Football
ESPN staff 8y

Newcastle pitch to be 'fantastic' despite Rugby World Cup games

Newcastle United's pitch will be "fantastic" for their match at home to Norwich City on Sunday, according to deputy head groundsman Andrew Tully.

Concerns about the state of Newcastle's St James' Park pitch have been raised after another Rugby World Cup game was played on Tyneside.

New Zealand's 47-9 win over Tonga on Friday saw St James' Park groundstaff called in to fix a number of issues with pitchforks as the surface cut up under the pressure from scrums.

Scotland met Samoa on Sunday in the final of three scheduled World Cup games at the venue before Newcastle host Norwich on Oct. 18.

But Tully told the club's official website: "It's good, considering everything we expected from the rugby."

"At the end of the day it's a football pitch -- not a rugby one -- and we are in the process of a quick turnaround to get it ready for football again at the weekend.

"The pitch hasn't gone anywhere -- it's still there. You've got the rugby markings and a bit of damage from the games, which is what we knew would happen and we will tend to throughout the week.

"We worked pretty late through the double-header weekend -- that was always going to be the case. Two games in two days of any sport is a lot for a pitch to take. It's just general wear in high-traffic areas that we really have to tend to.

"By Sunday it will be looking fantastic."

Newcastle have yet to win a game in the Premier League this season as they sit at the bottom of the table with only three points from their eight games so far.

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