will check and see haha

Not sure any of that applies to this video Brian.

Thank you Kevin, much appreciated. I will use a hessian through most stages of pitch preparation in southern states due to extended daylight hours, at this level in Darwin the competition has only just moved to a requirement for covers this season, so will be using a hessian minimise dew late in the week. With the cracking, I water heavily with automated irrigation Sunday, Monday and Tuesday night so expect no visible cracking when starting preparation. Unless the deep/wide cracking has started to cause undulations along the those lines when prepared. I would first up or add extra watering times before adding soil to see if this arrests the issue. I wouldn't add clay to any deep cracking for a pitch that is being prepared for a fixture in the coming week.

never roll with the drum vibration on. besides potential for root damage to the turf with excessive movement of the clay profile, it can create undulations in the profile below the clay, depending on how it was constructed (could be sand then aggregate layer).

@@ThePerfectCricketPitch shot , I thought as much

thanks mat,e appreciate your support, please get in touch if you have any questions

what about them?

Generally 2-5 hours from Wednesday to Saturday morning. In 20 to 30 minute sets, three to four per day and then a small roll on Saturday morning.

Stops the clay sticking to the barrel of the roller, allows the pitch to dry out evenly and holds the exposed clay/foot holes together better.

put to bed mate

no longer with us that old boy

Very similar mate, starting a wicket on a Wednesday afternoon is ideal for a weekend fixture.

@@johnflynn910 our pitch fell apart due to it "drying out" about an inch deep of the top broke up and left big holes on the bowling crease and back foot landing area, the groundsman seems to not be interested in looking after it any more and is just rolling a heap of clippings into the deck, its made our block like a goat track now

@@dsmith9103 sounds like yoi might not be getting consistent watering from Sunday to Wednesday. Need to ensure it gets that base moisture back in the profile after the completion of play. This is normally 20 to 30 mins a night until prep starts again aka I work on Sunday, Monday & Tuesday night with automated irrigation. Additionally there maybe a thatch or layering issue that you might want to get some core samples taken.

@@johnflynn910 I'd show you pictures of how bad it looked, but I'm embarrassed to show you how crap our deck is!!!

@@dsmith9103 feel free to send direct message them to me on the perfect pitch fb page or insta accounts mate. All wickets are recoverable in my opinion

If you have a measuring tape? Even a small one that can measure one of your strides. For me a 22 yards is approximately 24 normal walking paces for me.

66 feet wicket to wicket

Couch Grass is the best for Australian or warm climate conditions.

Barrels were clean mate, so pretty happy with that seal. Got minimal suitable clippings to hide the colour from the low spot.

What weight roller do you have and are you getting a lot compaction from rolling?

2.5 tonne

and just like my machinery doesnt start straight away lol

The pitch was burnt because water got under the cover and pooled in a low spot around the crease and bowlers follow through. Match was reduced from 50 over per side to 30. 640 runs scored.