01 Nov 2018
Leicester City, Warwickshire CCC and Leeds Rhinos among winners of 2018 IOG Awards
BY Tom Walker
Groundscare teams at Leicester City Football Club, Warwickshire County Cricket Club and Leeds Rhinos rugby club are among the winners of the 2018 Institute of Groundsmanship’s (IOG) awards for groundskeeping.
The winners were announced at a sell-out awards gala last night at the Hilton Birmingham Metropole attended by 650 people.
Celebrating its 10th anniversary, the awards celebrate the achievements by volunteer and professional teams, as well as individuals at facilities ranging from grassroots to professional stadia level.
“Having this year suffered extreme weather conditions, with the winter’s ‘Beast from the East’ through to this summer’s unprecedented record heatwave, the climate has tested groundsmen to their limits," said IOG chief executive Geoff Webb.
“It has not been easy, yet we have seen how fantastic our profession is and this year’s awards had a fantastic array of nominees who have all achieved very high standards."
The full list of winners:
Professional Football Grounds Team or the Year
(From Premier League, Championship and Scottish Premier League)
Leicester City FC
Professional Football Grounds Team of the Year
(From English Leagues 1 & 2, National League, National League North/South, Scottish Championship & Leagues 1 & 2, Ireland & Wales Professional Leagues)
Rotherham United FC
Professional Cricket Grounds Team of the Year
Warwickshire CCC, Edgbaston
Professional Rugby Football League Grounds Team of the Year
Leeds Rhinos (Leeds Rugby)
Professional Rugby Football Union Grounds Team of the Year
Scottish RFU (BT Murrayfield Stadium, Edinburgh)
Most Promising Sports Turf Student of the Year
Matthew Skingle, Coventry City FC
Young Grounds Person of the Year
John Wright, Southampton FC
Sports Grounds Team/Person of the Year
Crowborough RFC, East Sussex
Community Sports Club Grounds Team/Person of the Year
Stanningley Sports & Amateur Rugby League Club, Leeds
Public Sector Sports Ground Team of the Year
Gavin Jones Ltd (Aspire Defence, Project Allenby/Connaught), Surrey.
Bowling Grounds Team/Person of the Year
Burleys (Crouch Bowling Club, East Sussex).
Best Managed Artificial Surface of the Year
Scotstoun Stadium, Glasgow.
Environmental and Ecology Strategy Award
Forest Green Rovers FC, Gloucestershire.
Professional Multi-Sports Ground/Facility Team of the Year
Bath Recreation Ground.
University/College Grounds Team of the Year
University of Leicester.
Independent School Grounds Team of the Year
St Joseph’s College, Ipswich
International Ambassador of the Year
Jonathan Calderwood, Paris Saint-Germain FC.
Professional Tennis Courts Grounds Team/Person of the Year
Devonshire Park, Eastbourne
Professional Horse Racing Grounds Team of the Year
Lingfield Park Racecourse, Surrey
Alex R Millar Award – chosen from the outstanding winner across all award categories
Gary Barwell, Warwickshire CCC.
Lifetime/Outstanding Achievement Award
Peter Dury
IOG Outstanding Achievement Awards
Carl Pass and Steve Prinn
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