Veterans Field Conditions

Soccer players are worried that this sand on Veterans field is causing players to get hurt. Photo by Chris Dawson.

A field of full of hundreds of soccer dreams and fond memories has turned into a field of nightmares according to some Men’s League soccer players.

That's the kind of way they are describing Veterans field these days.

“It is in horrible shape probably the worst I have seen in the last 20 years,” said Rob Celebre who plays for the Davedi Club in the Men’s Premier Soccer League in North Bay.

His concern is a “top dressing sand” that the city has used to try and help absorb water and reduce on-field puddles and mud. But Celebre says that sand has become a hazard with the ball coming to a complete stop when it rolls onto the sandy midfield.

“They have put beach sand in the middle and players are getting injured like crazy,” added Celebre.

Parks manager Dave Schroeder says the city is doing as much maintenance as it can to try and keep the field in playing shape. He believes the field is actually in better condition than it was last year because they have eliminated standing water which was making the middle of the field muddy.

“I’m not sure what we can do to make it more playable,” Shroeder said, “if we re-sodded we’d have to shut down field for 4 weeks.”

Schroeder adds that a major overhaul of the field would literally shut the field down for the entire year and with such a high demand for soccer fields that’s almost impossible to do.

The city plans to address the issue more this September by repairing the low areas with sod and turf with hopes that it grows in for next season.