Gary Neville launches mission to improve the UK's worst football pitches
Former England and Manchester United defender Gary Neville has launched a Best Worst Pitch Initiative to breathe new life into underfunded grassroots football pitches.
The Best Worst Pitch initiative will provide line painting and pitch maintenance equipment, as well as maintenance training to 50 UK grassroots clubs.
Specsavers has partnered with Man United and England legend to launch the Best Worst Pitch initiative.
Open to clubs across the UK, the initiative will provide teams who are most in need with professional line painting equipment and GPS pitch mapping, pitch maintenance equipment, as well as maintenance training to help them maintain their pitches through the next season and beyond.
Clear and accurate line markings are vital not just for ensuring structure and fairness in the game, but also for helping players and officials navigate the pitch-enhancing visibility, spatial awareness, and overall safety throughout play.
Gary Neville added: " Anyone who has played football at one point or another has played on a dodgy pitch. Grassroots football is the foundation of our sport and it's great to be a part of the Best Worst Pitch initiative supporting the communities and volunteers who make it possible.'
The announcement comes as UK football governing bodies have recently highlighted that maintaining grassroots pitches across the UK is one of the main issues facing the sport.
With councils stretched for funding, the responsibility for maintaining club pitches, often falls on dedicated members of the grassroots football community.
It's a challenge Specsavers has seen up close, having documented the journey of grassroots teams through the Best Worst Team campaign - highlighting the real struggles faced at pitch level and further underlining the brand's long-standing commitment to supporting the grassroots football community.
Speaking about the struggles of Pitch maintenance, Chairman of current Specsavers Best Worst Team, Tunley Athletic, Craig Doughty said: 'It's a real slog sometimes - every week, rain or shine, I'm out there doing two full laps of the pitch just to get the lines marked.
'The equipment we've got is ancient—it clogs, it leaks, and it takes twice as long as it should. On dark evenings or when the wind's howling, it feels like it takes forever. But I do it because I love this club—it means everything to the community.'
Alongside providing equipment, Specsavers is also offering training and education to the selected clubs - aiming to tackle some of the long-term challenges faced by grassroots teams and the volunteers who maintain their pitches. The goal is to improve the quality and longevity of these pitches, ensuring local communities can continue to enjoy them for many matches to come.
Kim Bull, PR and Social Lead, commented: 'Over the last two seasons supporting clubs that need a bit of help with their eyes and ears, as well as their game, we've noticed the effort that goes into keeping grassroots clubs running. People like Craig, who quietly put in the hard work behind the scenes to keep pitches playable, is what grassroots football is all about. This initiative means we can support more clubs and communities, like Tunley. By making faded lines more visible, we're helping players see the beautiful game more clearly. And hopefully make fewer mistakes!'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Sun
an hour ago
- The Sun
Man Utd transfer news LIVE: Rashford sends Barcelona PLEA, Onana to REJECT move to French giants, Mbeumo makes ‘U-TURN'
MANCHESTER UNITED are in for a crucial summer of transfers at Old Trafford. Marcus Rashford has sent a plea to Barcelona ahead of an impending departure from the Red Devils. Andre Onana is set to reject interest from Monaco and is keen to establish himself as the No1 at Old Trafford. Meanwhile, Red Devils target Bryan Mbeumo has reportedly made a U-TURN on his future plans, with the Brentford man favouring a switch to Spurs over Utd this summer. Elsewhere, Juventus and Napoli are said to be interested in a move for Jadon Sancho.
Metro
2 hours ago
- Metro
Marcus Rashford speaks out on Barcelona transfer ahead of Man Utd return
Manchester United forward Marcus Rashford says he would be keen to link up with Lamine Yamal at Barcelona. Rashford spent the second half of last season on loan at Aston Villa after being frozen out of United's squad by Ruben Amorim last winter. Villa have the option to sign Rashford for £40 million but the 27-year-old is holding out for a Champions League club and his preference is to join Barcelona. Last month, Rashford's brother and agent travelled to Barcelona for talks with the Spanish champions over a possible deal. But while Barcelona are looking to strengthen their attacking options ahead of the new campaign, Rashford is not their first-choice target with Liverpool's Luis Diaz and Athletic Bilbao's Nico Williams both preferred. Wake up to find news on your club in your inbox every morning with Metro's Football Newsletter. Sign up to our newsletter and then select your team in the link so we can send you football news tailored to you. Rashford is understood to be willing to take a significant cut on the £350,000-a-week salary he is earning at United in order to secure a move to Barcelona. In an interview on YouTube channel XBuyer which was released on Saturday, Rashford was asked if he would like to play alongside Barcelona's 17-year-old sensation Yamal. Rashford replied: 'Yeah, sure. Everybody in the world wants to play with the best. So hopefully, we'll see.' The interviewer, Eric Ruiz, went on to tell Rashford that he supports Barcelona and that he would like to see him play for the Catalan club. Rashford replied with a smile: 'We'll see.' The England international is currently training individually in Marbella ahead of a potential return to United where he would link back up with Amorim for the club's pre-season campaign. 'Spain is nice, not too far from home,' Rashford said. 'If I train here for a long time, it's good, because my family can come and see me for a few days, it's only a three-hour flight. The weather is nice here.' For more stories like this, check our sport page. Follow Metro Sport for the latest news on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. MORE: Andre Onana responds after Monaco approach Manchester United goalkeeper MORE: Juventus hold transfer talks to sign £32million Chelsea star MORE: Jurrien Timber reveals what he has heard about Arsenal's transfer window plans
Metro
2 hours ago
- Metro
Andre Onana responds after Monaco approach Man Utd goalkeeper
Andre Onana is keen to remain at Manchester United after receiving interest from Monaco, according to reports. Onana joined United in a £47.2 million move from Inter in 2023 but his future at Old Trafford is in doubt after a series of high-profile errors last season. The 29-year-old still has three years left on his contract but has refused to rule out the prospect of leaving United this summer. 'Will I leave? I don't know, we'll see,' Onana said when asked about his future at a charity event held in Burkina Faso last week. Monaco, who finished third in Ligue 1 last season and secured a place in the Champions League, have made an approach to United over Onana's availability this summer. Wake up to find news on your club in your inbox every morning with Metro's Football Newsletter. Sign up to our newsletter and then select your team in the link so we can send you football news tailored to you. However, The Times reports that Onana's preferences is to stay at United and fight for his place in the team. More Trending United have already considered the prospect of replacing Onana ahead of the new season and have held initial talks to sign Atalanta goalkeeper Marco Carnesecchi. The 24-year-old extended his contract with Atalanta earlier this year which now runs until 2028 and it's understood that the Serie A club, who finished third in Serie A last term, would demand a €50m (£42.7m) transfer fee for their goalkeeper. United have also held talks to sign Aston Villa goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez, who appeared to wave goodbye to supporters in his side's last game at Villa Park last month. It's understood that the World Cup winner is open to a move to Ruben Amorim's side this summer. For more stories like this, check our sport page. Follow Metro Sport for the latest news on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. MORE: Juventus hold transfer talks to sign £32million Chelsea star MORE: Jurrien Timber reveals what he has heard about Arsenal's transfer window plans MORE: Jadon Sancho decides transfer 'priority' as Manchester United receive new approach
