Everyone at Crawley Town knows how good our pitch has been this season.
And now it's been praised by an opposition manager in Mansfield Town's David Flitcroft.
Speaking after Tuesday's 0-0 draw at The People's Pension Stadium, Flitcroft admitted that he thought the game would be postponed after heavy rain and strong winds in the hours before kick off.
Speaking after the game he said: "We were in the hotel and I thought the game could be off. The wind and rain was coming in all afternoon.
“At one point, we even made a call to see if the game might be called off because it had been that bad.
“But we got down here and it’s one of the best pitches we’ve played on. All credit to Crawley for whatever they’ve done.
“You can see their plan and how they want to play football, and it’s all down to a quality pitch.”
Complete Turf Care have been in charge of the surface for the last two seasons and last night saw its 50th use, including Brighton & Hove Albion women's matches and occasional training sessions.
Groundsman Ben Harwood said: "The work that was done last summer, which was only possible because of the financial help from Brighton, has really paid off.
"We haven't lost a game this season touch wood. The drainage is superb. As soon as it stopped raining yesterday it was as dry as a bone.
"Gabriele Cioffi wants the team to try and play good football on the deck and that's what we try to give him for each game. The groundstaff - Dan, Tom, Joe and I - don't do the job to get praise but it is nice to hear an opposition manager compliment the surface. It definitely contributed to what was a very good game of football."
