AFL concerned about playing surface at Etihad Stadium

AFL general manager of football operations Adrian Anderson said the AFL had met on the matter of the Etihad Stadium ground surface.
 
Mr Anderson said he convened a meeting of senior AFL Football Operations staff, turf experts and AFL Players Association representatives, including CEO Matt Finnis, with Etihad Stadium staff, including chief executive Ian Collins.
 
Mr Anderson said the AFL expressed its concern about the slippery nature of the ground during last Friday night’s match between St Kilda and Hawthorn.
 
Etihad Stadium has agreed to immediately implement a number of measures to improve the surface of the ground. These include:
 
· Hollow coring the ground to aerate it. This was done on Saturday before the match between North Melbourne and Essendon but was not done before Friday night’s game.
· Top-dressing the ground weekly, rather than fortnightly, to provide extra traction for players.
· Consider other recommendations from the AFL’s turf consultant.
· Make a recommendation to players on the type of boots they should wear on the ground
 
Mr Anderson said he had received advice that there was no evidence the surface at Etihad Stadium was not safe for AFL football, but said the slipperiness of the surface for last Friday’s game was unsatisfactory.
 
He said Etihad Stadium management was confident the measures proposed would reduce the slippery nature of the surface.
 
“We all want to see our players playing on the best surface possible and Etihad Stadium is working with us to do whatever is needed to improve the surface.”