conditions, Kentucky bluegrass thatch keeps the players up out of the mud, preserving footing and allowing safe play. However, Kentucky bluegrass naturally produces more thatch than is ideal for these sports, and can slow the progress of the rolling ball. So the addition of perennial ryegrass varieties can improve the turf's performance as a platform for sports demanding good ball response.
 
Superior varieties of Kentucky bluegrass include Princeton-104, A-34, Touchdown, and Blacksburg. These are many good perennial ryegrass choices.
 
In any climatic zone, seeded fields need time (three to four months) to fully establish themselves before use for practice or games. Kentucky bluegrass needs even more time to mature; usually a full year. A good policy with any seeded turfgrass is to seed a field in the spring of one year for use in the fall of the next year.
 
If the budget allows for sodding, be sure to specify a mature product with a thatch layer thick enough to hold the sod together without netting.
 
The practice in the northern zone of seeding perennial ryegrass into a 100% Kentucky bluegrass turf before and during the competitive season was originally developed to reduce stresses on the Kentucky bluegrass plants. This practice can also help to eliminate the bare spots typically found in front of the goals in each of these three sports.
 
13.2f Installed Irrigation Systems
 
Irrigation systems for fields in any of these sports must account for the traffic patterns of the players, as well as the placement, size, and durability of sprinkler heads.
 
Placement of the heads should take consideration of the portions of the field where the largest number of players line up. Since the goal area at each end is the portion of the field most subject to wear and tear, place the heads outside these areas to avoid mechanical damage or player hazards.
 
Smaller heads are obviously to be preferred, and they should be inspected at least monthly to ensure good grass cover and correct seating and to check for damage. Ths ball should be able to roll right over the heads without interruption of its motion. As always when selecting heads, choose a model that is rated by the manufacturer as suitable for the particular sport.
 
A four-row system suitable for soccer and related sports can be found in Chapter 12, Figure 12.4. Since the largest soccer fields can be substantially larger than football fields, a five-row system is included in this chapter as Figure 13.2. Unlike football, where play is concentrated at the middle of the field, soccer action is more widely distributed across the playing surface. For this reason, a five-row system with a row of heads in the middle of the field does not create safety or maintenance problems in soccer.
 
Figure 13.1.
A five-row irrigation system for large soccer fields.
 
This design requires water pressure of 75 PSI at field edge and yields a pressure of 60 PSI at the base of the sprinkler heads. Average precipitation rate for this system will be .44 inches/hour for full circle heads, .88 inches/hour for half-circle heads, and 1.75 inches/hour for quarter circle heads. Running time for 1" watering will be 2 hours 16 minutes for full circle heads, one hour 8 minutes for half-circle heads, and 34 minutes for quarter circle heads.
 
13.2g Installed Drain Systems and Catch Basins
 
Installed Drain Systems
For sports such as these, where ball response is critical, it's difficult to achieve sufficient surface drainage to efficiently remove heavy or sustained rains. It takes four hours for a field with a 1.5% crown to move water from the center of the field across the touchlines/sidelines, so installed drain systems are often critical to acceptable field performance.
 
One common form of drainage system for sports fields is commonly referred to as a "French drain," but does not meet the strict definition of that type of system. Strictly speaking, a French drain does not include pipe, relying instead on carefully constructed beds of gravel. But the common systems are constructed with pipe (originally tile pipe--leading to their common name: "drain tile"). Typically, the pipe was covered with felt paper or packed with coarse sand to prevent the pipe from becoming clogged with silt and clay. These "pipe drains" were usually laid in trenches 2 to 3 feet deep, and then filled with gravel to within 6" of the surface.
 
Properly installed to prevent silt and clay intrusion, some of these pipe drain systems are still at work after 30 years. The most long-lasting systems have a thick layer of sand--normally 12" to 18" thick--packed around the pipe.
 
Pipe drains can be effective in helping to drain an area, because they lower the water table, removing water from the sub-soil, and eventually from the topsoil as well. However, their effect on the relative wetness of the topsoil is only gradual, and pipe drains cannot be relied upon for rapid removal of surface water if they are not filled to the surface with sand, a practice which negatively impacts turf growth and traction.
 
An additional concern with this type of drain system is that the layering of topsoil over the pea gravel in the drain trenches will create a perched water table, preventing water from reaching the pipes. Furthermore, in drought-like conditions, the topsoil above the pipe drains will create dry, brown stripes across the field. This effect occurs because, in dry conditions, the turfgrass root system will draw small amounts of water upward from the subsoil. However, the roots will not be able to draw water from the pea gravel, leading to the excessive drying of those portions of the field surface.
 
Two other problems plague pipe drain systems, especially with the conversion to modern plastic pipe. The first problem is crushing of the pipe by heavy construction equipment, and the second is overcompaction of the soil. Many contractors overcompact the subsoil because they are accustomed to the practice. Both problems compromise the effectiveness of the drainage systems, so contractors should be advised to avoid overcompaction of the subsoil, and to scarify the subsoil before installing topsoil. It's a good idea to add these instructions to the job specifications. (See Chapter 12, Figure 12.5 for a typical pipe drain system.)
 
A new type of field drainage are "strip drains," which provide a more effective choice for surface water removal. Strip drains are cloth-wrapped plastic or fiber structures that are installed in a shallow trench 3" to 4" wide and about 12" deep. The strip drain is placed in the bottom of the trench and extends halfway to the surface. The trench is then filled with sand right up to the surface level.
 
See Chapter 12, Figure 12.6 for a strip-drain-based design for a crowned soccer, lacrosse, or field hockey field. See Figure 12.7 for a strip-drain-based drainage system for a side-to-side sloped field.
 
Strip drain systems at surface level remove some of the surface water from the field and shorten the distance the water has to flow. Of course, strip drains can also be compromised by overcompaction of the topsoil or subsoil.
 
Catch Basins
Many fields have catch basins on the sideline as part of the drainage system. The primary value of catch basins is their function as "junction boxes" for pipe drains or strip drains. Catch basins should be at least 20 feet from the touchlines/sideline to avoid the risk of player injury. For most fields, four catch basins at the corners of the field are sufficient for prompt drainage.
 
The practice of using catch basins with swales from basin-to-basin to assist surface runoff is not generally an efficient way to provide drainage. It has a negative impact on field aesthetics, especially if the swales cause mowers to scalp or gouge the turf. The swales can also stay wet for extended periods. Given the problems with this approach, it is not recommended for most fields.
 
For draining level sideline areas, a combination of pipe drains and strip drains is usually more effective than swales. For instance, lay out a downward sloped trench 15" deep to the sidelines and 20 feet away, running to catch basins outside the end lines. Lay a ½" bed of pea gravel in the trench, then a 4" perforated pipe. Then fill pea gravel to within 6" of the surface, top with coarse sand, and seed. The best sand has less than 5% passing the 100 sieve screen.
 
A "sand drain" system of this kind can be particularly effective for fields that have 400-meter running tracks around them. If the sand drain is installed near the track, it will drain both field and track more effectively than swales and catch basins. (This hybrid "trackside" system is illustrated in Chapter 16, Figure 16.4.)