Langton Green Community Sports Association

Good day for the U7 Pele team. 5/5 performance at the Jarvis Brook Fiesta. Well done all.

A Rec update: The leatherjacket blight destroyed more than half our pitches, and the cricket square. The plan to deal with the grass-eating larvae went very well in March and April, halting the destruction. The next step was to re-instate grass, turn the Rec into a rec again, and then restore it to sport-playing condition.
Unfortunately with only one decent day's rain from mid-April to the end of May we have been dealt some awfully cruel cards. A good portion of the grass we sowed cooked.
In recent years our winters have been warmer and wetter, and our summers more drought-like than in decades gone by. It's making it incredibly hard (expensive) to restore the Rec when there is no irrigation.
LGCSA and by extension SPC face an awful dilemma. The do-nothing option projects forwards to hoping the weather in September would enable grass to germinate and thrive, starting then. But if we wait till that weather we have 36 mini soccer teams - boys and girls from 6 -11 years old who no longer have a home for their football fixtures for the 2026-27 season. It doesn't help that this week the people running the all-weather pitches at Tunbridge Wells Boys Grammar, and Mascall's Academy demanded a 25% price hike for us to be able to renew the 3g bookings we have with them.
In short, if we are to be able to support kids playing sport in the Rec next season we need to restore the Rec right now, and after the 7 arid weeks it is clear that any plan requires an irrigation strategy for the next 2-3 months.
On Monday SPC voted to allocate £7,500 to the project, and on Friday LGCSA's application to Kent FA was rewarded with a £5,000 contribution. Armed with this, plus LGCSA's funds and volunteer workforce we are now able to attempt a rescue plan.
The recent (long overdue) rain has softened the ground enough to vert-slit it, after which we add more grass seed....but instead of depending on Mother Nature we are aiming to import temporary water tankage and a manifold, so we can keep the Rec watered, for the summer months, allow seed to germinate, grass to grow, and pitches to be restored.
It's brave, and shows the level of commitment people have to kids' recreation and sport. We still need fingers very crossed, and volunteers to help ensure we get the water to the right places.

That's the short -term crisis attacked. Longer term we must face some harsh realities. The cost of maintaining grass playing areas is soaring with climate change, and the challenges it seems to be bringing. Any large area that cannot be watered is vulnerable to long term deterioration if the 'mother nature' window of opportunity to rejuvenate grounds continues to be this narrow. The options are stark: 1.hope the last few years of weather are an aberration. or...2. accept these sports pitches are doomed, and downsize activity if no suitable venues can be found, or 3. find a long term irrigation solution not to mention a solution to being waterlogged from November through to May.

Some dedicated people are staring hard at option 3 in coming months, but for now it has been heartwarming to see a short-term plan come together from multiple directions.
fingers still crossed,
Chris

Langton Green Pele, 5 out of 5 at Crowborough Fiesta, 28 goals scored, 1 conceded. Well done all! ⚽️

Langton Green Puskás receiving their medals after a fantastic run of games at the Crowborough Fiesta 🏅⚽

All the boys should be incredibly proud of how hard they battled and the effort they’ve put in throughout the season. The improvement has been massive, and it’s great to see all that hard work paying off.

Big thanks to the organisers for such a well-run event — and we all definitely enjoyed the burgers too! 🍔👏

A brilliant day and a great event all round.

Langton Green Madness - Mid Sussex Youth Football League U11 Plate WINNERS!

Madness took the lead after 5 minutes with top scorer Tiago finishing superbly. After squandering a number of chances to extend their lead, opponents Copthorne grew into the game and equalised on the stroke of half time. Madness dominated the second period but couldn’t find the winner their play deserved. The game went into extra time, with 8 minutes remaining they fell behind, with Copthorne scoring a penalty. With the game looking over, Basti rocketed home with moments left to send the game to penalties.

Madness keeper Fletcher saved 3 as Madness claimed an unforgettable victory. The stopper picked up the Player of the Match award thanks to his shootout heroics.

Congratulations to our U13s Mets who won the Cup today making it a league and couple double after winning the title last weekend! ⚽️⚽️

“Congratulations to the U13 Mets for securing the Crowborough League U13 A division title today, fantastic effort from all the boys!”

Congratulating our U7s Puskas after their 3-1 victory and 3-3 draw at Tunbridge Wells at the Ridgeway. What a lovely day to play!

Another Rec update....whilst the Rec looks a a baked patch of dirt, a closer inspection shows green shoots of germinated grass seed. And, yesterday, we put down the second half of the planned grass seeding, which means there will be reasons to be happy when/if it rains over the next week.
In another two weeks the plan is to give the seedlings a fertiliser boost.
There are lots of stories across the region of other blighted recreation grounds and golf courses; everyone is trying to share their knowledge and experiences and figure out the best approach.

There are insufficient all-weather surfaces across Tunbridge Wells, so any degradation in our grass playing areas is a disaster, both in terms of the recreational outdoor opportunities it takes away, but also financially, because there is no cheap fix, and almost no-one has budgeted to deal with such a problem. Keep fingers crossed.
Chris