WORCESTER City have invested in a new irrigation system as part of steps to improve the pitch at St George’s Lane.

Around £3,000 has been spent on sprinklers to keep the grass evenly watered during the summer and when there is no rain.

The move follows recommendations from the Institute of Groundsmanship on how to ensure a better playing surface.

The poor state of the pitch has come in for heavy criticism in recent seasons and it resembled a sandpit at the end of the last Blue Square Bet North campaign.

Other schemes to be implemented include planting grass with deeper roots for durability, employing specialist equipment to let it breathe and using regular fertiliser.

Officials have decided to act in a bid to give manager Carl Heeley’s team the best chance of success in 2011/12 and beyond.

Currently, around 100 matches are played on the pitch but that is set to reduce when tenants Evesham United move to their new ground.

City, whose ground is also used for reserve games and by the Worcester and District League for cup finals, will further look to reduce the workload by finding an alternative training venue.

Director Mike Davis said: “We decided to seek their (IOG’s) advice because of the poor state of the pitch.

“Obviously, we had to do something to improve it and, for a relatively small outlay, the IOG was best qualified to give us the information we needed.

“The consultant visited at the end of April. His overall impression was that the renovation and maintenance programmes were not adequate for a pitch which had so many games played on it.

“Renovation work was carried out immediately when the season ended. The very rutted surface layer was removed and the pitch deeply aerated, top dressed and seeded with a mix of grasses specially blended to grow at low temperatures and withstand hard use.”

He added: “In the short-term it’s going to provide a much better playing surface with the grass rooting deeper.”