Dennis helps IOG Groundsman of the year regain his crown

Nottingham Forest FC’s Ewan Hunter has been crowned as IOG Professional Football Groundsman of the Year for the second time. This prestigious accolade is adjudged on a set of criteria that includes the pitch being inspected by the referee and visiting team manager following each match before rigorous judging by the STRI to decide the top three from which a winner is finally chosen.

Also the holder of the League One Groundsman of the Year title, Ewan attributes much of his success to Dennis mowers.

He joined Nottingham Forest FC 3 years ago, and was pleased to find he had inherited two Dennis G760s in the machinery line-up as he had enjoyed using them at his previous club, Rushden and Diamonds.

“The Dennis G760s are based at the City ground and get used after every single game,” Ewan explains. “We use the brush cassette to remove unwanted debris from the pitch, which takes about 1hour 20 mins. It cleans the surface so that we can see where divots need to be replaced. It really does give an excellent surface to work on. The G760 Is a light weight machine which also gives an excellent cut”. Ewan comments that he tends to use the brush cassette more in the summer when the grass is young and in the winter when the ground is soft to avoid damage to the pitch.  

“Every year we try to produce the best pitch possible for our team and the fans. We are always looking of ways to improve the quality,” he says.

Ewan admits: “I now have the bug for winning the IOG award so we will continue to work hard to continuously raise the standard of our pitch.”

He insists that Dennis equipment makes his job a lot easier. “The mowers are reliable and of very high quality, I am a definite fan! They play a vital part in keeping the pitch healthy by getting rid of dead grass and debris which leaves a fantastic sward with no thatch. Dennis is one of the only brands that offers interchangeable cassettes which are a great help.”

The Nottingham Forest FC grounds team are now coveting the G860s which are slightly bigger machines. Ewan laughs, I hope the club don’t want me to wait  until the G760s get worn out, because we will be waiting a long, long time!”